HISTORY OF
THE CONGREGATIONS
OF THE
UNITED PRESBYTERIAN
CHURCH
1733-1900
CLASSIFICATION
NUMBER
Hfr^Cl
READINGS
COPY
3GM
PY
STACK CC
v.l
THE
KNOX COLLEfil
TORONTO
HISTORY OF THE CONGREGATIONS OF THR
UNITED PRESBYTERIAN CHURCH
FROM 1733 TO 1900
HISTORY OF THE CONGREGATIONS
OF THE
UNITED PRESBYTERIAN
CHURCH
REV. ROBERT SMALL, D.D., EDINBURGH
IN TWO VOLUMES
VOLUME I
EDINBURGH
DAVID M. SMALL, 3 HOWARD STREET
1904
THu uBRARY
KNOX CQLiBSi
TORONTO
THE RIVERSIDE PRESS LIMITED, EDINBURGH
PREFACE
IT was in September 1891 that I undertook the work of which the first
volume now appears in print. It is a long time to have been engaged as
a hewer of wood and a drawer of water. But, as Dr M'Kelvie attested,
when investigation of innumerable dates and incidents has to be carried
on, and correspondence engaged in, " weeks and months waste away at a
rate which experience alone can calculate." To bring the completion nearer
the field came to be limited to Scotland, and the Union of October 1900 was
made the terminus. Since this latter date a few deaths have been entered
in parentheses, but nothing more.
The aim throughout has been to keep by authoritative documents and
let facts speak for themselves. Condensation has been demanded at every
step to the exclusion of, perhaps, half the material, and any inclination to
enlarge on the merits of the dead or the gifts of the living has been checked
by the summons to move on. Little, therefore, is to be looked for in the way
of direct laudation. We thus steer clear of the untrustworthiness which
John Foster ascribed to monumental tributes, though in these, owing to
their brevity, there is seldom much to complain of. But of an inscription
on a marble tablet newly put up to the memory of a worthy minister many
years dead he wrote as follows : — " The greater number of the lines and
epithets were appropriate, but there was one which I knew to be totally
false— false not only in the sense that it was not the truth but that a
contrary expression would have been the truth." With regard to brief
biographical notices of departed ministers, relatives are often unreasonably
exacting, as I have had occasion to learn before now.
In drawing up this history I have had facilities which were not within
reach forty years ago. Since then, to use the words of the committee en
trusted with the business, " 150 volumes of Synodical and Presbyterial
Minutes, forming a valuable history of the denomination in its several
branches," have been collected within the Church premises and made
accessible. The first class referred to are almost entire, and though the
second have many blanks they constitute a wonderful assortment when we
consider the little care that was bestowed on their preservation. Besides,
within the period mentioned carefully drawn up narratives of individual
congregations have been published to an extent never known before, to say
nothing of books on a larger scale, such as Mr Finlay's History of Buchan
Presbytery.
Vlll
PREFACE
Dr M'Kelvie's Annals and Statistics, on which the present work is based,
was prepared under heavy disadvantages. The author in his country manse
had slender means of sifting the information he obtained from local sources.
Inaccuracies were unavoidable, and the same will be true of the work which
is now completed amidst more favourable surroundings. The labour Dr
M'Kelvie had in collecting material must have been enormous, and the
thought makes me almost relent over the need I have had to point out
blemishes and make corrections. The Annals were carefully revised, on their
way to the press, besides being brought up to date, and only those who have
examined the original manuscript can estimate how much the book owes
to the editorship of Dr Blair.
Dr George Brown's manuscript History I have also found of inestimable
service, though it is confined mostly to dates of licence, ordination, and
death, with brief notes appended. On the whole, it is a model of painstaking
accuracy. For this kind of work Dr Brown had aptitudes which Dr
M'Kelvie did not possess. His mind had acquired a strong bent in that
direction in his boyhood. The Burgher and Antiburgher ministers he heard
preach in his early days, the ordination services he witnessed, the com
munions he went to, with the long walks, and the edifying converse by
the way, these had all a place among his cherished recollections. But
Dr M'Kelvie, though attached to the Church with which he had cast in his
lot on coming to years, had no interest in her antiquities or in the ministers
of a former day like that displayed by Dr Brown of Broughton Place and
Dr Macfarlane of London, children of the Secession manse.
The Annals of the Original Secession Church by Dr Scott of Saltcoats
has been constructed on a plan similar to that of Dr M'Kelvie's, but the
author had a comparatively narrow field to traverse, and written records to
draw from almost throughout. Hence the book carries what we may call
a rounded-off completeness, and it does justice to a phase of Secession
workings which even the present age can ill afford to despise. The author,
however, makes too much use of Presbytery Minutes, giving very generally
the ministers who presided at moderations or officiated at ordination ser
vices, matters of no importance and on which nothing turned. The thought
of falling into the same mistake has occurred to me in noting down lists of
calls that were given and declined, or when endeavouring to determine the
precise date of a minister's death, or whether a certain ordination took place
on the gth or the igth of a particular month. But the excuse may be given
in the words of another : " When a reader finds that mistakes have been
made about trifling matters of which he happens to be cognisant, he loses
that confidence which is so essential if a biography (or history) is to be
enjoyed."
In a book of this kind it is desirable that even the minutest blunders
should be corrected. Several errors in dates and the like have been dis
covered since these pages were in print, and hence a list of corrigenda will
be given at the close of this volume. Further corrections will be welcomed
in view of issuing a similar list along with the second volume. But besides
surface blunders readers will be certain to mark omissions and mistakes
PREFACE ix
which I can only ascribe, like Dr Johnson with a wrong definition in his
Dictionary, to "ignorance, pure ignorance."
In compiling this history my obligations to correspondents are too mani
fold to be acknowledged in detail. When applied to for personal informa
tion or written documents brethren in the ministry, and others, have all but
universally been willing to oblige, and only in two or three cases have letters
of inquiry received no answer. But my large indebtedness to Mr William
Crawford, son of the late Dr Crawford, Portobello, must have special men
tion. From his wide acquaintance with Secession, and still more with
Relief, antiquities I have benefited all along. Besides this, while these
sheets have been passing through the press he has done what no one else
could in the way of rectifying errors which go much deeper than typography,
to say nothing of following out inquiries which I have been unable of late
to prosecute for myself.
I should also make mention of friends, chiefly in the West, who have
exerted themselves to make this undertaking successful. Among these I
must specify the Rev. James Primrose of Cathedral Square Church, Glasgow,
without whose zeal and energy the labour of so many years might have
remained permanently in manuscript. As it is, though the U.P. Church
has now merged in a larger fellowship, it is to be hoped that a goodly
number will value this two-volumed book as an attempt to preserve the
congregational annals of a Church which has had a history of widespread
interest, stretching back in its various branches over more than a century
and a half. And though one generation cometh and another goeth, I
believe that in our older congregations there are still a few for whom
the words " Secession " and " Relief" have something of a magic sound
as they come up from the midst of departed years.
R. S.
46 COMISTON DRIVE,
EDINBURGH, May 1904.
CONTENTS
PRESBYTERIES
PAGE
ABERDEEN . ..... i
ANNANDALE . . ..... 42
ARBROATH ......... 65
BANFF . . . . . . . . . .in
BUCHAN ... . 135
CUPAR ..... . 152
DUMBARTON .... ... 211
DUMFRIES .... . 243
DUNDEE ......... 278
DUNFERMLINE AND KINROSS . . . 347
KINROSS SECTION . . . 373
DUNS ..... . 398
EDINBURGH ..... . . 425
EASTERN DIVISION . . . 513
SOUTHERN DIVISION . . 551
WESTERN DIVISION . . 594
ELGIN AND INVERNESS . . 622
FALKIRK . . . . 657
APPENDICES
I. GAIRNEY BRIDGE AND THE BENNETS . ... 704
II. REV. JAMES BAINE AND THE EARLY HISTORY. OF THE RELIEF . 706
III. DIVISION OF 1771 IN THE RELIEF PRESBYTERY . . 708
IV. REV. JOHN REID OF DALRY AND BATHGATE . . 710
V. WOMAN'S VOTE IN THE SECESSION CHURCH . . . -7"
INDEX
I. CONGREGATIONS . . .717
II. MINISTERS AND OTHERS. . 719
CORRECTIONS AND ADDITIONS ...... 732
History of the Congregations of the
United Presbyterian Church
PRESBYTERY OF ABERDEEN
NETHER KIRKGATE (BURGHER)
IT was not till 1757 that the Secession got footing in Aberdeen. John Bisset,
one of the ministers of the Established Church, and a pronouncedly evan
gelical preacher, died on 2nd November of the preceding year, " greatly and
deeply regretted," his tombstone bears, "by all who wished well to the
interests of religion." The Scofs Magazine in announcing his death states
further that "he absented himself from Church judicatories ever since the
year 1737, when many of the ministers of the Established Church read the
Porteous Act. His principles seemed to be very nearly the same as those
of the seceders." But George Whitefield was nearer the mark when he
wrote : " Mr Bisset is neither a seceder nor quite a kirkman, having great
fault to find with both." At one time he seemed very near acceding to the
Associate Presbytery, and they accordingly appointed three of their number
to observe a Fast at Montrose on the last Wednesday of August 1740, and
hold a conference with him next day, " according to his proposal in his
missive to some of the brethren." But he drew back when the time came,
and put in no appearance. In 1742 he published a letter against Whitefield,
in which he denounced the seceders for being the first " inviters and em
ployers of that foreigner." It is in this connection that John Bisset is best
seen on the repellent side.
On the second Sabbath of October 1741 the great evangelist, who had
been urgently invited to Aberdeen by Bisset's colleague, preached in St
Nicholas' Church in the forenoon. At the afternoon service Mr Bisset, as
reported in a newspaper of the day, delivered a most learned and orthodox
sermon, in the course of which he addressed Whitefield, who sat right before
him, by name and surname, and told him that his doctrine tended to mislead
and not to edify. Of this scene Whitefield himself further relates : " He also
quoted a passage or two from my printed sermons, which he said were
grossly Armenian." But, though Mr Bisset's zeal for Presbyterianism and
sound doctrine sometimes outran discretion, he secured for himself a com
pany of faithful adherents, who afterwards betook themselves to the seceders
for sermon.
On 4th January 1757, two months after Mr Bisset's death, a petition to
be taken under their inspection was laid before the Burgher Presbytery of
Perth and Dunfermline from a considerable number of people in and about
Aberdeen, and Mr Shirra of Kirkcaldy was appointed to preach there on the
fourth Sabbath of that month, and remain other two Sabbaths if he should
2 HISTORY OF U.P. CONGREGATIONS
see cause The origin of this congregation has been sometimes ascribed to
the appointment of Mr George Campbell, afterwards Principal Campbell, of
Aberdeen, and one of the ablest divines of his time, to succeed Mr Bisset.
In Bruce's "Eminent Men of Aberdeen" this assumption is turned to the
discredit of the movement in the following terms : — " They had been
accustomed so long to the stimulus of ignorance and fanaticism that true
religion had no charm for them." It was in the author's characteristic style
whenever evangelical truth crossed his path ; but Mr Bisset's admirers
acceded to the Secession a month before George Campbell got the pre
sentation at all ! Besides this, the petitioners ascribed the step they were
taking to no local grievance ; all they said was, they had no freedom to
hold communion with the iudicatories of the Established Church. It was
the very position so long taken up by their late minister.
Until now the Burgher cause had never lifted its head in the north of
Scotland ; but a letter written by Mr Bisset to Ebenezer Erskine, after the
Breach, shows that his sympathies lay with the milder side of the Secession.
He even held out the hope that he and some other ministers in that part of
the country might cast in their lot with them, if the swearing of the covenants
were no longer made a term of ministerial and Christian communion. This
may account for the fact that the above application was addressed to the
Burgher, and not to the better-known Antiburgher, Presbytery of Perth and
Dunfermline. Sermon being granted, they lost no time in raising money by
subscription, with which, to use their own words, they procured and fitted up
a place of worship, which served them for fourteen years.
First Minister. — ALEXANDER DICK, best known as the father of Dr John
Dick of Glasgow, Professor of Divinity to the United Associate Synod.
Importance attaches to the cradle of this widely-known Secession family.
Mr Dick of Aberdeen, we have ascertained, was a son of John Dick, who
tenanted the farm of Binn in Cleish parish, and he was baptised, 2ist
September 1729, and brought up in the Established Church. Received as
a student of divinity by the Burgher Presbytery of Perth and Dunfermline
on 4th January 1757. After attending Mr Fisher's classes for one session
he got licence, and was called to Aberdeen in April of the following year.
This call the Synod, by a great majority, preferred to another from Torphichen,
and Mr Dick, who had some difficulty in accepting, was ordained, 7th
December 1758. The sermon preached on the occasion by Mr M'Ewan of
Dundee, author of a once popular book on "The Types," was afterwards
published. Under Mr Dick's ministry the congregation prospered, includ
ing among them some of the best-known families in the town, and in 1772
they removed to a new and more commodious church, in the Nether Kirk-
gate, with 700 sittings. The cost, which amounted to .£500, was met by
subscriptions at the time, and what remained was cleared off from the
proceeds of the seat rents. A house for the minister was built on the same
piece of ground. Mr Dick died, I7th February 1793, in the sixty-fourth
year of his age and thirty-fifth of his ministry. In a memoir prefixed to
"Sermons and Notes of Sermons" preached by him, and published in 1852,
it is stated that, though afflicted with nervous weakness during the last
years of his life, Jje was only laid aside from public work the Sabbath before
his death.
Second Minister. — WILLIAM BRUNTON, a native of the parish of New-
battle, whose connection with Aberdeen is little else than a record of
disaster. First of all, the moderation in his favour was objected to and
petitioned against, but by persistent pressure his supporters carried their
point, though the stipend of ^80, with house, pertinents, and communion
expenses, the Presbytery pronounced inadequate. The call to Mr Brunton
PRESBYTERY OF ABERDEEN 3
was signed by 240 members and 30 adherents. In the face of an opposing
representation from 64 members it was sustained and accepted, and the
minority, who had set their hearts on Mr Dick of Slateford, the son of their
former minister, instead of acquiescing applied forthwith for a disjunction.
But there were strong-willed men at the helm of affairs, and the proposal
was sternly resisted. With matters in this state Mr Brunton was ordained,
22nd April 1795, little to his own comfort as the event proved. The dis
junction insisted on was granted by the Synod a few weeks afterwards ; but
the particulars belong to the history of St Nicholas' Church. Messrs John
and Ebenezer Brown, in reporting to the Presbytery the outcome of their
mission to the north in the autumn of 1796, gave it as their opinion that the
disjunction would be productive of good. "The dissatisfaction of the old
congregation," they said, "continues, but there is reason to think it will
gradually cease, and that both congregations will increase and prosper." But
the two were about to enter on diverging paths, which were to land them in
rival communions.
The controversy between the Old and the New Lights was already begin
ning to stir, and the session of the old congregation came forward at the very
first with a petition to the Synod against any change in the Formula. Their
minister, however, favoured relaxation, and he was rewarded by the refusal
of his elders to take part with him in the observance of the Lord's Supper.
They next went the length of forbidding him to assist any of his brethren at
communions, and this was followed in 1798 by a petition to have the relation
between them and their minister dissolved. Petitions in Mr Brunton's favour
were also coming up to the Presbytery from his friends to the number of
forty or fifty ; but these went for little. At last four elders, the heads of
the opposition, who had been laid under suspension some months before,
were cut off from the fellowship of the Church, which seems to have left
Mr Brunton without a session. It must have been a relief to all parties
when the majority withdrew, and on the first Sabbath of March 1800 had
sermon from the Original Burgher Presbytery.
The contest was now transferred to the courts of law, the question
being, Which party should retain the property? Mr Brunton still occupied
the pulpit, and an attempt to close the door against him was circumvented
by altering the locks. The sheriff decided in favour of the Old Lights on the
ground that they were admittedly the majority, and because Mr Brunton had
failed to make good that the call he received gave him a right to the subjects
for life or until removed by a deed of Presbytery or Synod. The case
having been carried to the Court of Session, the judges were much divided
in their views. Expression was given to the opinion that in the titles the
jurisdiction of the Synod was recognised and should be given effect to ;
but in the end the judgment of the sheriff was confirmed, and the Old
Light majority were put in possession of church and manse.
The case was decided on i3th May 1801 ; but how Mr Brunton and
his little party contrived to meet the ruinous expenses, or whether they
ever met them at all, we have no means of ascertaining. He gave in the
demission of his charge on 3rd September, and though four elders and
managers petitioned the Presbytery not to receive it, the connection was
dissolved on I5th December 1801, and his adherents were recommended to
join the new congregation. Thus was the earliest Secession Church in
Aberdeen lost to the annals of the U.P. denomination. Mr Brunton now
removed to Dundee, where he became a teacher. At the Synod in 1809
he applied to be employed in neighbouring vacancies, and the Presbytery
was authorised to grant his request, provided it could be done without
detriment to the preachers or the congregations. In 1820 he emigrated to
4 HISTORY OF U.P. CONGREGATIONS
Canada, and was inducted to the charge of a small congregation at Lachine
in connection with the Church of Scotland ; but he remained there not more
than two years. His tombstone at La Chute bears that "after preaching the
gospel in various other places he undertook the pastoral care of this congre
gation in 1831, where he spent the last seven years of his valuable life." He
died, 1 2th August 1839, in the seventy-third year of his age and forty-fifth of
his ministry.
After being six years in connection with the Original Burgher Presbytery,
Nether Kirkgate had a minister set over them. Strife and turmoil must have
told upon their numbers, and of the three calls they issued during this period
none had more than 165 signatures, including adherents. Mr William
Primrose, a preacher from Kincardine-on-Forth, was ordained, I3th August
1806, the stipend to be ^100, with a manse. In 1837 the communicants were
given at 160, and the stipend was the same as at first, with ^20 for house
rent. In 1839 minister and congregation were admitted into the Church of
Scotland, but adhered unanimously to the Free Church at the Disruption.
Mr Primrose died, 3oth May 1866, in the eighty-third year of his age and
sixtieth of his ministry. Of his pulpit appearances it is testified, " He had
not only clear views of the gospel, but was correct in expression and very
fervent in delivery." Nether Kirkgate is now known as Melville Free
Church, and under this broader flag it has a membership of nearly 600.
BELMONT STREET (ANTIBURGHER)
ON 29th June 1772 Mr Brown of Craigdam petitioned the Presbytery of
the North for supply to his people in Aberdeen. This little branch of his
congregation was eighteen miles distant from the centre, and consisted
mainly of a few families who had removed to the town from about Huntly
and Craigdam. Such is the account given in a carefully-got-up history of
Aberdeen, and it surpasses in probability the story of the Antiburgher cause
in that town having originated with 7 members of Mr Bisset's congregation.
In February 1776 a petition to be erected into a congregation was rejected,
"the people applying being so very few." However, on I2th November of
the following year, " the praying society at Aberdeen," with the entire ap
proval of Craigdam session, had their request granted without the least
opposition. Here comes in an entry, of date 23rd November, from the diary
of a humble member of the Church : " Mr William Brown in the Spital
Church declared that to be a new congregation of seceders in and about
Aberdeen." On the first Sabbath of November 1779 they removed from
their hired place of worship to the church they had erected in Belmont
Street, which was seated for 800, few as their numbers must have been.
The cost was put at ^1000 long afterwards, but the plain appearance of the
building, taken along with the standard of the times, turns that estimate into
extravagance. In 1781 the congregation called the Rev. William Barlas of
Whitehill, a pulpit orator ; but he was in precarious health, and the Presbytery
declined to translate.
First Minister. — MICHAEL ARTHUR, who had been nearly eighteen years
in office, first in Dumbarrow and then in Peebles. Everything being ripe
for a further change, he was-Sent through to supply at Aberdeen, and his
induction followed, 26th June 1782. All promised well for a little, and
during the first year 40 members are said to have been added to the church.
But Mr Arthur was a man whom ill-fortune attended wherever he went.
Three years before leaving Peebles he preached a sermon at the opening of
the Antiburgher Synod, which he afterwards published, entitled " The Two
PRESBYTERY OF ABERDEEN 5
Witnesses." Besides giving his views on a difficult passage in Revelation
the preacher turned aside to lament the unhappy rupture in the Secession
on the question of swearing the Burgess Oath, and this stung Adam Gib
like a personal insult. Owing to partial deafness the worthy man did not
catch the meaning fully at the time ; but on reading the sermon in print his
wrath was kindled, and he brought up a lengthy paper of complaints to next
Synod. Mr Arthur was not the man to shrink from warfare when smarting
under what he deemed ill-usage. The Synod enjoined both parties to lay
down their weapons, but the contention was again and again renewed, and
Mr Arthur alleged that, at the Synod which transferred him from Peebles to
Aberdeen, Mr Gib aspersed him in a way fitted to injure his prospects in his
new sphere of labour. But other evils came in to trouble him at Aberdeen.
After Mr Arthur had gone on there for three years the diary quoted from
above tells of dissension between him and his people, and adds : " They are
all out of order ; for the present some will not come to hear him at all."
Accordingly, on 8th February 1786, he tendered the demission of his charge
to the Presbytery, but assigned as the reason that the Synod at their last
meeting issued a decision on the controversy between him and Mr Gib most
dishonourable to themselves and injurious to him. He had signified at
their bar that he could no longer continue among them. After he had been
reasoned with in vain the case was referred to the Synod, which on 4th May
severed the connection, and declared the congregation vacant. Subsequent
procedure, ending in deposition, may be passed over ; and we come to 3rd
January 1787, when Mr Arthur was received into the Relief Church by
Edinburgh Presbytery, and though the deed was hurriedly done the Synod
confirmed it, being fully satisfied as to the applicant's character and talents.
Two years later they found that he had "gone off, and connected himself
with another society." This was the Lifter Presbytery, which had the
Rev. David Smyton of Kilmaurs at its head, and with which Mr Arthur
had already manifested affinity in a sermon on "The Obligation and Extent
of the Redeemer's Dying Command." This was the court from which his
son William got licence, and by which he was ordained over what became
Portsburgh Burgher congregation, Edinburgh. In this connection we have
a view of Mr Michael Arthur at his worst in a pamphlet by the Rev. John
Gemmell, the "Lifter" minister of Dairy, Ayrshire. Allowance must be
made for hostile feeling, but, if the half of what Mr Gemmell says is true,
Mr Arthur must have had rare talent for brow-beating and abuse. He
seems to have claimed a seat in this ill-compacted court as the representa
tive elder from Edinburgh session ; but it speedily fell to fragments. In
1793 Mr Arthur's son emigrated to America, where he was settled ere long ;
and it is believed that he was accompanied by his father, of whom we lose
all trace at this point.
In 1787 Bclmont Street congregation gave a divided call to Mr John
Smith, which was not sustained, and eight years afterwards Mr Smith was
admitted to Whithorn. Next year they called Mr Frederick MacFarlane,
whom the Synod appointed to Montrose (now St Luke's).
Second Minister. — WILLIAM McCAUL, from Sanquhar (South). At the
Synod in September 1788 two other calls came up to Mr McCaul — the one
from Burntisland, the other from the united congregations of Kilmaurs and
Stewarton. Burntisland having been set aside, a member's belated vote
raised Aberdeen to equality with Kilmaurs and Stewarton, and then by the
Moderator's casting vote it got the decision in its favour. But owing to
delicate health Mr McCaul had required to shorten his stay at the Hall year
after year, and for probably the same reason he stayed away three suc
cessive sessions before he finished. Fearing that the regular work of the
6 HISTORY OF U.P. CONGREGATIONS
ministry would be too much for him he now held back from delivering his
trials, pleading also that the stipend of ,£50 was insufficient. The people, in
their earnestness to obtain him, promised other ,£10, and impressed by the
spirit they displayed he yielded, and was ordained, 6th April 1789. After
six and a half years of trying labour, including three services each Sabbath,
Mr McCaul's reserve of strength gave way, and we read of the congregation
observing a Fast owing to being so long deprived of their beloved pastor's
ministrations. But work was resumed and carried on other two years, and
then he felt necessitated to lay down the burden, "because of his weakness
of body." The commissioners from the congregation were earnest and
unanimous for Mr McCaul remaining ; but on 2oth November 1798 the
Presbytery had very unwillingly to loose him from his charge. He then
removed to Dumfriesshire, and in 1805 he purchased the estate of Caitloch,
near Moniaive, and became a great support and encouragement to the
congregation there. On 29th March 1835, when he was in the seventy-
seventh year of his age, Mr McCaul met his death in very distressing
circumstances through being attacked by an infuriated bull. The original
seat of the family was Ulzieside, near Sanquhar, a name linked with the first
application to the Associate Presbytery from "The Societies of the South
and West" for sermon.
Third Minister. — JAMES TEMPLETON, from Kilmaurs. The congregation
had been previously in a divided state, a large number wishing to call
Mr Laurence Glass, afterwards of Midholm, but others, including most of
the elders, refusing to concur. Mr Templeton brought them to entire
unanimity, and though he had scruples about the state of the congregation
the Presbytery held they were not weighty enough to bar procedure, and he
was ordained, and September 1801. The stipend was to be ^70, but in 1812
it was ^100, with a gift of .£50 generally superadded year by year. For
some life-like reminiscences of Mr Templeton's early ministry we are
indebted to an article by Dr George Brown in the Secession Magazine for
1841. The writer recalled the slender form ; the figure under the middle
size ; the voice, not strong, but distinct and clear, with a plaintive cadence ;
the striking, pithy remarks ; the weighty appeals to the conscience ; and the
crowded auditories at the Sabbath evening discourses month by month.
Then he comes to the inbreak of the Old Light controversy and the loss of
some members "eminent for piety and exemplary conduct," including, as
we know, the father of Dr John Duncan and the family of Mr Brown, the
first minister of Craigdam, the church never being again so crowded as
during the first five years of Mr Templeton's pastorate. But a more
serious inroad was made on the congregation's entireness in 1820, when
Mr Templeton, influenced probably by Mr Mitchell of Clola, his father-
in-law, stood out against the Union, and afterwards took part in the
formation of the Protestor Synod. This was the origin of what is now
Garden Place Ghurch. But when the Protestors opened negotiations with
the Constitutional Presbytery Mr Templeton dissented, and renewed his
dissent a year later. He was not prepared to go over to Old Light ground,
remembering, perhaps, the trouble the controversy gave him two dozen
years before. On I7th May 1827, when this minor Union was consummated,
Mr Templeton was absent, and on loth July he applied for admission to the
United Secession Presbytery of Aberdeen, intimating that he departed from
his former protest and acceded to the New Testimony. He and his elder
were cordially welcomed to seats in the Presbytery, but about 40 of the
members preferred to join the Original Secession congregation under the
Rev. John Aitken.
In April 1833 pulpit supply was required for Belmont Street, Mr Temple-
PRESBYTERY OF ABERDEEN 7
ton being unable to preach owing to a nervous affection, and in this state
matters continued more or less for nearly two years. Meantime a party in
the congregation got so eager to have a certain candidate called that, when
others held back, they applied to the Presbytery to be disjoined. But,
Mr Templeton believing himself able to resume work, a reconciliation was
effected on the understanding that, if he were unable to go on, a moderation
should be proceeded with after a reasonable time. In July 1836 they were
unanimously in favour of going forward. As for money arrangements, the
junior minister was to have ^iooa year, and Mr Templeton was willing to cast
himself on the liberality of his people without the mention of any definite sum.
Fourth Minister. — ROBERT SEDGEWICK, from Regent Place, Glasgow.
He was already on trials for Cumbernauld, but accepted Aberdeen, where
he was ordained, 2ist September 1836. A year afterwards the membership
was 350, and the people were endeavouring to give each of their ministers
^100. The debt was under ^400, and had been considerably reduced within
recent years. There were three services at this time, Mr Templeton being
so far recovered as to take part of the work ; but the conducting of the week-
night meeting and the Bible classes devolved entirely on his colleague.
Three years after this trouble came in an acute form, and rapidly reached a
crisis. It was a time when suspicions of error in doctrine were abroad, and
the Church was in the first stirrings of the Morisonian controversy. To
guard the defences the Presbytery of Aberdeen assigned to the three divinity
students under their care as the subject of an essay " The Extent of the
Atonement." On the exercises being read several of the members deemed
them unsatisfactory, and the manuscripts were handed over to a committee,
of which Mr Templeton was convener. When a report was given in discus
sion arose, and when it was carried by a majority not to sustain the essays,
as they contained views of the Atonement " inconsistent with Scripture and
our standards," the two colleagues came to an open rupture. The particulars
are given on the written authority of the Rev. H. A. Paterson of Stonehouse,
under whose name a fuller account of the doctrinal case will be given.
At first Mr Sedgewick said little beyond complaining that the students
were being too severely dealt with ; but, after Mr Angus made common cause
•with the accused, he got up from the recumbent position and declared that
he did the same. Thereupon Mr Templeton said he would no longer be
colleague to a heretic, and next Sabbath he came out on the subject of
heresy, pointing the application, it was alleged, with eye and finger. Very
clearly this state of things could not be endured, and after another Sabbath
the congregation of Belmont Street prayed the Presbytery to take their
circumstances into serious consideration. The papers were given in at a
meeting in Edinburgh while the Synod was sitting, and, foreseeing stormy
weather, the Presbytery requested the Synod to appoint assessors to help
them through. On 7th July 1840 the Presbytery met, and along with them
were Dr Young of Perth, Mr Hay of Arbroath, and Mr Campbell of Peter-
head. Written documents were read and parties heard at great length, and
at the second sederunt, on the second day, a basis of agreement was put into
shape, of which the central article was that the aged minister should take
only one of the services on the Sabbath, leaving the other two to Mr Sedge-
wick. It was pleaded that this was the usual arrangement in all such cases,
and it was what had been agreed on when Mr Sedgewick began his ministry.
It was also enjoined on the members of the congregation to give faithful
attendance on the ministrations of both pastors, who on their part were
asked to pledge themselves to study by their whole deportment to promote
each other's comfort and usefulness, — terms to which the commissioners
and the junior minister agreed.
HISTORY OF U.P. CONGREGATIONS
At this stage Mr Templeton proved impracticable, and when Dr Young
and Mr Campbell were .appointed to retire with him and urge acquiescence
they had to return in a short time with the report that " he had determinedly-
refused." The Presbytery elder also insisted that half the public services
on Sabbath ought to be assigned to Mr Templeton. Baffled in their en
deavours the Presbytery adjourned for a week, but when they met again
it was to find Mr Templeton forward with a petition to be separated without
delay from his colleague, and to be allowed to open a place of worship for
himself, — neither of which requests could be complied with. To prevent
damage to Belmont Street it was thought needful to suspend him from the
exercise of his ministerial functions until the appeal which he had taken to
the Synod should be heard. At next meeting, on nth August, certain
elders and members of Belmont Street Church asked to be erected into
a new congregation under the pastoral care of Mr Templeton. He had
preached to them in the open air at first, and they were now worshipping
in a hall. Supply of sermon was granted in consequence of their minister's
indisposition, and indeed it was known that, to all appearance, he was dying.
The Presbytery in the circumstances declared the sentence of suspensioli
removed ; but before that day closed the worthy man died, in the seventieth
year of his age and thirty-ninth of his ministry. The history of Charlotte
Street Church supplies the rest.
There was peace in Belmont Street now under the sole pastorate of
Mr Sedgewick ; but controversy must have brought the cause into disfavour,
and prosperity was slow in returning. Mr Sedgewick, feeling this, resigned,
with the view of emigrating to America, and the relation was dissolved,
1 2th February 1849. On 4th September following he was inducted to
Musquodoboit in Nova Scotia, where he laboured till i5th August 1882,
when he retired owing to the infirmities of age. He died, 2nd April 1885]
in the eighty-second year of his age and forty-ninth of his ministry. A
little, racy book of his, entitled "The Wine of the Kingdom," was published
in 1846. His son, the Rev. Thomas Sedgewick, D.D., was a student in our
Hall for one session, and then went to Nova Scotia. He is now minister
at Tatamagouche, and clerk to the Synod of the Maritime Provinces.
Fifth Mims/er.—jOHN CROUMBIE BKOWN, from Haddington (East), a
grandson of the Rev. John Brown of Haddington and a brother of the
celebrated Dr Samuel Brown. Ordained at St Petersburg on 6th December
1835 as an agent of the London Missionary Society. After labouring there
for some years he returned to this country. He afterwards became minister
of an Independent Church at Beverley, Yorkshire, but left in 1844 for
Cape Town under the auspices of the above society. The year after that he
published a volume on "The Truths of Christianity," and in 1847 a volume
of discourses. Received into the U.P. Church by the Presbytery of
Edinburgh, 8th June 1849, and inducted into Belmont Street, 24th April
1850. The congregation at this time furnished a stipend of only ^120, and
the call was signed by 124 members and 19 adherents. From 1853 to 1860
Mr Brown was also Lecturer on Botany in King's College, Aberdeen, from
which he received the degree of LL.D. in 1858. He was loosed from his
charge on i6th February 1863, having accepted the situation of Government
Botanist at the Cape of Good Hope, and Professor of Botany in the South
African College. The arrangements there having collapsed in the interests
of retrenchment, Dr Brown returned home, and had his name placed on the
probationer list in May 1867. He was inducted into Church Street, Berwick,
2nd March 1869; but heartiness could scarcely be looked for where the
minister chosen was above threescore, and owing to an unhappy state of
feeling in the congregation Dr Brown, at his own request, was loosed from
PRESBYTERY OF ABERDEEN 9
his charge, 5th July 1870. He afterwards removed to Haddington, his
native place, where his freedom from other work was favourable to the in
terests of science. He there gave himself to the study of Forestry, on which he
published a series of valuable books, fifteen in number, the first in 1876 and the
last in 1884. He died, I7th September 1895, aged eighty-seven. Dr Brown
was a son-m-law, as well as a nephew, of the Rev. John Brown of Whitburn.
When this vacancy occurred Belmont Street had a membership of 160,
and the stipend was to be ^150. Three unsuccessful calls followed, the first
to Mr Adam Welsh, who afterwards got Kincardine ; the second to Mr R.
S. Bruce, who afterwards got Wishaw ; and the third to Mr Robert Lyon,
who preferred North Leith, where he became colleague to Dr Harper.
Sixth Minister.— DAVID BEATT, from School Wynd, Dundee. Ordained,
iSth^Apnl 1865, after declining calls to Hartlepool and Bishop Auckland.
On Sabbath, loth January 1869, the present church, with sittings for 700,
was opened by the Rev. Andrew Morton, afterwards D.D., Edinburgh. It
stands on the old site, and cost over ,£3000, which was nearly all defrayed
m the course of eight years. In 1895 Mr Beatt received the degree of D.D.
from St Andrews University. At the close of 1899 the membership of
Belmont Street was 587 and the stipend ,£350.
BELMONT STREET (RELIEF)
THE Relief denomination in Aberdeen, as in Dundee, had tangled, disrupted
fortunes for the first forty years. The origin has generally been traced back
as far as 1773, ""hen the first minister was settled in Gilcomston Chapel of
Ease ; but for two reasons we reckon this too early. First, it was not till
29_th April 1778 that the managers of the Relief Church resolved to proceed
with the erection of a place of worship, and on i;th August of the same
year, when application was made to the Relief Presbytery of Glasgow for
sermon, they were described as "a forming congregation." Second, the
first ordination at Gilcomston seems to have been harmoniously gone
through, but the second minister, though chosen in June 1776, was° not
admitted till November 1778. This may be taken as the period within
which the Relief cause took shape. The church was built "by voluntary
subscription," with accommodation for 1000 people.
First Minister.— JOHN BRYCE, who, we have some reason to believe,
belonged to the parish of Carsphairn. If so, he is almost certain to have
come over from the Established Church, which may account for his prepared
ness to go back to the Established Church again. The date of his ordination
cannot be given ; but, according to the minutes of the congregation, the call,
which was unanimous in a way, came out on ijth October 1779, the Rev!
James Baine of College Street, Edinburgh, presiding on the occasion. For
reasons which will fully appear under next heading Mr Bryce and his
people joined the Established Church, into which they were received, on
nth August 1791, by the Presbytery of Aberdeen. The first Relief con
gregation in Dundee was lost to the denomination in the same way and
almost at the same time, and in both cases they took the property with
them. The Relief Presbytery of Perth asked the Synod at next meeting for
advice as to how they should proceed with Mr Bryce, and were told to
summon him to their bar and deal with him according to the rules of the
Church. But the fugitive was safely settled down in his new connection,
and the matter was allowed to drop.
For three dozen years Mr Bryce preached on without having either a
session of his own or a seat in the Church courts. At last, on s'th March
io HISTORY OF U.P. CONGREGATIONS
1828, Belmont Street Chapel of Ease, which is said to have been largely
attended, was erected into a parish church, and the Rev. John Bryce became
a regular parish minister. He died, loth March 1831, in the seventy-seventh
year of his age and fifty-second of his ministry. His son, Dr James Bryce,
formerly an army chaplain, figured in the Assembly in pre-Disruption days
as an extreme Moderate, and wrote a history of the Church of Scotland
on the same lines.
SHIPROW (RELIEF)
THE chapel in Belmont Street was built by subscription, and hence, when a
minister came to be chosen, the right to vote was limited to the subscribers.
They united in electing Mr Bryce, " there not being another put into the
field " ; but non-subscribers resented the exclusion, and by all accounts they
were mostly in favour of another candidate. It issued in the erection of a
rival chapel in the Shiprow of like dimensions with the other. The parties
betook themselves for sermon to Cowan of Colinsburgh, who along with
certain fluctuating quantities constituted the Old Presbytery of Relief.
First Minister. — JOHN BRODIE, a licentiate of Dysart Relief Presbytery,
whose family seems to have belonged to Kennoway or its neighbourhood.
Having preached to his supporters in Aberdeen without Presbyterial
authority he was excluded from the Relief connection. He was ordained
over Shiprow congregation by the Rev. James Cowan on 6th August 1780,
and for ten years the two assisted each other on communion occasions. But
in 1790 Mr Brodie and his congregation applied for admission to the Relief
Synod. It was now that long-cherished antipathies burst forth, Mr Bryce
and his session having lodged papers with Uysart Presbytery reflecting on
Mr Brodie's character. The Synod remitted the matter to the Presbytery,
instructing them to inquire into the grounds of these charges and also how
far the admission, if agreed to, would affect the interests of the other con
gregation in Aberdeen. Next year Dysart Presbytery reported that all they
had learned about Mr Brodie was favourable, and accordingly, having sub
mitted to rebuke for his disorderly conduct eleven years before, he was
received into ministerial communion. The pastoral bond between him and
Shiprow congregation was at the same time recognised ; only, a member of
Synod was to occupy the pulpit some Sabbath and read the minute of
Synod by way of administering censure. The next we hear of Mr Bryce and
his congregation is that they have found a home in the Establishment. On
6th September 1798 Mr Brodie was loosed from Shiprow on accepting a call
to Dovehill, Glasgow (now Kelvingrove). His former congregation called
him back within a twelvemonth, which brought out their regard for him,
but had no further effect. With Mr Brodie's departure the prosperity of the
Relief cause in Shiprow came to an end.
Second Minister. — ALEXANDER BOWER, from College Street, Edinburgh.
John Campbell, the African traveller, who was a cousin of his, states that
his father was an elder in that Church, and remarkable for strict Sabbath
observance. Mr Bower himself got licence from the Presbytery of Armagh
in Ireland, and was received as a probationer by the Relief Presbytery of
Edinburgh, 23rd May 1799. Ordained over Shiprow Church on 6th
November of that year. But disaffection early showed itself, and altogether
the settlement proved most unfortunate. Mr Bower, however, proved
himself to be what his cousin called him — "a scholar" — and in 1802 he was
awarded a prize by the Blackwell Trustees for the best essay on " The
Character, Manners, and Doctrines of the Socratic School." On the other
hand, one who had the means of knowing testified long afterwards that " Mr
PRESBYTERY OF ABERDEEN n
Bower's ministry was the bane of the Relief cause in Aberdeen." There had
been mutterings of discontent long before, but to get quit of him the
managers of Shiprow Church on 3oth July 1805 laid on the Presbytery's
table a list of fourteen charges against him, some of them frivolous enough,
such as shaving on Sabbath and saying there was no sin in doing so.
There was more in the allegation that he had all along preached the
doctrines of the Bereans, including the crotchet that it is wrong to pray for
a blessing on the sacramental elements. But, worse still, he had read from
the pulpit a document in which he applied a libellous epithet to the mana
gers about the decline of the congregation. Three additional articles were
afterwards thrown into the scale, the weightiest of them being "drunkenness."
At a Presbyterial visitation on 28th August the whole affair was pressed
into little compass. The managers had locked the church door against
their minister, and it was declared that on this account they had lost their
rights as prosecutors. It was consequently agreed "to throw said charges
over the table." Then a committee was appointed to inquire on the spot
into the grounds of the fama raised against Mr Bower's character, but all
they brought up was that he had acted imprudently in the matter of private
baptism. The managers had previously engaged to pay down ^50 to Mr
Bower at once if he would resign, and they had also told the Presbytery that
unless he were suspended forthwith they would sell the church for the
payment of the debt resting on it. But Mr Bower preached on to his own
adherents for another year, and then on 6th September 1806 he tendered his
resignation, which was at once accepted. We lose sight of him now till
1814, when he applied to the Relief Presbytery of Edinburgh to be recog
nised as an ordained probationer. This was agreed to, but at next meeting
the decision was unceremoniously cancelled. We next meet with him as
Assistant Librarian in Edinburgh University, of which he wrote an elaborate
history in three volumes, strong, according to Sir Alexander Grant, in
biographical details, but weak in everything else. Before leaving Aberdeen
he published a biography of Dr James Beattie, poet and professor, in which
he refers to him as having been his patron, and this was followed in 1813 by
a life of Martin Luther ; but neither of them is of any account now. His
literary work, however, has found a place for him in the National Biography,
where he is spoken of as having been originally a teacher in Edinburgh.
The writer knew nothing of him as a minister of the Relief. He also
states that Mr Bower died suddenly in 1830-1, whereas he lived on till 23rd
February 1837.
Two months after Mr Bower left, a number of the people petitioned
Perth Presbytery to preach the pulpit vacant and grant them sermon. The
elders, it was found, were all gone, but the old managers came forward,
professing penitence for their unruly conduct at the time of the Presbyterial
visitation, and, after submitting to rebuke, had supply appointed them. But
another Relief congregation in St Andrew's Street was on the point of ob
taining a minister, and Shiprow Church disappears henceforth from the
Presbytery records. It is known, however, that Dr Paton, of whom more
will be given in connection with St Paul's, now became the occupant of the
pulpit, but we can scarcely say that he belonged to any denomination. He
died, nth March 1811, "much regretted," the newspaper notice stated, "by
his congregation and his numerous friends and acquaintances." He was
succeeded by David Gellatly, the champion of the Cowanite party, who, after
ruining the Relief cause in Haddington, had exercised his gifts for ten years
in Castlegarth, Newcastle. Having gone out to Peterculter for his health,
he died there, 2oth August 1821, aged fifty-eight. A tombstone "erected by
his relict and congregation " in the churchyard near by marks where he is
i2 HISTORY OF U.P. CONGREGATIONS
buried. He was succeeded by one Patrick Ross, whose ministry was of
short duration. Next, a newspaper notice tells that on 7th September 1823
the Rev. Hugh Hart of Paisley was elected minister of the old Relief Chapel,
Shiprow, Aberdeen. This translation bears on the annals of the U.P.
Church, as, shortly after Mr Hart left Paisley, the congregation, which had
been Independent, acceded to the Secession Presbytery, and brought the
building with them. This was the beginning of St James' Church. In 1837
Mr Hart returned the communicants of Shiprow at 600. The congregation
was now designated the United Christian Church, and the minister had a
lease of the chapel for life at ^70 a year. His stipend was not more than
.£120. The building was demolished some time afterwards to make way for
improvement purposes, and with that the chequered history of the Relief
Chapel in Shiprow, Aberdeen, came to an end.
ST NICHOLAS' (BURGHER)
COMPARED with the brethren they left behind them in Nether Kirkgate, the
party that originated the new Burgher congregation in Aberdeen had a
peaceful history. Their candidate on the moderation day was the Rev. John
Dick of Slateford, and failing to carry his election they went in for separate
existence. After a pause 73 of their number petitioned the session for a
disjunction, which was first delayed and then refused. Their protest having
come up to the Synod in May 1795 it was sustained, and the disjunction
agreed to. Two petitions for sermon from 100 outsiders were indirectly met
by this decision, it being explained that the parties would have an oppor
tunity of hearing the gospel along with the disjoined members, and this, we
may believe, was all they ever thought of. The two companies now coalesced,
and in January 1796 they called Mr Dick, the subscribers numbering 107
members and 64 adherents. At this time they were designated Belmont
Street congregation, indicating that their church was already built and
occupied. The call was repeated six months later, but the Synod on both
occasions, in keeping with his own wishes, refused to translate, and Mr Dick
remained in reserve for a more important situation. Three unsuccessful
calls followed — the first to the Rev. George Henderson of Lauder, who had
been sent by the Synod to supply in and about Aberdeen ; but the congre
gation, after the call was sustained and transmitted to Kelso Presbytery,
unanimously agreed to let procedure drop. The second was addressed
to Mr Thomas Brown, probationer, whom the Synod appointed to Dalkeith,
and the third to his brother Ebenezer of Inverkeithing, who had been
evangelising in the north ; but the call was withdrawn at his own request.
Thus four years came and went.
First Minister. — LAURENCE GLASS, from Orwell (now Free Church).
He was also under call to Crail, but the Synod preferred Aberdeen without a
vote. Ordained, 5th March 1800. Dr George Brown, who was present, a
boy of ten, remembered the neat appearance of the church, and its situation
on a steep declivity, no stairs being required for the gallery. But next year
the building had to be removed to make way for Union Street, and out of
the materials another was erected in St Nicholas' L<tne, the cost, first and
last, to the congregation being ,£850, which subsequent enlargements raised
to ^1000, and made the sittings 604. Of Mr Glass, Dr Brown states in his
reminiscences that his delivery was unnatural from his not taking a breath
ing in the middle of his sentences ; yet "such was the hallowed unction of
his preaching, his profound views of divine truth, and the fine taste which
characterised his composition, almost a novelty till then among dissenters in
PRESBYTERY OF ABERDEEN 13
the north," that he soon gathered round him a devoted congregation. But
pulmonary disease was superinduced, and he died, 7th May 1813, in the thirty-
fifth year of his age and fourteenth of his ministry. Mrs Glass was a sister of
Mrs Balmer, so often referred to in the life of Principal Cairns, and they were
sisters of John Scott, the first editor of the London Magazine, a literary man
of great talent and varied accomplishments, who died, 27th February 1821,
from a wound received in a duel eleven days before. It was a time when
the atmosphere of the political world was thunderladen ; but a man like
John Scott ought never to have given a challenge and placed his own
and another's life upon the hazard, great as the provocation may have
been.
During the vacancy which followed Mr Glass' death the congregation
presented a call to the Rev. John Jamieson of Scone, signed by 239 members,
the stipend to be ,£150. But he had no wish to remove, and the Synod de
cided unanimously not to translate.
Second Minister. — HENRY ANGUS, M.A., from Inverkeithing. The call
from Aberdeen was preferred both by himself and by the Synod to another
from Lochwinnoch, and Mr Angus was ordained, 23rd July 1816. St
Nicholas' congregation under their young minister, who proved himself an
all-round man, acquired a high standing in the town, and in 1837 there was
a communion roll of 400 and a stipend of £i 50, with a house. A new church
was built on the old site in 1845, with 700 sittings. In 1857 the congregation
called one of their own number, Mr William Watson, to be colleague and
successor to Mr Angus, but he chose Forres instead. They next called their
own minister's son, but he was already bespoke for Trinity Church, Sunder-
land, and preferred to go there. He is no\v the Rev. Henry Angus, D.D.,
Arbroath.
Third Minister. — JAMES M. M'KERROW, M.A., son of the Rev. Dr
M'Kerrow, Manchester. Ordained, igth October 1859. Each minister was
to have ,£150 of stipend, and during what remained of his life Mr Angus as
a rule took one of the services each Sabbath. He died, 28th June 1860, in
the sixty-sixth year of his age and forty-fourth of his ministry. On lying
down in bed that night he felt seriously ill, and in a little he whispered the
word "death," turned his face to the side, and passed away. We have a
befitting memorial of Mr Angus' gifts in a volume of high-class discourses
published in 1861, with a very tastefully-written memoir from the pen of his
son, the Rev. Robert Angus of Peebles. The collection includes the sermon
Mr Angus preached at the opening of the Synod in 1851, which George
Gilfillan characterised as the best of the kind he ever read — "calm, masterly,
and truly eloquent." The same critic in his " Remoter Stars" has a glowing
notice of the author, whose preaching power he admits was limited owing to
his delivery, but "when roused by special circumstances or committed to a
great effort he wrote noble sermons, original in thought and elaborate in
language."
In October 1866 Mr M'Kerrow was invited to remove to the newly-formed
congregation of Birmingham, but declined, assigning as a reason the diffi
culties which beset the cause of Presbyterianism in England, partly through
being debarred from the use of instrumental music in public worship. But
on 23rd April 1867 a second call was presented, and, pleadings being dis
pensed with bymutual consent, Mr M'Kerrowsimplyannouncedhisacceptance,
and was loosed from his charge. In his new sphere of labour Mr M'Kerrow
experienced for two years the disadvantage of conducting services in a hired
room in the heart of the town, but on 3rd June 1869 a new church was
opened at Camphill, with 650 sittings. The entire cost was about .£4000,
of which the greater part had been previously raised. In 1885 Mr M'Kerrow
i4 HISTORY OF U.P. CONGREGATIONS
emigrated to New Zealand, where he was inducted soon after into his present
charge at Mossgiel, in the Presbytery of Dunedin.
A vacancy of one and a half years followed at Aberdeen, during which
the congregation called the Rev. R. S. Bruce of Wishaw, who had been the
choice of Belmont Street Church three years before, but he decided to
decline in this case also. The stipend was now up to ^300.
Fourth Minister. — JOHN RUTHERFORD, B.D., son of the Rev. A. C.
Rutherford, Edinburgh. Ordained, nth November 1868. In 1874 some
50 or 60 members, including 4 elders, withdrew from Mr Rutherford's
ministry. This may have suggested the desirability of a change, and
accordingly he accepted a call to Leicester, 3oth November 1875. Having
resigned his charge on the ground of impaired health, he applied to the
General Assembly of 1882 for admission to the Established Church,
and had his application granted. He is now minister of the first charge in
Kirkwall parish. Before a successor was obtained at Aberdeen the congre
gation called Mr A. F. Forrest, who preferred Erskine Church, Stirling.
Fifth Minister. — JOHN ROBSON, D.D., son of the Rev. Dr Robson,
Wellington Church, Glasgow. Was ordained as a missionary to Ajmere,
India, on 3ist July 1860. After being twelve years in the foreign field
Mr Robson had to come home owing to failure of health, but expected to
return on regaining lost ground. He had, however, under medical advice
to tender his resignation to the Mission Board and remain permanently in
Scotland. In 1874 he published a valuable book, "Hinduism and its Rela
tions to Christianity," the outcome of his stay in the East, and had the
degree of D.D. from Glasgow University in 1876. He was inducted to St
Nicholas' Lane on 2ist September of that year. The congregation had
come down from 389 to 325 since the commencement of Mr Rutherford's
ministry, but the stipend was ,£300 as before. The present church, built
about a mile from the former site at a cost of ^5000, was opened, with 700
sittings, on Sabbath, I5th September 1888, when the collections came within
^60 of clearing off the ^700 of debt remaining. Dr Robson having
arranged for at least partial retirement, the congregation in November 1898
invited the Rev. James G. Goold of Dumbarton to be his colleague, but
without success. At next Synod the service he had rendered to the Church
was recognised by his elevation to the Moderator's Chair. Besides his book
on Hinduism, by which he is best known, Dr Robson published "The Bible:
Its Revelation, Inspiration, and Evidence" in 1883, and "The Holy Spirit,
the Paraclete" in 1894.
Sixth Minister. — JAMES G. WALTON, B.D., who, finding Bell Street,
Dundee, too much for his ebbing strength, accepted what promised to be
a lighter charge. He was inducted to St Nicholas' Church on i4th Sep
tember 1899, and, this point being reached, Dr Robson, to give the junior
minister a free hand, intimated his entire withdrawal from active service.
But Mr Walton was already under the grasp of an ailment which refused
to let go its hold, and in a few months all was over. He died, 2gth January
1900, in the forty-first year of his age, and was buried at South Shields,
where his ministry began sixteen years before.
Seventh Minister. — D. RITCHIE KEY, M.A., translated from London
Road, Edinburgh, where he had been nearly fifteen ^ears, and inducted as
colleague to Dr Robson, but with responsibility for the whole work, I ith June
1900. The membership now approximated to 500, and Mr Key's stipend
was to be ,£400, Dr Robson taking no retiring salary.
PRESBYTERY OF ABERDEEN 15
ST PAUL'S (RELIEF)
THIS congregation owed its rise to the disintegration of Shiprow Relief
Church under Mr Bower. Dr George Brown put it in this form : " The
more pious part were dispersed on the appointment of a minister who was
ultimately no ornament to his profession." The Presbytery of Perth had
an early call to inquire into the state of matters between Mr Bower and his
people by a number of charges being sent up against him before he had
been six months in office ; but without making any allowance for distance
they declared that, as the complainers were not forward, the paper must be
dismissed. In December 1801 Mr Bower brought Mr Paterson of Dundee
before the Presbytery for having preached in a hall to a number of people
who were disaffected to his ministry, and got him rebuked for the offence.
It is a token that another congregation was in course of being formed ; but
instead of facing opposition from Mr Bower they betook themselves to the
Old Relief party, as Shiprow did at first, and they got the Rev. John Paton,
M.D., James Cowan's successor at Colinsburgh, to become their minister.
He was inducted, as we learn from Dr George Brown, on I2th October 1803,
and their church in St Andrew's Street, with 900 sittings, and built on the
proprietor system at a cost of about ^1000, seems to have been taken
possession of soon after. On ijth September 1805 seat-holders in St
Andrew's Chapel, to the number of nearly 200, applied to be taken under the
inspection of the Relief Presbytery of Perth, and the petition was granted.
Dr Paton, their minister, had previously left, and he was now preaching to
his own adherents in some temporary meeting-place, but when Mr Bower
was loosed from his charge he got possession of Shiprow Chapel, where he
ministered till his death, as given under that heading.
In June 1806 the new accession called the Rev. William Strang, formerly
of Newton Stewart, promising him ,£140 and a dwelling-house. He had
given them reason to believe that he would accept, but he drew back,
alleging that the subscribers were a mere handful and not at all what the
proprietors led him to expect, most of them being so illiterate as not to be
able to sign their own names. More than this, when the call was read on
the moderation day, a number on hearing the amount of stipend engaged
for left the meeting, which showed they were unwilling to come under legal
obligation to support him and his family. The Presbytery expressed them
selves strongly on the part he had acted ; but Mr Strang got free, and was
inducted into Ford next year.
First Minister. — SAMUEL M'MlLLAN, from E. Campbell Street, Glasgow.
Ordained, nth February 1807. "The proprietors, managers, and others"
now named ,£120 for stipend. Mr M'Millan's tastes are indicated by his
"Beauties of Ralph Erskine," which he published in two volumes in 1821 ;
and, says a history of Aberdeen, "He sustains a character more honourable
to the Relief body than was that of several already mentioned." He also
appeared about the same time as the author of " Evangelical Lectures and
Essays." But, though his doctrine and life were all that could be wished,
he seems to have wanted the popular element, and the cause made little
progress. In 1837 he reported the communicants at 150, and the average
income of the congregation for the preceding seven years had been but
slightly over ,£100. Yet Mr M'Millan was preaching three times every
Lord's Day, and he had also conducted a Sabbath school since the
beginning of his ministry. But he was now laid aside by serious illness,
and the congregation first required pulpit supply and then resolved to have
a colleague.
Second Minister. — WILLIAM BECKETT, from Thread Street, Paisley,
1 6 HISTORY OF U.P. CONGREGATIONS
Ordained, 2gth November 1837, on a stipend of ^80, — Mr M'Millan to receive
,£30 and the proceeds of a yearly collection. The tide rose under the young-
minister ; but on 7th July 1840 he accepted a call to Rutherglen. It had
been arranged that Mr Beckett was to receive other £2.0 at the senior
minister's death, but Mr M'Millan survived for an entire generation. The
congregation now fixed on Mr Thomas Sommerville of Auchtergaven, but
he drew back from the difficulties of Aberdeen.
Third Minister. — JOHN THORBURN, from Allars, Hawick. At the
moderation he had 68 votes, and 55 were given to Mr Thomas Stevenson,
afterwards of Bread Street, Edinburgh. The call was signed by 119 com
municants, and 51 persons adhered, some in full membership and some
only seat-holders. The stipend promised was now £110. The people
being wishful to have Mr Thorburn recognised as sole pastor, Mr M'Millan
expressed his willingness to give up all official duties, and his ministerial
connection with St Paul's came virtually to an end. In 1845 ne wrote a
pamphlet on the Atonement question, taking, as was to be expected, the
thoroughly Calvinistic side, and in 1848 he edited the Works of Thomas
Boston in twelve volumes. He died, nth January 1864, in the ninetieth
year of his age and fifty-seventh of his ministry ; and an edition of Ralph
Erskine's Works in seven volumes, prepared under his care, was published
that same year.
Mr Thorburn was ordained, 27th May 1841. Next Sabbath he was
introduced to his charge by the Rev. William Anderson of Glasgow, who
took for his text in the evening John vi. 68 : " To whom shall we go ? " From
these words he preached a terrific sermon on "The Prospects of the World," of
which his biographer says : "This is a discourse which we might put into the
hands of his friends if we wished them to be more deeply impressed with an
idea of his powers of mind, and into the hands of his enemies if we wanted
them to see his weaknesses of temperament and limitations of view." How
his fury flashed forth, for example, on the United States of America, in their
bosom the simmering lava of two millions of slaves. " Ho for the red veng
eance which shall overwhelm both the religious and the political hypocrisies
of these doomed republicans!" Altogether the discourse in its published
form, and much more when listened to, gave Aberdeen a specimen of the
stormy might that could wake up in the slighted pulpit of the Relief in St
Andrew's Street.
But that old pulpit was to be closed ere long. The place of worship had
been burdened with a debt of ,£400, and, payment being demanded, a brother-
in-law of Mr M'Millan advanced the money, and got command of the
property. Some years after his death his trustees required the congregation
either to redeem the building at the foresaid price or part with it altogether.
They chose the latter alternative, and on Sabbath, I3th November 1842, a
new church, with 900 sittings, was opened by the Rev. Daniel Gorrie, Kettle.
The funds of the congregation having gone a great way back owing, the
people alleged, to general dissatisfaction with the junior minister, and "harm
done by the pecuniary difficulties in which he was involved," Mr Thorburn
resigned, i6th December 1845, and the resignation was at once accepted.
But as he was a man of talent and considerable pulpit power he was in
ducted within five months into the Relief Church, Dunning. The congrega
tion now came back on the object of their choice five years before, the
Rev. Thomas Sommerville of Auchtergaven, but again they met with a
refusal. Then, early in 1847, they fixed unanimously on Mr Robert
Anderson ; but when he received a call to become his father's colleague at
Kilsyth, the claims of Aberdeen were set aside.
Fourth Minister. — ANDREW DICKIE, translated from Colinsburgh,
PRESBYTERY OF ABERDEEN 17
where he had been for little more than one and a half years. Inducted, i8th
August 1847, the stipend to be .£120, and under his energetic ministry the
congregation greatly improved. The progressive steps cannot be given,
but in 1879 there was a membership of fully 400 and a stipend of ^290. In
1882 Mr Dickie, owing to advancing years, applied for a colleague, and the
congregation arranged to give him ^70 a year, of which ^20 was reckoned
to be for the Sabbaths he might occupy the pulpit, and the colleague was
to have .£250. They now called Mr John Cullen, afterwards of Leslie, and
the Rev. D. K. Auchterlonie of Craigdam, both of whom declined.
Fifth Minister. — DAVID BURNS, translated from Linlithgow (East),
where he had been for six years. Inducted to St Paul's, 28th August 1883,
and loosed on gth August 1887 on accepting an invitation to undertake the
building-up of a mission church in connection with Queen's Park, Glasgow.
It appeared now that the congregation in engaging for a joint stipend of
,£320 had gone beyond what their income would allow, and that the annual
deficits had run up to ^350. To relieve the pressure Mr Dickie consented to
accept an annual allowance of ,£10, and though he was to retain his seat in
Presbytery and Synod his official connection with St Paul's was to cease.
This led on to the Emeritus position having a place in our ecclesiastical
arrangements. Mr Dickie died, i3th April 1895, m the eighty-second year
of his age and fiftieth of his ministry. His widow survived him only three
days, and they were buried together. Two of Mr Dickie's sons were U.P.
ministers — Matthew in Alva, who predeceased his father ; and William
Stevenson in Trinity Church, Irvine. The Rev. Charles Connor, formerly
of Old Meldrum, and now in New Zealand, is a son-in-law of Mr Dickie's.
Sixth Minister. — JAMES AITKEN, from Leitholm. Ordained, 28th
February 1888. The membership at this time was 360, and the stipend was
to be .£240. On ijth December 1892 Mr Aitken accepted a call to Falkirk
(West), and left St Paul's with a membership of 400.
Seventh Minister.— DONALD G. FAIRLEY, from High Street, Dumbarton.
Ordained, i8th April 1893. The present church in Rosemount Viaduct,
with 650 sittings, was opened, 27th March 1897, by the Rev. James Rennie,
Glasgow, Moderator of Synod. The estimated cost was ,£4750, of which
there was ,£3000 in hand obtained from the School Board for the old
church. At the close of 1899 the membership was almost 500, and the
stipend ,£240. The debt was being gradually reduced, and stood about
^1000 at the Union.
GARDEN PLACE (UNITED SECESSION)
PRIOR to the Union of 1820 there were strained relations in Belmont Street
Church. In February 1817 some of the elders complained to the Presbytery
that their minister did not take them into his counsels about the assistants
he was to have at the communion. The matter was allowed to slumber for
nearly two years, and then it woke up again, through the minister having
denied the right of the session to interfere with his sacramental arrangements.
The case was peculiar, and the Presbytery handed it over to the Synod for
judgment, but they made short work of it, putting the complainers entirely
in the wrong, and hoping they would never hear such a thing breathed
again. In the beginning of 1819 dissatisfaction sought another outlet, 60
members petitioning the Presbytery to be disjoined from Belmont Street.
They were told that it was premature to ask a severance before the
grievances they alleged were inquired into. At a subsequent meeting the
paper was withdrawn, and the elder who presented it summoned to answer
i8 HISTORY OF U.P. CONGREGATIONS
for his conduct. Thus was the way prepared for the parting asunder at the
Union of 1820. Mr Templeton, as we have seen already, took part with the
Protestors, and at the first meeting of the United Presbytery about sixty of
his people petitioned to be erected into a new congregation. The signatures
being the same in number as before, we may believe that this was sub
stantially the same party. Hopeful that Mr Templeton might yet be gained
over to the Union the Presbytery kept the matter in abeyance ; but, when
he proved irreconcilable, the application was agreed to, and sermon was
granted on 2ist January 1821. The place of meeting at first was a hall in
Gallowgate, but the Synod at next meeting allowed them ^20 to encourage
them in building a place of worship. The church in George Street, with
sittings for 750, was finished in 1822 at a cost of ,£1170, — the first erection
of the kind in the United Secession Church.
First Minister. — JAMES STIRLING, from Strathaven (First), a brother of
the Rev. Hugh Stirling of Mearns. Ordained, 29th September 1824. At
the moderation the Rev. Patrick Robertson of Craigdam was the other
candidate, and Mr Stirling carried by the merest cast of the balance. In
1837 George Street had a membership of 512, the largest of any Secession
or Relief congregation in Aberdeen, and there was a stipend of .£ 150. The
debt of ^763 on the property was being gradually reduced. The minister
catechised the congregation and visited from house to house year by year
alternately. In 1868 Mr Stirling suffered from severe and protracted illness,
and in the following year both minister and people felt that a colleague had
become indispensable. Three unsuccessful calls followed — the first to Mr
James S. Scotland, who was settled in Errol a year afterwards ; the second
to Mr John Boyd, who made choice of Wemyss Bay ; and the third to Mi-
Alexander M 'Donald, who preferred Cumnock. Thus time passed, and the
collegiate state was never reached. Mr Stirling died, 22nd June 1871, in
the seventy-second year of his age and forty-seventh of his ministry. One of
his sons was Senior Wrangler at Cambridge, and is now a judge in the
Court of Chancery, London, under the title of Sir James Stirling. As does
not always happen in such cases, he remains faithful to denominational
principles, and is connected with Westbourne Grove Church. A daughter
of Mr Stirling's is the wife of the Rev. James Davidson, minister-emeritus
of Finnart Church, Greenock.
Second Minister. — ARCHIBALD YOUNG, M.A., from London Road,
Glasgow, who had declined a call to Middlesborough a year before.
Ordained, 6th September 1871. The church in Garden Place was opened
on Sabbath, 2nd April 1882, by Dr John Ker. It cost a little over ^9500,
has sittings for 700, and is free of debt. The old building was turned into
a large drapery establishment. Garden Place had a membership of 389 in
the beginning of 1900, and the stipend was ,£300.
CHARLOTTE STREET (UNITED SECESSION)
ON nth August 1840 certain elders and members of Belmont Street Church,
who kept by Mr Templeton when he set up for himself, petitioned Aberdeen
Presbytery to be erected into a congregation under the inspection of their
old minister. It was agreed to grant them sermon at once, as it was known
Mr Templeton would preach no more, and before that day closed he was
dead. The Presbytery met again a week after, when Belmont Street session
reported that they had no objections to the granting of the application, pro
vided they were secured against all interference with their property. They
PRESBYTERY OF ABERDEEN 19
were thereupon enjoined to grant such disjunctions as might be asked for,
and this was the origin of what was known at first as the Fourth Secession
congregation in Aberdeen.
First Minister. — PATRICK ROBERTSON, translated from Craigdam, and
inducted, 3oth June 1841, when he was entering on his sixty-fifth year. In
this connection Mr Lincl of Whitehill inserted in his journal: "Poor old
Mr Robertson has been tempted to leave Craigdam for Aberdeen. The
Lord can overrule this event for good to both parties." As Mr Robertson
was a natural orator and in high repute for memorable sayings, given in a
memorable way, the calculation may have been that he would draw crowds
around him, and fill even a large church. Hence the erection of a place of
worship in Charlotte Street with 1000 sittings, which was opened soon after.
Hence also the liberality of this little company in offering a stipend of ,£150.
But, whatever Mr Robertson might have done seventeen years earlier, when
he was very nearly called to George Street, he was now beyond the trans
planting age, and, though he got large audiences at first, they grew "small
by degrees and beautifully less." Then difficulties thickened in on every
side, and in March 1844 the congregation memorialised the Debt Liquida
tion Board to aid them in lightening their burdens. The application was
looked on with disfavour in the Presbytery, the allegation being that the
congregation was constituted on the understanding that it was not to come
back on the funds of the denomination. Irritation arose, and after a time
Mr Robertson persuaded himself that he and his people were not well used,
and in the spirit of a disappointed man he resolved to throw up connection
with the Secession Church. Intimation of the step he was about to take
he made on Monday, 4th November 1844, to his session, of whom the
majority were acquiescent. Next Sabbath a congregational meeting was
called for the following Wednesday, at which the members present were
asked by their minister whether they would go with him into the Free
Church, and the greater part responded by standing up. They afterwards
went into the vestry and signed a paper to that effect. The number,
Mr Robertson said, far exceeded his most sanguine expectations.
But two of Mr Robertson's elders had already parted company with him,
and the proceedings of the congregational meeting were also protested
against. Accordingly a. pro re nata meeting of Presbytery was summoned
for Monday the i8th, to consider the situation of affairs in Charlotte Street.
A document, signed by eight persons, testified to offensive statements made
by Mr Robertson from the pulpit on the day he called the meeting of the
congregation, and on this ground he was suspended from the ministerial
office. Procedure was eventually wound up by declaring him no longer a
minister or member of the United Secession Church, and the certificate he
received bore that he had laboured for forty years in their connection faith
fully and successfully, but that in the end he had attempted to draw away
his people to another denomination, and that he had made unfounded
statements against his brethren, and brought charges of heresy against the
United Secession Synod. At the Free Church Assembly in May 1845 ms
application for admission was granted on the understanding that he was not
to have a stated charge in Aberdeen. Next year he was inducted to the
Free Church, Culsalmond, and though now verging on threescore and ten
he had still ten years of active service before him. In 1856 he removed to
Aberdeen ; but, though his work was done, he retained the status of senior
minister. He died, 26th July 1867, in the ninety -first year of his age and
sixty-fourth of his ministerial life. Mr Robertson had two sons, who entered
the Divinity Hall together, and became ministers of the United Secession
Church — Patrick, who was ordained at Sunderland (Smyrna Chapel),
20 HISTORY OF U.P. CONGREGATIONS
5th July 1831, and died in Craigdam Manse, 6th July 1837, in the thirty-first
year of his age ; and John, whose record belongs to Burghead.
Second Minister. — JOHN B. RITCHIE, son of the Rev. Dr Ritchie,
Potterrow, Edinburgh. Ordained, 3rd December 1845, having declined a call
to Broughty Ferry in the early part of the year. The Free Church Assembly
having refused to recognise Mr Robertson's adherents as a congregation,
they were dispersed, and those who remained numbered from 80 to 100,
including 4 elders. The stipend they promised was ,£100, and the call was
signed by 80 members and 47 adherents. In 1851 Mr Ritchie published
three discourses on "The Armour of the Christian Church," which were pro
nounced by an eminent critic to be " alike seasonable and effective.'' A
sermon of his, entitled " Christian Patriotism," delivered at the centenary of
Craigdam U.P. congregation, appeared two years later in the memorial
volume, "The Church of a Hundred Years." Mr Ritchie, owing to impaired
physical strength, was loosed from his charge, 6th February 1866. In
tabling his demission he stated that the congregation during his ministry
had cleared off a debt of ^5?o, besides improving the property, so that he
left them much better than he found them. Portobello now became his
place of abode ; but a number of years ago he removed to Edinburgh, where
he and his family keep by Hope Park Church, the representative of Old
Potterrow. Mrs Ritchie, who died comparatively early, was a daughter of
the Rev. James Borwick, Rathillet.
During the vacancy of two years, which now intervened, Charlotte Street
Church addressed a call to Mr W. T. Henderson, but Millport was preferred.
They next invited the Rev. William Turner to come in from Craigdam, as
Mr Robertson had done twenty-five years before, and then the Rev. William
Galletly to come south from Peterhead ; but, though Aberdeen had its
advantages, neither of them was prepared like Mr Robertson to face the
experiment. The membership at this time was 120, and the stipend was to
be ^160 in all.
Third Minister. — JAMES CORDINEK, from Campbeltown, Argyll, though
the family, including his uncle, the Rev. Robert Cordiner of Lesmahagow,
were originally from Southend. Having decided for Charlotte Street,
Aberdeen, rather than Shapinshay in Orkney, he was ordained, 5th February
1868. But within a few months consumption emerged amidst the keen air
of Aberdeen, and he died, I3th September, in the thirtieth year of his age,
leaving a widow and two young children.
Fourth Minister. — MATTHEW GALBRAITH, M.A., from Edinburgh (now
Eyre Place). Accepted the call, though another intervened from Moffat, to
succeed the Rev. John Riddell, and was ordained, I3th April 1869. In 1874
two calls came up to Mr Galbraith at the same meeting, the one from Victoria
Street, Dundee, and the other from Gillespie Church, Glasgow, but he
declined to remove from his present charge. Five years afterwards he had
a membership of almost 600, the largest of the six in Aberdeen, and the
stipend was ^300. In the year of the Union Charlotte Street still kept the
lead with a membership of 606, but Belmont Street was very nearly abreast.
The stipend remained as before.
NELSON STREET (UNITED PRESBYTERIAN)
ON loth February 1863 Mr Thomas Brown, who became the first minister of
Nelson Street Church, applied to Aberdeen Presbytery to be received as a
licentiate. He had been engaged for nine years at mission work in the
Gallowgate under the supervision of a Free Church Missionary Committee,
PRESBYTERY OF ABERDEEN 21
but he had now renounced his former connection. The Synod in May
authorised the Presbytery to receive Mr Brown, as the Free Church
Presbytery had nothing against him on the score of status or reputation.
As the counterpart to this application a memorial from fully 300 individuals
connected with the Free Church Mission in the Gallowgate was laid before
the Presbytery of Aberdeen on 5th July, praying to be received into the
U.P. Church. It came out that during the nine years Mr Brown had
laboured among them the membership had increased from 91 to 211, and
they were specially dissatisfied with the Free Church for refusing them the
standing of a regular congregation. As it was, they felt, and so did Mi-
Brown, that the tie between them was liable to be severed at any time by
the Mission Committee in charge of their affairs. It was further ascertained
that the chapel in which they met was rented, and had accommodation for
250 people, and that on the previous year they contributed ^80 to the
Sustentation Fund. The petition was granted, and on 8th September a
communion roll with 133 names was made up. Mr Brown was now located
in the Gallowgate for three months, and towards the end of the year the
people obtained a session of their own for the first time by the ordination of
two elders. On 3rd May 1864 Mr Brown was ordained, the stipend promised
being £100. But another place of worship was felt to be needed, and on
3 ist March 1867 the new church in Nelson Street was opened. The cost
was over ^1000, but the people had previously raised over ^500, and they
were to receive another £100 from the Extension Fund. In the end of the
previous year the congregation was placed on the supplemented list, after
being in receipt of grants in aid to the amount of from ^60 to ^80 for the
two preceding years. In 1875 the stipend amounted in all to ^187, los.
On gth April 1878 Mr Brown's resignation, tendered on the ground of failing
health, was accepted. He died, loth May 1879, in the sixty-seventh year of
his age, from which it appears that he was over fifty when ordained. Free
Tolbooth, Edinburgh, is given as Mr Brown's native congregation ; but he
must have been a man of thirty before there was a Free Church at all.
Second Minister. — JOHN E. DoBSON, who had been ordained as a Con-
gregationalist minister at Blairgowrie in April 1867. After two years he
removed to Lerwick, where he remained five years, and then, owing to the
climate, had unwillingly to resign. Gainsborough was his next charge ; but
before two years were ended he complained of ill-treatment, and at the
Synod in 1877 he was received into fellowship with the U.P. Church. He
assigned as his reason for making the change the interference of office
bearers, against which the Congregational system furnished no safeguard,
and his belief that Presbyterianism was more workable. Mr Dobson was
inducted to Nelson Street, I7th September 1878, and on 2nd November 1886
he resigned, and was loosed from his charge. He was inducted to Guard-
bridge in 1892. Nelson Street Church was now reduced for a time to a
preaching station, and at the end of 1887 the membership was returned at
100. This contrasted with the 240 of seventeen years before.
Third Minister. — ARCHIBALD CAMPBELL, from Sydney Place, Glasgow.
Ordained, 8th January 1889. Eleven years after this the membership was
returned at 152, and the stipend from the people was ^90.
CRAIGDAM (ANTIBURGHER)
THE cradle of the Secession in Aberdeenshire was Buchan Proper, or the
region of Deer, as will be shown under Clola ; but Craigdam, a mere hamlet,
a dozen miles farther south, became the seat of the earliest Secession con-
22 HISTORY OF U.P. CONGREGATIONS
gregation. For reasons to be assigned afterwards, it was at Kinmundy, in
the parish of Old Deer, that the first seceder services were conducted, and
when in 1746 it was proposed to have a minister ordained, with Moray for
his centre, he was to preach two successive Sabbaths out of every eight in
the county of Buchan — the one at Kinmundy and the other about Craigdam.
The latter place was ultimately fixed on as the gathering point of the tribes.
Whatever may have determined the selection, it cannot have been the
difficulty of finding a site farther north, since the proprietor of Kinmundy
was an out-and-out supporter of the Secession in Aberdeenshire from the
very first. Craigdam is fully a mile from the village and the parish church
of Tarves.
First Minister. — WILLIAM BROWN, from the parish of Forgandenny and
the North congregation, Perth. Ordained, 23rd July 1752. Fully a month
before this he received a unanimous call to Holm of Balfron, as the records
of that congregation show. This was a far more desirable place, but the
Presbytery of Perth and Dunfermline seem to have treated this competing
call as too late, and the ordination at Craigdam was proceeded with. The
Presbytery minutes having perished, we cannot condescend on either the
numbers who signed the call or the amount of stipend promised, but we
cannot help thinking that tradition has placed both figures far too low.
There was no church as yet, but a year afterwards the congregation applied
to Perth session "for assistance in building a house for public worship," and
received £6. About the same time the Presbytery recommended "a contri
bution for the relief of the community of Craigdam, who are in straitened cir
cumstances." In April 1754 Mr Brown complained to the Presbytery that
some of his people were insisting on him preaching in more places on
Sabbath days than had been originally agreed on, and the clerk was in
structed to write them about adhering to the first arrangement. Still, it is
certain that Mr Brown's itineracies took in a very wide circuit, but much
of this may have been on week-days. As time passed there was a branching
away on every side — first Clola, 16 miles to the north ; then Aberdeen,
1 8 miles to the south; then Shiels, 12 miles to the south-east; and lastly
Auchmacoy, 10 miles to the east.
Of Mr Brown's method of preaching Mr Lind of Whitehill, who was
brought up under his ministry, stated that a single text served him for a
year, and that each text was entered on at the great communion gathering
in summer. We have one sermon of his from the words : " What think
ye of Christ?" marked by much fervour; but though his earnest appeals
find frequent expression in the interjection, O, the story of the printer find
ing himself nonplussed by having his supply of O's exhausted before its time
may be safely set down as a myth. Mr Brown died, loth April 1801, in the
seventy-third year of his age and forty-ninth of his ministry. Two of his
grandsons attained to high positions in the Free Church — Principal Brown
of Aberdeen, known specially for his standard work on " The Second
Advent" and his "Life of Dr John Duncan." The other was Dr Charles
Brown of the New North, Edinburgh. The marriage of his eldest daughter
to James Ferguson, Esq. of Kinmundy was announced in August 1788.
Both families acceded to the Constitutional Presbytery, and thus were
lost to the denomination. A third grandson of MHP-. Brown's came to be
minister of the Original Secession Church, Coupar-Angus.
After Mr Brown's death Craigdam congregation called Mr Andrew
M'Gregor, but he refused to accept, and had to be released. He afterwards
obtained Buchlyvie, where his ministry came to an unhappy end.
Second Minister. — PATRICK ROBERTSON, from Perth (North). Ordained,
8th March 1804. The stipend was only £jx> at first, with a new manse, but
PRESBYTERY OF ABERDEEN 23
in eight years it rose to ^100. In a year or two the second church was
built at a cost of .£400 or ^500 — sittings 600. Mr Robertson acquired a
name for striking remarks and out-of-the-way comparisons, given largely in
the broad Doric, but it is doubtful whether he always kept up the dignity of
the pulpit. It is certain, however, that his preaching' often made a deep
impression, and he was much admired both among his own people and in
other congregations. After the Union of 1820 it looked at one time as if
his light might be placed on a loftier candlestick by his removal to Aberdeen
as the minister of what is now Garden Place congregation, but when the
moderation day came a probationer was carried over him by a very slight
majority. In 1836 the membership of Craigdam was within a little of 300,
about a fourth of the families being from adjacent parishes. The stipend
was, as it had been for twenty-five years, ^100, with manse and garden, and
there was a debt on the property of ^90. On i8th May 1841 Mr Robertson
accepted a call to Charlotte Street, Aberdeen, a step which both he and his
best friends had reason to regret. Before obtaining a successor to their
aged minister Craigdam congregation experienced a severe disappointment.
Stewartfield Presbytery met on 6th July 1842 for the ordination of Mr John
Steedman, but instead of appearing he had a letter forward intimating that
he had closed with a call from Stirling (now Erskine Church), which had
emerged since his trial exercises were given in.
Third Minister. — JOHN CALLANDER, from Stirling (Erskine Church).
Having declined Keith he was ordained at Craigdam, 3rd November 1842.
In September 1849, knowing that charges of a heinous kind were working
into publicity against him, Mr Callander abruptly disappeared, and made
for America, " a sorely, but deservedly, chastened man." On the 24th of
that month the Presbytery cut the pastoral tie. They afterwards proceeded
against him by libel, of which several counts were found proven, but as the
Atlantic intervened they simply declared him no longer a minister or member
of the U.P. Church. He died at Toronto, nth May 1853, aged thirty-six.
Fourth Minister. — WILLIAM TURNER, from Dunbar (West). Ordained,
I4th October 1851, the stipend being ^105, with manse, garden, and sacra
mental expenses. In 1867 Mr Turner, unlike Mr Robertson, though a
much younger man, declined a call to Charlotte Street, Aberdeen ; but on
8th October 1872 he was loosed from Craigdam on accepting an appoint
ment to be superintendent of the Edinburgh City Mission. This office he
filled till 1894, when he retired under the burden of years. During most of
his residence in Edinburgh he was a member of Bristo session. He died,
2 1st September 1897, in the seventy-second year of his age and forty-sixth
of his ministerial life. In 1876 Mr Turner published a volume of very
scholarly essays, entitled " Studies Biblical and Oriental," several of which
had previously appeared in magazines or reviews.
Fifth Minister. — DOUGLAS K. AUCHTERLONIE, from Gorbals, Glasgow
(now Elgin Street). Ordained, 4th November 1873, after having set aside a
call to Holm, Kilmarnock. The manse had been recently rebuilt at a cost
of ^544, for which the Manse Board allowed ^200. Though the congre
gation has always been far gathered, and the population around is on the
decline, the membership at the Union was 188, and the stipend from the
people ,£157, slightly more than when Mr Auchterlonie went.
LYNTURK (BURGHER)
ON 26th July 1761 the Burgher Presbytery of Perth and Dunfermline
received an accession from some people in Tough, a parish two dozen miles
24 HISTORY OF U.P. CONGREGATIONS
west of Aberdeen, and the Rev. William M'Ewan of Dundee was appointed
to preach there on the third and fourth Sabbaths of August. The parish
minister had set himself to put down the reading of the line in public
worship, and the Old Statistical History says he "persisted in his design,
and this occasioned a schism among his hearers." Those who withdrew
built a humble place of worship soon after, the Presbytery having engaged
to aid them with the erection. It still stands, forming part of the out
houses on the home-farm of Lynturk, and bears the date 1762. On 2Qth
June Of that year there was a further accession from Banchory-Ternan, and
though the places are at least fifteen miles apart the two sections were to
form one congregation. In 1763 six elders were ordained, four for Tough
and two for Banchory, one of the former being William M'Combie, a family
name long prominent both in the congregation and in Aberdeenshire.
The first call was issued in March 1764, and this introduces us to Mr
John Bennet, son of the Rev. James Bennet, minister of St Andrews, and
proprietor of Gairney Bridge. Trials were assigned Mr Bennet with a view
to ordination, but month after month passed without progress being made.
Tough and Banchory were far from the centre and far from each other, and
altogether the outlook was not encouraging. After waiting patiently for an
entire year the people began to insist on " the expediting of Mr Bennet's
trials," and commissioners were sent south to Perth to demand a decisive
answer. The business was terminated at Aberdeen in July 1765, when Mr
Bennet " was dealt with at considerable length both in open Presbytery and
by some of the members in private to remove his scruples against going to
Tough, but all to no purpose, he pleading his weakliness of constitution, and
the broken state of his health." The Presbytery owned they could do no
more, and the call had to be dropped. Mr Bennet itinerated other fifteen
years as a probationer, but he was never again invited " to submit to a
settlement." In 1781 the Synod was overtured to withhold appointments
from preachers who, after a considerable trial of their gifts, were found not
to be acceptable, and that " it be recommended to them to apply to some
other business." Mr Bennet's name never again appeared on the pro
bationer list, and in the course of a month he married and settled down to
cultivate "the paternal farm of Gairney Bridge." In 1783 he was inducted
to the eldership in Kinross (West), and died, 8th April 1804, aged sixty-nine.
In 1813 the property passed into the possession of another family.
The next call from Tough came up to the Synod along with other three
to Mr James Moir in May 1766, but Cumbernauld was carried over it by the
final vote. At the request of the commissioners the Presbytery was then
recommended to grant the congregation as regular supply a*s possible, their
remote situation exposing them to frequent, and sometimes wide, blanks.
The call to Mr Moir was signed by 94 members.
First ./J//7z/-y/Vr.— CHARLES HUNTER, a native of Kildrummie parish,
Aberdeenshire, according to Dr George Brown, who had good means of
knowing. After this third call was issued the people represented their
mournful situation to the Synod by reason of their long vacancy and severe
disappointments, and they earnestly craved to have Mr Hunter sent through
to Perth Presbytery to be put on trials for ordination among them. But
though this was agreed to the process advanced stewly, giving time for
Kinross (West) to come between them and the object of their choice. This
was a place far more to be desired, but the Synod refused to allow Kinross
to come into competition with Lynturk and Banchory. Still it was not till
24th August 1769 that Charles Hunter was ordained minister of the united
congregation. He died, 2oth May 1775, in the sixth year of his ministry.
The people, limited as were their resources, had sought to promote his
PRESBYTERY OF ABERDEEN 25
comfort by providing him with a manse, but at the first Synod after
his death they represented that this undertaking had involved them in
serious difficulties. Little help was to be got from central funds in
those days, and it would be left for the people to work out their own
deliverance.
Second Minister. — ANDREW MURRAY, from West Linton. The stipend
they finally offered was ,£40, with manse, garden, office-houses, and a glebe
of four acres, for which they paid a rent of fully ^5. The call was signed
by 122 members and 38 adherents, but Mr Murray was bent against
accepting till, by consent of both parties, Banchory was disjoined from
Tough. He was ordained, 8th June 1780, after a delay of fourteen months.
The relation between the two centres will be discussed when- we come to
Banchory. In 1789 the Synod recommended sister congregations to aid
the people of Tough in rebuilding their church, but after two years' delay
they erected another church a mile farther south. In 1793 the parishioners,
young and old, under Mr Murray's care were put at 127, but there might
be at least half that number from other parishes. In March 1800 the office
bearers complained to the Presbytery of inability to support the Gospel.
The new formation at Midmar, they explained, had weakened them by
withdrawing some of their members ; but, worse than this, a divisive spirit had
entered in among them through contact, the Presbytery thought, with the
" Old Light" party in Aberdeen. A year later a committee of investigation
found the income from collections and seat rents to be only £28. The
membership was over 100, but of these there were 37 who contributed
nothing, pleading the hardness of the times — terms which carried meaning
at that trying period — and to lighten their burdens the Synod granted them
^lo a year. But the Original Burgher Presbytery instructed their pro
bationers when supplying at Aberdeen to go out and preach at Lynturk, an
arrangement which would keep the wound from closing. Mr Murray died,
9th July 1816, in the seventy-ninth year of his age and thirty-seventh of his
ministry. The former figure, given in the Scots Magazine, harmonises with
the statement that he was baptised at West Linton by one of the Secession
Fathers in 1738. It appears from this that he had reached the age of forty-
two when ordained.
Third Minister. — JOHN ROBB, from Bridge-of-Teith. Ordained, 17th
March 1819. The call was signed by 87 members and 15 adherents, and
the minister was to have ,£60, with manse, office-houses, "and the land
which Mr Murray had." After 30 years the stipend was ,£70, with the
manse, and a supplement of ^15. But plain comforts would be enjoyed
among the farmers who formed the strength of the congregation. Mr Robb
died of cancer, 29th November 1853, in the sixty-eighth year of his age and
thirty-fifth of his ministry. In August 1855 Mr James Harrower was called
to be his successor, but he remained on the list, and after nearly two years
was settled in Eyemouth.
Fourth Minister. — GEORGE M'ARTHUR, M.A., from New Deer. Or
dained, 1 3th February 1856, the stipend to be .£90, with a manse. Mr
M'Arthur was loosed from his charge on 3rd March 1863, on accepting the
appointment of Mathematical Master in the Gymnasium, Aberdeen, a situ
ation in keeping with his scholarly attainments. He afterwards held for
many years a situation in the office of Messrs Adam & Charles Black,
Publishers, Edinburgh, but on the completion of the Encyclopedia Britan-
nica, Ninth Edition, he sailed with his family for New York. After some
years he returned home, and is now engaged in literary work in London.
During most of his sojourn in Edinburgh he was a member of Bristo
session. Soon after he left Tough the congregation called Mr Thomas
26 HISTORY OF U.P. CONGREGATIONS
Whitelaw, who in a few months became junior minister of Mile End, South
Shields, and is now Dr Whitelaw of Kilmarnock.
Fifth Minister.— WlLLlAU AITKEN, M.A., from Lathones. Ordained,
2nd March 1864. The members at this time were about 60, but the at
tendance was double that number, and the stipend from the people ^80, with
a house. On Sabbath, 6th May 1866, a new church, with sittings for 320,
erected at a cost of ^1760 about two and a half miles to the west of the
former site, was opened by Dr Finlayson of Edinburgh, and the name finally
changed from Tough to Lynturk. A manse was built at the same time,
which, along with the price received for the former, cost ^440, of which ^200
came from the Board. But believing there was to be little progress made at
Lynturk, Mr.Aitken agreed to remove to Singapore in connection with the
English Pre'sbyterian Church, and was loosed from his charge, nth
November 1875. The membership had increased in the interim to 83,
and the stipend from the people was now ^100. In 1882 Mr Aitken, having
returned home, officiated for some time as assistant to Dr Black of Welling
ton Church, Glasgow. He then took charge of the Mission Church at
Port-of-Spain, Trinidad, from May 1885 to the close of 1889. He is now
Chaplain to the Royal Infirmary, Edinburgh. [Mr Aitken died, 27th October
1901, aged sixty-four.]
Sixth Minister. — JAMES B. DUNCAN, M.A., from Whitehill. Ordained,
6th June 1876. For a number of years the membership exceeded the above
83, but amidst local displacements the accessions began to fall beneath the
removals. The names on the communion roll at the close of 1899 were
71, and the stipend from the people was ,£90, while nearly a third of that
sum is raised in addition for missionary and benevolent purposes.
SHIELS (ANTIBURGHER)
ON I4th June and again on I3th July 1773 Mr Brown of Craigdam asked
Elgin Presbytery to grant some supply to his people in Belhelvie, twelve
miles distant. From the congregational records we find that Mr Brown
had preached occasionally in that parish since 1755, but sermon was now
begun under the auspices of the Presbytery, and was kept up in a sparse
way year after year. In 1775 a long, narrow, thatched house was erected
for a kirk, and on 26th June 1782 Belhelvie was disjoined from Craigdam.
In the following year the Presbytery, with much hesitancy, allowed the
people to proceed with a moderation. The call came out for Mr Robert
Laing, and was signed by all the male members present, 26 in number, and
by 35 adherents, men and women. The Presbytery gave the preference to
a competing call from Cabrach, but their decision was thwarted by Mr
Laing, and he was afterwards ordained at Duns.
First Minister. — JAMES ANDREW, a native of Madderty parish, but
entered the Hall from Methven congregation. Called unanimously in July
1785, but he persistently refused to accept. In December, after he had been
prevailed on to give part of his trials, it came out that the call was lost, and
he pleaded that this allowed him to go free, that being dead wherein he was
held. The mishap was made up for by a second moderation, though, when
this was spoken of, he declared it was of no use to go on, as he would never
submit to be ordained at Shiels. The matter was at last referred to the
Synod, which had had trouble with him three years before in connection with
a call from Newtonards, Ireland. He carried his point on that occasion, but
he was not permitted to be victorious a second time. He was ordained at
Shiels, by constraint, 5th July 1786. The stipend was ,£40, which in a few
PRESBYTERY OF ABERDEEN 27
years was raised to ,£45, and the membership was about 60. A manse had
been built in 1784, and in 1791 "the long, narrow, thatched house" was
superseded by a neat little church, with slated roof, its dimensions forty
feet by twenty-six. The expense of the two together is set down at .£280,
and the wonder is where the money came from.
In the closing years of the century Mr Andrew was put out of sorts by
the spirit of innovation which the visit of the Haldanes in 1797 had wakened
up in several Antiburgher congregations around. In July 1798 Shiels
session represented to the Presbytery that persons in their connection had
gone into practices directly opposed to the principles of the Church, and
they declined fellowship with all such, whether sessions, ministers, or
people, till open acknowledgments were made. On i6th April 1799, after a
paper had been given in from members of Keith congregation in favour of
Sabbath schools and missionary societies, Mr Andrew, who had been
Presbytery clerk since his ordination, "signified that he did not mean to
continue in that office any longer." He was dealt with to go on as before,
but "he was positive in his resolution to give it up." He happened also to
be moderator of session at this time in the vacant congregation of
Aberdeen, and, when the Presbytery expressed disapproval of the high
handed way in which that session had dealt with certain ecclesiastical
offenders, " declaring so many out of communion at once," he protested to
the Synod, and never attended a Presbytery meeting again. In April 1800
he gave in the demission of his charge to the Synod, accompanied by certain
complaints against his co-presbyters : but the Synod expressed disapproval
of his conduct, and the demission was not accepted. The congregation
meanwhile wished him to remain among them, but in June the Presbytery
had to grant supply to Shiels, and in July they found he had left altogether.
For these irregularities the Synod suspended him at their next meeting ; but
in May 1801 he acknowledged his faults, was admonished, restored to office,
and "the affair dismissed." The Constitutional Presbytery having been
constituted in 1806, Mr Andrew became a probationer in that connection.
In 1816 he settled down as a farmer at Redford in Madderty parish, where
he died, i$th February 1822, in the 68th year of his age.
Second Minister. — DAVID WADDELL, who had been fourteen years in
Cabrach, from which he was loosed in circumstances narrated under the
history of that congregation. Having suffered for his attempt to enforce
the rigid, Antiburgher system of discipline, it was meet that Shiels should
open its doors to receive him. He was inducted, 24th December 1800.
The membership was about 70 when he went, but it increased under his
ministry to nearly 100. The stipend also advanced from ^45 to ^52, and
then to ^60. Out of these sums the rent of the glebe had to be paid, but
the people engaged to cast and drive fuel for the manse. In 1802 galleries
were erected in the little chapel, which was made to contain 330 sittings.
This was, as Dr George Brown explains, -to give increased accommodation
to the crowds who went from Aberdeen and other places to the communion
at Shiels. Frequently it was his privilege, he said, to join these companies,
and listen to their edifying conversation, and over the recollection he could
say : " It was good for me to be there." He speaks of Mr Waddell as a
judicious preacher, though, owing to a certain hesitancy in his speech, he
was less popular than some of his brethren. He also describes him as
" ministering to a people few in number, but warmly attached to their
pastor, and some of them, though of humble station, deserving to be ranked
with the excellent of the earth." But evil days came, and in the beginning
of 1822 the cause was at a very low ebb. The spirit of former times con
tinued strong at Shiels, and in 1808 William Edwards, one of the elders,
28 HISTORY OF U.P. CONGREGATIONS
gave in his declinature, and joined the Old Light Antiburgher Church at
Aberdeen, ten miles off. Now we read : "The late Union in the Secession
having caused a great number of our members to desert us, this with other
causes puts it out of our power to raise more than ^45 annually of stipend."
But the Presbytery agreed to make up the deficiency till more prosperous
times should come ; the Synod granted them £20 ; the arrears were paid
up ; and the stipend was kept at ,£60 during what remained of Mr
Waddell's ministry. The people also got into better spirits, and improve
ments on the church and manse amounting to ^30 were met by 23 of their
members giving two-thirds of that sum, and the rest was made up by 32
others. Mr Waddell died, i6th November 1826, in the seventy-first year of
his age and forty-first of his ministry. Though the treasury at Shiels was
not overflowing, the funeral charges, paid from the funds, amounted to
over ;£i i.
Third Minister. — JAMES M'lNTOSH, from Coupar-Angus. Ordained,
30th July 1828. The call, which was "most unanimous," was signed by 75
members and 62 adherents. The stipend was to be ^72, with manse and
garden. In 1836 the membership, which had recently come down 10 by
emigration to America, was 88, and the emoluments were the same as
before. In the report of the Debt Liquidation Board for 1840 the con
gregation is described as very poor, and they had a debt of ,£36 which they
were unable to pay, but the Board granted them ,£20, and the people raised
the other £16. In April 1844 Mr M'Intosh, finding money matters in an
unsatisfactory state, gave in his resignation to the Presbytery. A committee
reported at next meeting that the elders and others warmly desired their
minister's continuance among them, and promised to do everything in their
power to make him comfortable, and the result was that Mr M'Intosh with
drew his demission. In 1846 a stipend of ^80 was arranged for, the people
to raise ^45 and the supplement to be ,£35. On i2th March 1850 the
Presbytery met with the congregation to inquire into their financial state,
and the meeting ended with Mr M'Intosh finally resigning. A slight
majority afterwards declared in favour of the relation being continued,
assigning as the reason that they were benefited by their minister's preach
ing, and that they were afraid if he left they might be deprived of gospel
ordinances altogether. But Mr M'Intosh declined to yield a second time,
and on 9th April his demission was accepted. After being four years on the
preachers' list he emigrated to Canada, and he was inducted to Amhurst
Island in 1854. He died in the early part of December 1875, in the seventy-
eighth year of his age and forty-eighth of his ministry.
Towards the close of 1850 the congregation called Mr Alexander
M'Lean, afterwards of Kirriemuir, but as he had only preached one
Sabbath the call was not sustained. In March 1851 they called Mr James
A. Johnson, afterwards of West Linton, and repeated the call in October,
but both times without success.
Fourth Minister. — WILLIAM GILLESPIE, from Denny. Mr Gillespie
had been ordained as a missionary to China on ist November 1843 m Well
Street Chapel, London, under the auspices of the London Missionary
Society. After labouring in the East for six years he returned home, and
had his name placed on the probationer list in May 1851. Inducted to
Shiels, 28th April 1852, the stipend to be ^55 from the people and ,£35
expected from the Board. Accepted an invitation from the missionary
societies of Broughton Place and Rose Street, Edinburgh, to undertake
mission work in the High Street, and was loosed from his charge, I4th
August 1855. In January 1856 the congregation called the Rev. William
Inglis, formerly of Banff, but he preferred to seek a field of labour in
PRESBYTERY OF ABERDEEN 29
Canada. They then fixed on Mr Peter Davidson, but he waited on, and
got Brechin (High Street).
Fifth Minister. — EDWARD RANKINE, from Kincardine-on-Forth.
Ordained, loth June 1857. There were only 58 members at this time,
but 21 acceded before the end of the year, and all onwards there was a
gradual rise, till at the beginning of 1868 the maximum of 107 was reached.
Removals from the district now began to tell at an average rate of two in
the year, and this brought the number down to 97 in 1873. 1° "865 the old
manse was superseded by another at a cost of ,£515, of which .£340 was
raised by the people and ,£175 came from the Board. Mr Rankine was
enrolled minister-emeritus, 5th May 1892. He removed soon afterwards
to Edinburgh, where he now resides, and is an elder in Merchiston Church.
His son, the Rev. T. P. Rankine, has been recently translated from Water-
beck to Pollok Street, Glasgow.
Sixth Minister, — JOSEPH T. J. WHYTE, from Oban. Ordained, I4th
August 1894. The call was signed by 53 members out of 56, a fact which
brings out alike the unanimity of the congregation and its numerical strength.
At the close of 1899 there were 53 names on the communion roll, and the
stipend from the people was ^50.
ELLON (ANTIBUROHER)
ON 8th September 1788 the session of Clola referred to the Antiburgher
Presbytery of Aberdeen an application for sermon from some people about
Slains, a parish on the east coast of Aberdeenshire, eight miles south of
Clola, but within their bounds. This was followed on 8th April 1789 by two
petitions of like import from parties "not of our communion" in the parishes
of Slains, Logie-Buchan, and Ellon, and from this time they had supply
nearly every alternate Sabbath. On 1310 April 1791 some members of
Craigdam congregation " in and about Ellon " petitioned to be erected into
a distinct congregation, and, the list of names having been given in, the
petition was granted on 27th June. Then on I4th November the families
connected with Clola congregation residing in the district were disjoined
and annexed to the forming cause. The spot chosen was at Auchmacoy in
Logie-Buchan, and in the Old Statistical account of that parish, written in
1791, the church is stated to have been built "last summer." Thus has the
Secession found a new centre ten miles east from Craigdam and eight
south from Clola.
First Minister. — JAMES RONALDSON, from Abernethy congregation.
The stipend promised was ,£45, with a house. A session had been con
stituted two years before, of whom one member had previously held office
in Craigdam or Clola, and five were duly elected. The call was signed by
only 25 (male) members, and sustained by the moderator's casting vote.
After this some of the occasional hearers sent up a paper to the Presbytery,
signifying that they disapproved of the congregation's choice, but it was
agreed after long deliberation to present the call to Mr Ronaldson. He
accepted, though a declinature might have been better for the cause at
Auchmacoy in its weak beginnings. He was ordained, 3oth June 1795.
Mr Ronaldson resigned after a ministry of thirty years, and the church was
declared vacant, 3oth March 1825. His name then appeared on the pro
bationer list till 1829, but he eventually settled down to cultivate a small
property of his own at Newton of Falkland, where he was in the member
ship of Freuchie congregation. By his marriage Mr Ronaldson was a
brother-in-law of the Rev. William Scott of Leslie, and this may have
30 HISTORY OF U.P. CONGREGATIONS
influenced him to take up strong Calvinistic ground during the Atone
ment Controversy. In 1843 he ceased to attend public ordinances at
Freuchie, and when Cupar Presbytery appointed two of their number to
hold a friendly conference with him he refused to receive them, and on gth
July 1844 they declared him no longer a minister or member of the United
Secession Church. He and his family now connected themselves with Falk
land Free Church. Mr Ronaldson died, 2oth May 1845, aged seventy-eight.
Second Minister. — WILLIAM STOKBS, from Yetholm. Called to Strom-
ness, Ellon, and Blyth. Between the last two there was not much to choose ;
but Stromness was far weightier than either, their call being signed by 228
members and 248 adherents, while that from Ellon only showed 59 members
and 152 hearers. But the claims of the weaker congregation prevailed with
the Synod, and Mr Stobbs was ordained at Ellon, 6th November 1827. By
this time circumstances had necessitated a change of centre. In October
1826 the congregation informed the Presbytery that the proprietor of
Auchmacoy was not to allow them possession of the manse after the
expiry of the present lease. The building must have been in a dilapidated
state, Mr Ronaldson having given as one of his reasons for retiring that
through want of repair the house was scarcely habitable. But, besides this,
the people were "altogether uncertain whether they could get a new lease
of the ground on which the church was built." The issue was that they
resolved, by a great majority, to remove to Ellon, two miles to the west, and
there the present church was built in 1827 at a cost of ^320, with 340 sittings.
It was at this stage that Mr Stobbs was put in to build up the cause anew,
but in the course of a year Stromness people came back on him again, and
the Synod in May 1829 decided to allow the translation. Thus Ellon had to
face the contingencies of another vacancy.
Third Minister.— JAMES YOUNG, from Pitcairn-Green. Ordained, I5th
July 1830, after ten years of probationer life. " He had some good sermons,"
said George Gilfillan, "but spoilt himself by a bad delivery, and his voice
was husky." But Ellon congregation got much attached to their minister,
and in 1835 they built a manse for him, which, notwithstanding outside help,
raised their debt to ^150. In 1837 there were 98 communicants, but the
average attendance at the evening service was more than double that
number. The stipend was slightly under ^75, with house and garden. Of
the families, thirty-three, which must have been the larger proportion, came
from over two miles, including the neighbouring parishes of Slains, Cruden,
Logie, and Udny. In 1840 the debt was lightened by ^100 being cleared
off, the Board aiding to the extent of one-half, and appearances were thought
to be better than they had ever been before. But evil came in a form little
expected. On 27th January 1842 Mr Young was deposed for confessed im
morality, though his brethren restored him to membership soon afterwards.
The congregation, believing that he had satisfied for his offence, petitioned,
though not with entire unanimity, to have him set over them again, but
" the Synod judged that there was not reason at present for granting the
prayer of the petition." Mr Young then became a city missionary in con
nection with Rose Street Church, Edinburgh. He caught fever in the
discharge of his official duties, and died, i6th November 1847, in the forty-
ninth year of his age. Some specimens of his pulpit work given to the
world in the following year, with memoir by Dr Voting of Perth, were ill-
chosen, the lectures on the Intercessory Prayer, the part fixed on by the
magazine for special commendation, being almost literal transcripts from
Matthew Henry. Still, Mr Young's high reputation for gifts of intellect
cannot have been baseless, though George Gilflllian in his "History of a
Man," and elsewhere, treated his memory with scanty respect.
PRESBYTERY OF ABERDEEN 31
The attempt to have Mr Young back among them having failed, Ellon
congregation in November 1842 called Mr Laurence Gowans, but he
accepted B rough ty Ferry.
Fourth Minister.— JAMES IRELAND, from Milnathort. As Mr Ireland's
mother was a sister of the Rev. Robert Morison of Bathgate, and as his
cousin, the Rev. James Morison, had been recently convicted of heresy, the
Presbytery of Aberdeen kept strict watch at the entrance gate, and by trial
discourses on Predestination and the Atonement, and also by minute oral
examination, they tested his soundness in the faith. Having passed through
the ordeal with some difficulty he was ordained, gth November 1843, and
on the following Sabbath he was introduced to his charge by his friend and
fellow-townsman, the Rev. John Steedman of Stirling. Mr Ireland in student
days made an admirable teacher, as the writer can attest from early recol
lections. There were unfailing tact, perfect order, an eye for the humorous
side of things, and the gift of imparting instruction, and, as he had little out
flow in the pulpit, the friends of his student days were of opinion that he should
have made this his profession. But he chose differently, and in Ellon he
found scope for his peculiar talents, making instruction the basis of pulpit
work, and training the old, and specially the young, in acquaintance with the
Word of God. In 1845 trie remaining debt on the property, which had
grown to ^75, was liquidated, the Board allowing ,£37. The stipend was
supplemented to ^90, with the manse, in 1848, and it rose with the progress
of the Augmentation Scheme till before Mr Ireland retired from active duty
it reached ^180. This was in June 1886, and a few months previously the
congregation called Mr James Gilmour to be Mr Ireland's colleague and
successor ; but he decided to work on in Cowdenbeath, where his ordina
tion followed. The manse built in 1835 had been improved in 1865 at a
cost of ,£275, of which the Board allowed a grant of ^170.
Fifth Minister. — JAMES A. ADAM, M.A., from Caledonia Road, Glasgow.
Ordained, 25th August 1886. Mr Ireland died, 2gth September 1890, in
the seventy-eighth year of his age and forty-seventh year of his ministry.
At the close of 1899 the membership was 93, and the stipend from the people
.£70, with the manse.
MIDMAR (BURGHER)
THIS congregation originated in a petition presented on 3rd September
1799 to the Burgher Presbytery of Perth from twenty-eight heads of families
in and about Midmar. It set forth their unhappy situation through want of
the pure Gospel, and entreated supply of preaching. One of the commis
sioners on their behalf was the Rev. John Brown of Whitburn, who had
been itinerating in the north under the Synod's directions. The petition
being granted, the first church was erected in 1802, and that year 8
members were annexed from Tough.
First Minister. — JAMES PATERSON, from Tough. Ordained, I5th May
1805. Progress was checked almost at the beginning of the upraising of the
Old Light flag, a number breaking away from Mr I'aterson's ministry, and
travelling regularly on Sabbath to the Original Burgher Church at Aberdeen,
fifteen miles off. In 1818 they were recognised as a vacancy, though not
more than 21 in number ; but, when their first call was issued fourteen years
after, it bore the signatures of 47 members and 13 adherents. They had
hitherto met in a barn, but in 1832 their church was built, and they now
form the Free Church congregation of Midmar. This was a parish in which
the seceders could ill afford to divide ; but the New Statistical History
32 HISTORY OF U.P. CONGREGATIONS
states that both congregations were mostly made up from neighbouring
parishes. Mr Paterson died, 8th March 1838, in the sixty-second year of
his age and thirty-third of his ministry. In 1815 he published an "Essay on
Witchcraft," the design of which was to prove that popular superstitions on
this subject have no foothold in Scripture. This was followed in 1830 by a
volume of sermons. Mr Paterson was the father of the Rev. H. A. Paterson
of Stonehouse.
The congregation now got into serious difficulties about their place of
worship. Their lease of the property had expired, from which we infer that
it had only been for two nineteens — far too short a period. The report of
the Mission Board for 1840 bears that they were even refused the use of the
place of worship till they could provide themselves with another. At this
time the membership stood at 52, and they had to proceed with the erection
of a church and manse two miles from the former site. The Board promised
them a grant of .£100, provided they would raise ,£80. The requirement
was more than met, for, few as they were, they subscribed ^120 among
themselves. While thus engaged they presented a call to Mr William
Barrie, who was under engagement to go to Canada (see Johnshaven).
They next called Mr W. C. Brodie, but when the time for decision came he
requested a month's delay, and before that period expired Lassvvade opened,
and Midmar was declined.
Second Minister. — ROBERT PATERSON, who after a ministry of nine
years at Greenloaning resigned in 1838, and returned to preacher life. He
was then for a short time in Smyrna Chapel, Sunderland, but on I2th
January 1841 his demission was accepted, and the congregation soon after
passed out of existence. Mr Paterson's name now appeared on the
preachers' list for the third time. Having declined Crail, and then pre
ferred Midmar to Tain, he was inducted, I4th December 1842. His
ministry in his third congregation had an unpropitious beginning, as he was
unacceptable to a very large minority, who nevertheless signed his call, as
had been agreed on, owing to their long vacancy and repeated disappoint
ments. But there was smouldering dissatisfaction, and in September 1846
the affairs of Midmar were pressed on the notice of the Presbytery. Certain
members had been attending Morisonian preachers, and, this being com
plained of by others, they were suspended from Church privileges. To
make matters worse, Mr Paterson was at this time laid aside from duty by
severe illness, and when a Presbyterial visitation was held at Midmar in
January he was unable to be present. The parties who had been com
plained of assigned as their reason for hearing elsewhere the want of
edification under their own minister, and this state of feeling was found to be
general throughout the congregation.
Mr Paterson on recovering offered to make good that those who had
withdrawn from attendance on his ministry did so because he adhered
faithfully to sound doctrine. To establish this charge against 6 of them
witnesses were examined, the case occupying two days ; but all the
Presbytery found proven was that one of the accused had expressed himself
rashly and erroneously on some doctrinal points. Against certain of their
findings Mr Paterson protested and appealed, and the Presbytery agreed in
this connection to refer the whole case to the Synod. It came back to them
again with a recommendation to take minister afffl people under their
special care. A committee of reconciliation was appointed at next meeting,
when Mr Paterson engaged to resign if no adjustment of differences was
arrived at. On 3rd August 1847 a petition was presented by 9 members
against his removal ; but owing to its disrespectful language it was not
received, and though Mr Paterson told his brethren he had changed his
PRESBYTERY OF ABERDEEN 33
mind, it was carried by six to two to loose him from his charge. At the Synod
on 7th October it was found that the Presbytery had acted precipitately in
dissolving the relationship and in not sisting procedure when an appeal was
taken ; but instead of involving themselves in technicalities they accepted
his resignation ; declared he had prosecuted his ministry at Midmar with
commendable fidelity ; and ordered his name to be placed on the preachers'
list. Four years afterwards he was admitted to Aberchirder.
During the vacancy which followed the congregation called, without
success, Mr Archibald Cross, afterwards of West Linton.
Third Minister. — JOHN PEDKN BELL, from Greyfriars, Glasgow.
Ordained, 2/th April 1849. Mr Hell was a man of philosophic mind without
corresponding gifts of expression. The books he has left behind him, one
of them entitled "Christian Sociology" and another ''Mercy as Conditioned
by Righteousness," evince mental subtlety and a vision of his own. He
died, 9th July 1875, in the fifty-eighth year of his age and twenty-seventh of
his ministry.
Fourth Minister. — JAMES N. DODDS, M.A., from Peebles (West).
Ordained, I3th January 1876, the stipend from the people to be ^100, which
supplement made up to ^157, ios., with the manse. On nth October 1887
Mr Dodds made an acknowledgment to the Presbytery, which was followed
by suspension sine die, with deep sorrow on the part of his brethren, and
much to the regret of the congregation. He then removed to Aberdeen,
and is now a teacher in New Zealand.
Fifth Minister. — HENRY FERGUSON, from Alloa (Townhead). Or
dained, 27th March 1888, and accepted a call to Broxburn, i6th July 1895.
Sixth Minister. — JOHN D. SINCLAIR, B.D., from Camphill, Glasgow.
Ordained, igth May 1896. The membership at the close of 1899 was 72,
and the stipend from the people ,£90, and the manse.
STONEHAVEN (BURGHER)
ON 7th September 1802 the Burgher Presbytery of Perth granted sermon to
Stonehaven in answer to a petition subscribed by twenty-one persons,
"setting forth their great need of the Gospel." This agrees with what the
Haldanes recorded in their Journal five years before. " At Stonehaven we
noticed the greatest indifference to eternal things we have seen anywhere."
At this time Episcopacy was strong in the place, with two chapels, the
one Scottish and the other English. The parish church was a mile from the
town, and there was no Secession congregation nearer than Aberdeen to the
north, and Johnshaven to the south, each distant fourteen or fifteen miles. It
was meet that advantage should be taken of the present opening, and in
1803 a church was built, with sittings for 400, the cost being put down
at ,£500.
First Minister. — JOHN BALLANTYNK, a native of Kinghorn parish. With
drew from the Established Church when a university student, and became
a member of the Burgher congregation, Lochgelly. Was called to North
Berwick, as well as Stonehaven, but the latter call was signed by 45
members and 262 adherents. These last figures gave promise of great
things, and Mr Ballantyne wrote the Synod assigning reasons for thinking
Stonehaven should be preferred, which was agreed to without a vote. He
was ordained, igth March 1806. In 1824 Mr Ballantyne published in
pamphlet form his " Comparison of Established and Dissenting Churches," in
which the theory of voluntaryism was very ably wrought out before its time.
This was followed in 1828 by a monument of abstract thought, entitled "An
34 HISTORY OF U.P. CONGREGATIONS
Examination of the Human Mind." Mr Ballantyne died, 5th November
1830, in the fifty-first year of his age, as the tombstone in Fetteresso church
yard bears, and the twenty-fifth of his ministry. A fine tribute is paid to
Mr Ballantyne's character and attainments in the memoir of the Rev. Henry
Angus, Aberdeen, prefixed to his published sermons.
Second Minister. — DAVID TODD, from Dundee (School Wyncl). Or
dained, 3 ist August 1831. In 1840 the congregation, which consisted of 130
members, engaged in an effort to clear off their debt of ,£200. Of this sum
the Board agreed to furnish one-half, and the people forthwith subscribed
the other half. Stimulus came from an aged member who, as their most
liberal supporter, was anxious to see the burden removed before he died,
and " in this very affecting particular they had the wish to gratify him."
Mr Todd resigned, roth April 1855, assigning as the reason want of en
couragement, but the drawback may not have lain entirely with the con
gregation. He emigrated to Canada ; returned under paralysis, and died at
Liverpool, 7th December 1859, aged fifty-three.
During this vacancy Stonehaven, simultaneously with Shiels, called
Mr Peter Davidson, who, instead of choosing between the two, waited on,
and obtained High Street, Brechin. Soon afterwards they called Mr Robert
Scott, who went to Canada.*
Third Minister. — THOMAS SCOTT, from Portsburgh, Edinburgh (now
Lauriston Place). Ordained, 29th September 1857. The stipend promised
by the people was ^65, which was to be raised by supplement to ^110.
In 1867 a new manse was built at a cost of ^1000, of which ,£400 came
from the Manse Board. Mr Scott retired from active duty on 5th July 1886,
but retained the status of senior minister, with an allowance of ,£10 from
the congregation, and the occupancy of the manse. His son, after attending
the U.P. Hall two sessions, went over to the Establishment, and is now the
Rev. Thomas Scott, M.A., parish minister of Laurencekirk. The father
'died there, I5th September 1894, in the seventy-second year of his age and
thirty-seventh of his ministry.
Fourth Minister. — Peter B. Crowley, M.A., from Wishart Church,
Dundee. Ordained as colleague to Mr Scott, 28th December 1886. The
membership at the close of 1899 was 89, and the stipend from the people
^70, with the manse.
OLD MELDRUM (UNITED SECESSION)
AFTER the death of Mr Brown, their first; minister, in 1801 the Presbytery
suggested to Craigdam congregation the propriety of removing to Old
Meldrum, a village three and a half miles to the south-west, with a popula
tion of 800. This would have been a better centre ; and as a new manse
was needed at the time, and a new church would be needed in a few years,
it was thought the change would be to their advantage. The proposal,
however, was not entertained. Four years afterwards a paper was presented
to the Presbytery from 20 persons in Old Meldrum, members of the
Established Church, about having sermon there, but the commissioners did
not wish the petition to take effect unless the people of Craigdam decided
to remain where they were. With this the matter'' dropped out of sight,
* Mr Scott, from Braehead, was minister at Dundas, Canada, for fourteen years.
He then passed to the United States, and in 1875 was inducted to Jane Street Church,
New York. He died of paralysis, igth July 1877, in the fifty-fourth year of his age
and the seventeenth of his ministry.
PRESBYTERY OF ABERDEEN 35
and did not reappear till after sixteen years. This was on nth December
1821, when some people in Old Meldrum requested a day's supply of sermon,
and Mr Robertson of Craigdam was appointed to preach to them on the
first Sabbath of the year. Nothing followed, the reason assigned being the
want of a place of worship.
This want must have been manfully provided for, as on 8th July 1823
" the subscribers to the new chapel at Old Meldrum requested the ad
vantage of having sermon directly from the Presbytery." It hence appears
that prior to this they were allowed preaching at such times as Craigdam
minister and session thought fit to appoint, and they now wished to be set
free from this state of pupilage. But the Presbytery were apprehensive that
Craigdam congregation might suffer if an independent charge were set up
at Old Meldrum, and the matter was remitted to the consideration of the
session there. At next meeting the two parties were recommended to
consult with each other in the spirit of meekness, and by mutual concessions
accommodate their differences so that the interests of neither might be
materially injured. The church which the petitioners had built, amidst
slender encouragement, had sittings for 312, and in March 1824 they ap
pealed to the Presbytery to grant them frequent supply for themselves, and
not in connection with any other place. But when steps were adopted to
have a congregation organised the first group of members were admitted
by examination, and though the second group claimed to have been once
connected with Craigdam the session there repudiated the relationship, and
they had to be proceeded with in the same way. At last, on i2th April, a
report was made to the Presbytery that those persons in Old Meldrum who
had been approved of for admission to the Secession Church were formed
into a congregation. The Lord's Supper was to be observed by them on
the third Sabbath of August, and six elders elect were to be ordained on the
Fast Day. So after a long struggle with unfavourable breezes they reached
the harbour at last.
First Minister. — JAMES M'CRIE, from Colmonell. Ordained, ist
February 1827. The call was signed by 37 members and 38 adherents.
The stipend was to be ,£85, the figure at which it stood for at least eighteen
years, but a manse was added after a time. In 1836 Mr M'Crie obtained
an equivocal majority at a moderation in Stranraer (now Ivy Place), as is
fully related in that connection, but the Synod had to lay the call aside.
Thus the prospect of a transference to a more open sphere was blighted, and
Old Meldrum was to enjoy Mr M'Crie's services till his strength failed.
Had Aberdeenshire been favourable soil for Secession principles the quality
of his ministrations, accompanied as they were by corresponding weight of
character, should have gathered round him a flourishing congregation. By
Mrs M'Crie in " Maria" we have Old Meldrum set before us as it was in the
early years of her husband's ministry. Distilleries tainting the moral
atmosphere ; two families vying with each other for social influence ; and as
for preaching, "there seems to have been nothing done by the la A- teachers
for the spiritual benefit of souls, except in so far as necessary to secure the
salary." An Aberdeenshire clergyman of the old school is thus described :
" In ecclesiastical rule he is said to be dictatorial ; in politics an unswerving
Tory ; in the diffusion of secular knowledge and in the intellectual and
moral improvement of the people, an unbending obstructive ; but gentle
manly so long as acquiescence and subservience are rendered."
Thus situated, the Secession minister had uphill work, and his people
prior to 1840 were much burdened. Though the church cost only ^250,
the building of the manse may account for the debt rising to .£320. At this
date the Liquidation Board came opportunely in, and the congregation,
36 HISTORY OF U.P. CONGREGATIONS
encouraged by the promise of aid to the extent of ,£144, entered into the
movement with much heartiness, nine or ten of their leading men standing in
the gap, and to their own surprise the other .£180 was raised. Now for the
first time in their history they were out into a large place. " Having come
to their separate constitution with some struggle," wrote Mrs M'Crie, "they
are earnest and resolute and self-sacrificing in the maintenance of their cause."
In 1859 Mr M'Crie published his "Primal Dispensation," a well-com
pacted volume of theology on the highly Calvinistic side, and in 1861 he had
the degree of D.D from Princeton, New Jersey. Possessing private means,
he now expressed a wish for a colleague, probably with the view of devoting
his years of remaining vigour to the labours of the pen. -
Second Minister. — ROBERT HALL, from St Vincent Street, Glasgow.
Called first to Dubbieside (now Innerleven), but declined, and then to
Bonhill, but owing to commotion there he accepted Old Meldrum. Or
dained as colleague to Dr M'Crie, 24th April 1862. The membership was
about 130, and the call unanimous. The stipend was to be ^112, los. in all.
The senior minister, besides retaining the manse and garden, was to receive
;£io a year, and he was to perform an eighth part of the pulpit work. All
looked fair at first ; but in the course of three years money difficulties began
to press, and reference was made to the Presbytery. Dr M'Crie had mean
while surrendered his share of the stipend until the circumstances of the
congregation should improve. But friction was at work all round, and
complaints were brought up against the junior minister, which led to a
wearisome amount of futile investigation. The Presbytery were of opinion
that the spirit of dissatisfaction was confined to a small fraction of the congre
gation ; but we can believe that people trained under the preaching of Dr
M'Crie might be hard to please sometimes. The case widened out till it
reached the Synod in May 1866, when a protest against a decision of
Presbytery was dismissed, and a committee appointed to meet at Old
Meldrum "with the ministers, session, and congregation for friendly con
ference regarding the differences that have existed among them." Next
year they reported that the object had not been gained, but they had
tendered such counsels as might help to modify the evils they had failed to
remove. Dr M'Crie now ceased to discharge the eighth part of the work,
and, on his being admitted to the Aged and Infirm Ministers' Fund, the
congregation notified that they could only give him the manse and garden.
Experiences like the above had their effects. In 1869 Old Meldrum
congregation intimated to the Presbytery and the Augmentation Board that
in consequence of what they had come through they could not promise more
than ,£95 of stipend at the very utmost, and they requested a yearly grant of
^55. The adjustment come to was that the people should raise £97, IDS.
and receive ^60, the manse being still retained by the senior minister. In
1865 Dr M'Crie published "Jehovah's New Covenant Love," of which the
contents answer to the name; in 1866 "Autopedia; or, Instructions on
Personal Education," a book of much merit, though the applause it received
in the U.P. Magazine at the time was only fitted to do it harm. In 1872
the author's most interesting book appeared, entitled " Maria ; or, Remini
scences of Domestic Scenes and Incidents." It relates to Mrs M'Crie, who
died fifteen years before, but left memorials of her gifts and graces, which
are fitly embalmed in this volume. Dr M'Crie had now removed to Col-
monell, his native seat, where he died, I3th January 1873, in the seventy-third
year of his age and forty-sixth of his ministry. On 2nd October 1877 Mr
Hall was loosed from Old Meldrum on accepting a call to Mordaunt Street,
now Dalmarnock Road, Glasgow. The membership at the close of the year
was 101.
PRESBYTERY OF ABERDEEN 37
Third Minister.— WILLIAM LAWRIE, from Abernethy. Ordained, 1st
May 1878. On I2th February thereafter a letter was received from his aunt
stating that her nephew from the state of his health found it necessary to
demit his charge. Sermon was arranged for, and parties were to be heard at
next meeting, but Mr Lawrie died on the 24th of that month in the twenty-
eighth year of his age. This was the end of one brief ministry, and it was
to be succeeded by a ministry briefer still. In the course of the year which
intervened the congregation called Mr Thomas Taylor, but he chose rather
to break new ground at Banchory.
Fourth Minister. — JOHN M'LUCKIE, who had been ordained at Lanark
(Bloomgate) twenty-two years before, but removed from thence in 1865 to
build up a new cause at Uddingston. In course of time rumours affecting
his deportment for sobriety got abroad, but a committee of inquiry came to
the unanimous conclusion, which was ratified by Glasgow Presbytery, April
1879, that "there is nothing in these rumours on which to found a charge
against him." There was enough, however, to make Mr M'Luckie table his
resignation at that same meeting, and enough to make the Presbytery
accept it without preamble. But with the Synod's sanction a month later
his name was put on the probationer list, and on 315! March 1880 he was
inducted into Old Meldrum. In exactly four weeks the Presbytery convened
in answer to a hasty summons. This again eventuated in obtaining from
the Synod the appointment of a Commission to dispose of any appeals that
might arise from a case of discipline at Old Meldrum. It next came out that
on 2oth May the Rev. John M'Luckie was suspended from office sine die, and
loosed from his charge, and that he had allowed the sentence to become
final. He ultimately returned to the employment of his youth, that of a
pattern-designer, and died in Glasgow, i6th March 1898, aged seventy.
Had he remained true to the abstinence principles of his student days he
might have had happier fortunes and a more useful life-course. Would that
he had been duly mindful of the text from where he preached an eloquent
discourse during his last session at the Hall, " Take heed, lest any of you
be hardened through the deceitfulness of sin " !
Fifth Minister. — CHARL'ES CONNOR, M.A. Ordained, 26th October 1880.
Demitted, and was loosed from Old Meldrum, gth February 1892. Mr
Connor is a son of the Rev. Charles Connor, Oainaru, New Zealand ; a
cousin of the Rev. David M. Connor, Govanhill, Glasgow ; and a son-in-law
of the late Rev. Andrew Dickie, Aberdeen. On leaving Old Meldrum he
returned to New Zealand, his early home, where, after being stated supply for
a time at Waikari, he was inducted into Port Ahuriri and Meanee, in the
Presbytery of Hawke's Bay, 5th May 1895.
Sixth Minister. — JOHN MOORE, B.D., from Belhaven, Glasgow. Or
dained, loth January 1894. After conflicting with successive storms Old
Meldrum has only a membership of about 60, and the stipend of ^50 from
the people is made up to ,£126, or thereby, with the manse.
LUMSDEN (UNITED SECESSION)
IN June 1830 Kildrummie begins to appear in the records of Aberdeen
Presbytery as a place to which they were sending supply of sermon. This
went on for three years, and then Lumsden, in the parish of Auchindoir,
which had recently grown into a village of 200 inhabitants, supplanted
Kildrummie, an entirely rural parish. Services had been hitherto kept up at
both places, the preachers taking the one in the forenoon and the other in
the evening, but now Lumsden became the centre ; and in 1833 a small
38 HISTORY OF U.P. CONGREGATIONS
church, with 200 sittings, was built at a cost of .£120. In September 1834 the
Synod granted the Presbytery of Aberdeen liberty to erect Lumsden into a
regular congregation. The Established Church was about two miles to the
north-east, and the nearest Secession Church was Tough, not less than eight
miles to the south-east.
But the Secession had footing in Auchindoir two generations before.
When Mr George Cowie was ordained at Huntly in 1770 that parish was
included in his widespread territories, and it was one of the preaching
stations for which he obtained stray supply through the Presbytery. In
1775, when his congregation was broken into three, Auchindoir was
hooked on to Cabrach, and the minister was to preach there four Sabbaths
in the year, two in spring and two in autumn, the people to pay ,£4 of his
stipend " and find quarters for himself and his horse." In 1794 the statistical
history of the parish gave the Burghers and Antiburghers above ten years of
age as only fifteen in number, and of these the former would attend at Tough
and the latter at Cabrach. But there is nothing here with which to link the
origin of Lumsden Church. " When we first sent sermon," said the Presby
tery of Aberdeen, " there was not in the whole district a single person be
longing to the Secession," and the 36 members congregated in December
1834 were all from the Established Church.
In March 1836 the Presbytery sustained a call from Lumsden to Mr
George Morris, from Regent Place, Glasgow, but Mr Morris decided for
America, and we hear of him afterwards as minister at Silverspring,
Pennsylvania. A call followed in January 1837 to Mr Robert Lees, from
Stow, but after some hesitation he also declined. In 1842 Mr Lees withdrew
from the list, and, having passed through a medical course, he settled down
as an apothecary in Edinburgh, was ordained to the eldership in Bristo
Church 1846, and died, I7th December 1877, aged seventy-seven. His
widow, a sister of Dr John Taylor, survived him many years.
First Minister. — ROKERT CREASE, who had retired from the old Anti-
burgher Church, Peebles, two years before. Inducted, I7th January 1838.
The stipend promised was ,£60, with lodgings, or ,£65 in all ; but Broughton
Place, Edinburgh, came to their aid, and enabled them to pay other ^30
a year. The call was signed by 37 members and 118 adherents, the latter
number giving promise of more than was ever realised. Increase followed,
but not enough to encourage Mr Crease to persevere, and he had the pastoral
bond dissolved, i6th March 1841. In the end of that year he declined a
location at Letham, as he had obtained a fixed settlement in Dalkeith as a
town missionary. From this time till the Union of 1847 his name appeared
in the little group of " Revs." that used to head the probationer list in the
U.S. Magazine. The writer heard him preach on one occasion in Balgedie,
and remembers the unusual extent to which his discourses were embellished
with poetry or verse. Mr Crease was also a missionary in connection with
North Leith congregation. He died, gth May 1852, aged fifty-eight, and a
lowly tombstone in Grange cemetery marks where he is laid. His widow,
a granddaughter of John Brown of Haddington, died, 2Oth December 1877,
aged sixty-seven.
It was thirteen years before Lumsden obtained another minister. In
1844 they called Mr Robert Ferrier, but he preferred Tain. There was
reason now to question the propriety of going on. The Disruption had led
to the building of a Free church for Auchindoir parish on the other side of
the village square, and the ordination of a young minister followed to contest
the ground. But after a pause of six years a renewed attempt was made
to have the vacancy filled up. In September 1850 they called Mr Alexander
L. Wylie, whose name comes up under Mossbank, but he declined. In 1852
PRESBYTERY OF ABERDEEN 39
they called first Mr William Main, who preferred Ardersier, and then the
Rev. Alexander Walker, who waited on the list till Crail invited.
Second Minister. — WILLIAM THOMSON, from Glasgow (John Street).
Ordained, 28th March 1854. Looked at in the light of what Mr Thomson
came to, there was much in this for Lumsden to be proud of. In that narrow
sphere he remained till 5th May 1863, when he accepted a call to Burton-on-
Trent, but during these nine years there had been little made of the sparse
material, the members at the close being scarcely 60. It was a comment on
the capabilities of the place. Mr Thomson was inducted to Kirkmuirhill,
1869.
Third Minister. — WILLIAM SIMMERS, from Savoch of Deer. Ordained,
2$th November 1863, and loosed, 5th February 1868, on accepting Portsoy.
In the course of the year an unsuccessful call was given to Mr William
\Vatson, afterwards of Kirkcudbright.
Fourth Minister. — JAMES WILSON, from Glasgow, Cathedral Street (now
Kelvingrove). Ordained, 24th February 1869. On gth April 1872 a deputa
tion of Presbytery, which had visited Lumsden, reported "general deficiency
of funds and general dissatisfaction." A fortnight afterwards Mr Wilson
tendered his resignation, which was accepted on I4th June. As there was no
moral element involved, the intention was to have his name put on the
roll of probationers, but he removed to the West Indies in an educational
capacity. Mr Wilson was admitted by the Assembly in May 1885 to the
Church of Scotland, and before the end of the year he was inducted to the
quoad sacra church, Gardenstown.
During this vacancy four calls were issued, but affairs had been going
back, and not one of the preachers was inclined to lead the forlorn hope.
These were as follows : — (i) in 1873 Mr Thomas Granger, now of Coupar-
Angus ; (2) in 1874 Mr G. M. Hair, now of Ceres; and (3) in 1875
Mr John Black, late of Lochwinnoch, and Mr James Bell, now of
Auchtermuchty.
Fifth Minister. — JOHN F. DEMPSTER, M.A., from Wishart Church,
Dundee. Ordained, 2nd May 1876. Loosed from Lumsden, 28th September
1880, on accepting a call to Carnoustie. The membership had meanwhile
risen from 40 to 65.
Sixth Minister. — JAMES STARK, M.A., son of the Rev. John Stark,
Horndean, and nephew of the Rev. Gilbert Meikle, Inveraray. Ordained,
2gth June 1881. On 29th July 1886 Mr Stark intimated to the Presbytery
that, with the view of removing barriers to a union with Lumsden Free
Church, which was arranging to call a colleague, he intended to demit his
charge, as there was neither room nor need for two congregations in the
little village of Lumsden. A committee was appointed to take steps to secure
the desired consummation. Preliminaries were speedily arranged. It was
agreed that the united congregation should belong to the Free Church as
the Church of the majority. The sessions were to become one, and the
U.P. managers were to be transformed into Free Church deacons by formal
ordination. On i2th October these things were reported to Aberdeen
Presbytery, and Mr Stark tabled his demission, which the Presbytery de
layed accepting, that his rights under the Mutual Eligibility Act might be
conserved, should he incline to become a candidate for the collegiateship.
On Sabbath, i3th December, the two congregations met in the Free Church
in the forenoon, when Mr Duncan of Lynturk, as representing the U.P.
Presbytery of Aberdeen, preached ; and they met in the U.P. Church in the
afternoon, when Mr Brander of Alford, as representing the Free Presbytery
of Alford, preached. At the close eight elders were present, five of the Free
and three of the U.P. Church, and there was one absent from each side.
40 HISTORY OF U.P. CONGREGATIONS
The united session was constituted, and Mr Henry Nicoll, the retiring Free
Church minister, declared moderator. The communion rolls, 'when com
bined, gave 125 members, 86 from the Free and 39 from the U.P. congrega
tion. Of the latter only 3 had declined to go into the union. On 8th
February Mr Stark's demission was accepted. At the Synod in May his
name was placed on the probationer list, and, after three years of probation
expired, he discharged pastoral work in connection with Broughton Place
Church, Edinburgh. He was also an active elder in the young congregation
of Merchiston. He died on 24th August 1895, after a 'brief illness, in his
fortieth year.
The united congregation retains the parish name of Auchindoir. The
old Free church was sold, and the proceeds employed in building a ne\v
church on the U.P site. The Free Church manse was also disposed of, and
the U.P. manse was bought by the congregation, and the balance handed
over to the Manse Fund of the denomination from which a grant had been
obtained for its erection. Thus was the first corporate union between a
Free and a U.P. congregation accomplished, and such were the adjustments
that followed.
BANCHORY (UNITED PRESBYTERIAN)
OF Lynturk congregation it has been already stated that the name was at
one period " Tough and Banchory," places at least fifteen miles apart. This
began in an accession of some people in the latter parish to the Burgher
Presbytery of Aberdeen in 1762, and it continued till 1780, when, by mutual
consent, the two were disjoined. Of the united session, as first constituted,
we have also seen that two of the 6 members were from Banchory, but what
proportion of the minister's labours was assigned to that place is not
recorded. It would probably be one Sabbath out of three. But Mr Murray,
the second minister of Tough, when under call, objected to the double centre,
and on 2nd May 1780 Banchory was formed into a separate congregation.
No sooner was this arranged for than a petition was read "from some persons
in the parish of Echt, setting forth their deplorable situation through the
want of the Gospel, and craving supply." Here was companionship for
Banchory at not more than half the distance, and that day a well-known
preacher, Andrew Swanston, \vas appointed to supply the two places until
further notice. For the next twenty years the usual arrangement was for
the preacher who had been supplying at Montrose to go on to Banchory and
Echt, where he was to remain until recalled. The system, dictated by the
remoteness, was one of brief locations with considerable blanks between'
But though Banchory ranked all the while as a regular congregation, no
attempt was ever made to obtain a fixed ministry. The Old Statistical History
sketches its state in 1793 as follows :— " There are in the parish about 30
seceders" — these it is presumed were adults, and there would also be a
sprinkling from other parishes. "They obtained liberty," it adds, "from
one of the heritors more than twenty years ago to build a place of worship.
They have another in the parish of Echt, but no settled minister in either."
This last name disappears from the Almanac in 1803, absorbed probably by
the forming congregation of Midmar, a few miles to the west, but sermon
was still kept up at Banchory in a fitful way. In October 1800 they notified
to Perth Presbytery that owing to their peculiar circumstances they could
not receive supply during the winter. Still the name lingered on the roll of
Burgher Churches till 1816, and so late as September 1820 we find ^5
allowed to Banchory by the Synod " for procuring supply of sermon."
PRESBYTERY OF ABERDEEN 41
After a break of nearly sixty years the name is revived in the records
of the denomination. On i3th November 1877 it was intimated to the
Presbytery of Aberdeen that steps had been taken with the view of forming
a congregation at Banchory. The place was on the increase both in
population and in importance. There was, moreover, a chapel, with manse
and garden, which had belonged to the Congregationalists, to be purchased
on moderate terms. The measure was approved of, and on the second
Sabbath of June 1878 the station was opened by the Home Secretary,
Dr Scott. On 8th October certain petitioners from Banchory were
with due formality congregated, and an interim session appointed. In
January 1879 they called Mr William Logan, and in June Mr Matthew
Dickie, but for both preachers there were other openings in the south,
and the former found his destination at Lanark, and the latter at Sanquhar.
First Minister.— THOMAS TAYLOR, from Alloa (West). Ordained, i8th
November 1879. Though the membership at this time was only 15, they
undertook to provide ,£90 of the stipend from their own resources, a figure
which proved too high-pitched, and had to be exchanged for ,£75. On
27th December 1887 Mr Taylor accepted a call to Graham's Road, Falkirk.
There were then 99 names on the communion roll.
Second Minister. — COLIN NICOL, from Kilwinning. Ordained, 5th June
1888. Accepted a call to Clydebank, 29th June 1892.
Third Minister.— JAMES R. WARK, M.A., from Irvine (Trinity). Or
dained, 1 5th December 1892. With a strong Free Church congregation
in the place it is found impracticable to get much beyond 100 members,
and this point was reached within the first ten years. At the close of 1899
the number was 105, and the stipend from the people ,£85, with the manse.
WOODSIDE (UNITED PRESBYTERIAN)
THIS suburb of Aberdeen, about two miles to the north, gives its name to
a quoad sacra parish with a population of between 6000 and 7000. On
1 3th November 1877 the Presbytery of Aberdeen met to consider a petition
from 43 members in full communion with the U.P. Church, residing in that
quarter, to be formed into a congregation. Four weeks afterwards
Dr Robson was appointed to preach at Woodside on Tuesday, i8th De
cember, and declare the petitioners congregated. Then, like Banchory,
Woodside had to face the inconvenience of two unsuccessful calls, the first
to Mr John Dundas, who preferred Muirkirk, and the second to the
Rev. A. K. Kennedy, M.D., but he kept himself in reserve, and in the end
gave to the young congregation of Clune Park, Port-Glasgow, such benefit as
was to be had.
First Atinister. — WILLIAM A. DUN BAR, from St James' Place, Edinburgh.
Ordained, i6th July 1879. At the end of this year the return gave 90 members,
being fully double the original number. On Sabbath, 6th February 1881,
the church, built at a cost of ,£1800, and seated for 500, was o'pened,
Principal Cairns preaching in the forenoon and Dr Robson of Aberdeen in
the afternoon. Mr Dunbar's ministry at Woodside ended on 9th September
1890 in the acceptance of a call to Wishart Church, Dundee. By this time
the membership was nearly doubled a second time.
_ Second Minister. — JOHN URE, M.A., from Glasgow (Greenhead). Or
dained, 22nd January 1891. The communion roll was over 250 at the close
of 1899 and the stipend from the people ^110. The property is free of
debt.
42 HISTORY OF U.P. CONGREGATIONS
PRESBYTERY OF ANN AND ALE
LOCKERBIE (ANTIBUROHER)
ON I2th March 1738 the Associate Presbytery received an accession from
the Corresponding Societies in Annandale, and on igth July Messrs Ralph
Erskine and James Fisher were appointed to preach to them on 2oth
August. Sermon followed at intervals ; baptism of "many children," and
the ordination of an eldership. About this time there was an accession given
in from some people in the parish of Tundergarth, and the cause \vas also
strengthened by a violent settlement in the parish of Middlebie. Before
obtaining a fixed pastor they gave a call to Mr John Cleland, but though
only a probationer he was considerably beyond middle life, and on that
ground his objections to being ordained over a community so widespread
as that of Annandale were sustained, and he was afterwards settled in
Balfron.
First Minister. — GEORGE MURRAY, from Gateshaw (now Morebattle).
Ordained, 2nd May 1744, exactly eleven months after the call came out.
According to a manuscript note in an old pamphlet, the church was erected
in 1746, and Lockerbie was made the seat of the congregation, very much to
the chagrin of Ecclefechan people. At the breach of 1747 Mr Murray took
the Antiburgher side, and the majority of his people adhered. He died, 2nd
April 1757, in the forty-second year of his age and the thirteenth of his
ministry. Like many of the early Seceding preachers Mr Murray is de
scribed as having dwelt strongly on the defections of the times. He was
buried in Tundergarth churchyard, where his tombstone is still standing.
Mr Murray's son John went to America as a preacher in 1773. He became
minister of Marsh Creek, Pennsylvania, in 1777, and died in the summer of
1785.
A trying vacancy of five and a half years followed, during which the con
gregation called Mr William Graham, whom the Synod appointed to White-
haven. They next called the Rev. Richard Jerment of Peebles, a minister
of popular gifts, who had been appointed by the Synod to supply at Lockerbie
three Sabbaths, and was understood to be transportable, but in this case also
there was disappointment, probably to both parties.
Second Minister. — GEORGE MURRAY, from Duns (East). Ordained,
6th October 1762. The name has led to the erroneous conclusion that he
was a son of the former minister. Mr Murray died after a lingering illness,
5th November 1800, in the sixty-fourth year of his age and thirty-ninth of his
ministry. A tablet was erected to his memory by his widow, Margaret
Moncrieff, a daughter of Moncrieffof Culfargie. Mr Murray was a Berwick
shire laird, and this accords with his marriage relationship. In the
Christian Magazine he is characterised as a man of "amiable temper and
engaging manners."
In March 1801 Lockerbie congregation called Mr Andrew Bayne, but the
Synod appointed him to the less important charge of Eastbarns, afterwards
Dunbar (East).
Third Minister.— WILLIAM PATRICK, a native of Kilsyth parish, and
belonging to a Reformed Presbyterian family. On joining the Antiburghers
he connected himself with Cumbernauld. Called to Hamilton as well as to
Lockerbie, but the Synod, contrary to his wishes, gave Lockerbie the pre
ference. Aware of his feelings, Hamilton called him anew ; but the Pres
bytery delayed procedure, and the matter was allowed to drop. Mr Patrick
PRESBYTERY OF ANNANDALE 43
was ordained, i6th December 1802, and eight years afterwards the second
church, with 570 sittings, was built at a cost of ^800. In May 1815, when
the Synod were deliberating on the wants of Nova Scotia, they were informed
that Mr Patrick had signified his willingness to undertake a mission to that
part of the world. Being called on, he tendered the demission of his charge,
assigning as his reasons, first, the want of temporal support, and second, the
almost uninhabitable state of the manse. The Presbytery found on inquiry
that the congregation had resolutely decided to make no advance in the
stipend, which some years before was given at ^80, with manse, garden,
office-houses, and a glebe of four or five acres. Having been loosed from
Lockerbie on I7th July 1815, Mr Patrick landed in Nova Scotia in September,
and was inducted into Mergomish on i6th November, where he died, 25th
November 1844, in the seventy-third year of his age. He is described as a
man of great activity, and abundant in labours. Though requiring to
cultivate a small farm he was careful in preparing for the pulpit, and in
pastoral work. Mr Patrick was a son-in-law of the Rev. John Young of
Hawick.
Fourth Minister. — JOSEPH TAYLOR, from Brechin (City Road). Or
dained, 29th August 1816. In April 1825 the Presbytery of Annan and
Carlisle, which had libelled Mr Taylor for intemperance, referred his case to
the Synod. There he came forward at last, and frankly confessed that " in
several instances he had been overtaken in the manner alleged." A petition
from elders and members of the congregation had been previously read, ex
pressing attachment to their minister, and hoping that, if found blameworthy,
he might be leniently dealt with. There was also another to the same effect
from 174 inhabitants of Lockerbie. He was now rebuked and restored to
office. But in September the case came back to the Synod, there being
reason to fear that the old evil had reappeared in Mr Taylor's public ministra
tions, and as he had declared he would rather resign his charge than submit
himself to the judgment of his own Presbytery, the members of Dumfries
Presbytery were appointed to take part with them in the investigation of the
case. It was wound up on 5th November by a sentence of suspension sine
die. He then removed to Brechin, where he died suddenly on I2th
September 1827 in his thirty-eighth year. The congregation during this
vacancy called Mr John Taylor, M.D., whom the Synod appointed to
Auchtermuchty (East).
Fifth Minister. — HUGH DOUGLAS, brought up in Ayr (First), now
Original Secession. Ordained, 25th March 1828. In 1836 there was a
membership of 220 and a stipend of ^100, with the manse, and a glebe
valued at £6. The greater part of the congregation came from over two
miles, and twenty-one families were more than six miles from the place of
worship. Fully 100 members were from the parishes of St Mungo, Apple-
garth, Hutton, and Tundergarth. There was no debt on the property, and the
minister conducted three services each Sabbath. Mr Douglas died, 2oth
December 1864, in the sixty-fourth year of his age and the thirty-seventh of
his ministry. Mrs Douglas was a daughter of the Rev. James Primrose of
Grange. Two of their sons became U.P. ministers : George, formerly of
Walker, and now Secretary of the Religious Tract Society, Edinburgh ; and
Robert Primrose, formerly of Ardersier, and now minister of the English
Presbyterian Church, Otterburn. The Rev. William Morrison of Rosehall,
Edinburgh, is Mr Douglas' son-in-law.
Sixth Minister.— DAVID THOMAS, from Balfron. Ordained, I5th March
1865. In '876 Mr Thomas was called to Bell Street, Dundee, but he re
mained in Lockerbie. A new manse was built in 1885, which, in addition to
the sum received for the old manse, cost ,£600, of which the Board paid one-
44 HISTORY 6F U.P. CONGREGATIONS
fourth. At the close of 1899 tne membership was 300, and the stipend was
,£205, with the manse.
ECCLEFECHAN (BURGHER)
THIS congregation originated shortly after the breach of 1747. When the
Associate congregation of Annandale had its centre fixed at Lockerbie, six
miles to the north of Ecclefechan, the arrangement caused much irritation
among the Seceders in the southern division of the correspondence, and pre
pared the way for a severance. Accordingly, on 27th September 1748 the
Burgher Presbytery of Edinburgh received a representation from several
members of Annandale congregation, giving an account of their melancholy
situation owing to the rash, schismatical course their minister was following,
whereby they were deprived of the privilege of baptism. It was not, however,
till the end of the following year that sermon was granted them. It does not
appear from the minutes of Lockerbie session that the breach was serious at
first as regards numbers, not more than one of the thirteen elders having left
at this time, though they complain later on that " many in this congregation
have gone off from a Gospel-witnessing standard in this place, and in a most
disorderly way are calling in others to preach among them."
First Minister. — JOHN JOHNSTON, from West Linton. Ordained, 26th
August 1761. They had no church as yet, and the services were conducted
in the open air. The most prominent name among them at this time is that
of Thomas Forsyth. During the thirteen years that had elapsed since the
breach there can have been little progress made, supply of sermon being so
sparse that in 1757 they complained of having had none for three-quarters of
a year. The thatch -covered church Thomas Carlyle speaks of, with 600
sittings, was not built till 1766. Three years before this the congregation
were in danger of losing their minister, Mr Johnston being called to
Cumbernauld, to which place he had also been called when a preacher, but
the Synod vetoed the translation. The stipend for a long course of years
remained at a low figure. Up till 1771 it averaged only ^30 a year, and
then it was raised to over ^45, and in 1779 they promised more liberal
things, and received some advice from the Presbytery "relative to those who
neglected to contribute for their minister's subsistence."
Ecclefechan congregation at this time had a branch stretching as far as
Moffat to the north, and until a Burgher congregation was formed at Annan
in the early part of the century it extended nearly as far to the south. Let
a vivid picture from Thomas Carlyle's Reminiscences do service here :
" One family whose streaming plaids hung up to dry I remember to have
noticed one wet Sunday — pious Scottish weavers settled near Carlisle, I was
told — were in the habit of walking 15 miles twice for their sermon, since it
was not to be had nearer." Mr Johnston died, 28th May 1812, in the eighty-
second year of his age and fifty-second of his ministry. In an obituary
notice it is stated that he preached for the last time "under the pressure
of corporeal infirmity, and literally fell down in the pulpit." It adds :
" Supported by the assured hope of a blissful immortality, he was gently
dismissed to his rest." Carlyle's estimate of his father's minister, and the
minister of his youth, may be repeated anew : "The priestliest man I ever
under any ecclesiastical guise was privileged to look upon." Mr Johnston's
son, of the same name, was minister first in St Andrews, then in Eglinton
Street, Glasgow, and finally in New York.
There was now a lengthened vacancy at Ecclefechan, and an array of
unsuccessful calls. In April 1813 the Synod appointed Mr John M'Kerrow,
PRESBYTERY OF ANNANDALE 45
the object of their first choice, to Bridge-of-Teith ; and in September a call
from Ecclefechan to Mr Robert Balmer was one of three which were set
aside in favour of Berwick. In the case of the third call there was no
competition, but the preacher, Mr Andrew Hay, stated that "his mind
insuperably induced him to decline that most important and hazardous
office" — the charge of a congregation.* The call was ultimately withdrawn.
The fourth preacher called was Mr William Brash, but he was appointed
by the Synod to the collegiate charge of Campbell Street, Glasgow (now
Sydney Place).
Second Minister. — ANDRKW LAWSON, a son of Professor George Lawson
of Selkirk. There were rival calls in this case also — one from North
Middleton, which was not prosecuted, and another from Yetholm ; but "after
so many disappointments Ecclefechan was preferred without a vote." Mr
Lawson was ordained, 2nd October 1816. On i3th April 1824 he was loosed
from Ecclefechan by the Presbytery of Annan and Carlisle that he might be
inducted as his father's successor at Selkirk. The circumstances were
altogether peculiar. Selkirk congregation had called his elder brother three
times, but the Synod, in keeping with his own wishes, declined to translate
him from Kilmarnock. The congregation then fell back on the younger
brother at Ecclefechan, but he also preferred to remain where he was, and
the Synod in September 1823 decided by a great majority that it should be
so. The call being repeated soon afterwards, Mr Lawson indicated an
inclination to accept, and Ecclefechan people refused in the circumstances to
move a finger to retain him.t So when the Presbytery met to dispose of the
call they had not even a commissioner forward, and Mr Lawson was unani
mously loosed from his charge.
Third Minister. — GEORGE JOHNSTON, from Ayton (West). Ordained,
1 2th April 1826. At their meeting in September 1830 the Synod had to
adjudicate on a call to Mr Johnston from Nicolson Street, Edinburgh, and,
guided by his expressed preferences, they decided against the translation.
However, in April 1831 they had easy work assigned them. A second call
Mr Johnston had looked at in a different light, and, aware of this, Ecclefechan
people, true to their antecedents, sent no one up to Edinburgh to utter a
word in favour of retaining him, and without a vote his removal was
agreed to.
In the following year they competed with Rigg-of-Gretna for the services
of Mr Matthew M'Gill, but the balance went against them, not much perhaps
to their disadvantage in the end.
Fourth Minister. — JAMES HARK.NESS, from Blackfriars, Jedburgh. Or
dained, 1 5th August 1832. Four years after this the communicants
numbered 273, of whom 70 were from Middlebie parish, 34 from Annan, and
20 from Cummertrees, with a very few from Kirkpatrick, St Mungo, and
Tundergarth. At least two dozen families came from beyond four miles.
* Mr Hay was a brother of the Rev. Robert I lay of Stow, and a brother-in-law of
the Rev. Dr Henderson, Galashiels. He remained on the preachers' list for thirty
years, and died loth September 1845.
t Thomas Carlyle's father is credited with having clinched the matter at the
congregational meeting by growling out: "Let the hireling go." It needed little
charity to interpret Mr Lawson's motives in a milder way. This was an invitation to
fill his father's place and labour among the people he had known from his childhood.
They had also shown their attachment to the family in five successive calls. No
wonder though Mr Lawson's mind was swaying now in the direction of Selkirk, with
its vacancy of four years' duration. The last link of connection with the Carlyle
family was lost about the year 1864, when Thomas's brother James left through
dissatisfaction with the costliness of the new church.
46 HISTORY OF U.P. CONGREGATIONS
The stipend was £i 10, with manse, garden, and a small park. The minister
preached once a month at the villages of Eaglesfield and Brydekirk, the
one nearly three miles to the south-east of Ecclefechan, and the other fully
four miles to the south. Owing to unfortunate circumstances, connected
with his wife more than with himself, Mr Harkness resigned, and was loosed
from his charge on 5th March 1839. He then emigrated to America, and
became pastor of a congregation in New York. He died on 4th July 1878,
in the seventy-fifth year of his age and forty-sixth of his ministry, in New
Jersey, where he both practised as a medical man and officiated as a
minister. By his second marriage Mr Harkness was a brother-in-law of
the Rev. Andrew Wield, Thornliebank.
Fifth Minister. — WILLIAM TAIT, from Fala. Ordained on a unanimous
call, 23rd June 1840. In 1864 a new church was built at a cost of ^1750
with 600 sittings. The membership at this time was about 230. Mr Tait's
constitution early gave way, and often he had to be carried to the pulpit,
owing to paralysis of the lower extremities. He died, igth July 1867, in the
fifty-seventh year of his age and twenty-eighth of his ministry.
Sixth Minister. — NATHANAEL F. M'DOUGAL, from Portsoy, where he
had been ordained two years before. Inducted, 7th January 1868. The
stipend was £i 50, and in a year or two a new manse was built at a cost of fully
^700, besides the price received for the former manse, the Board allowing
^350. For Mr M'Dougal the death summons came on Sabbath ist January
1872. Feeling himself unable to proceed with the service, he gave out a
Psalm, and came down from the pulpit to the vestry. He there requested
his brother-in-law, now the Rev. J. W. Dunbar of St James' Place, Edin
burgh, who was then a student, to go up and read the fourteenth chapter of
Job. He had intended to preach from the tenth verse : " But man dieth
and wasteth away; yea, man giveth up the ghost and where is he?"
Shortly afterwards he became unconscious, and died at half-past two on
Monday afternoon, in the thirty-fourth year of his age and the seventh of his
ministry. The text was preached from in the silence of the death-chamber.
Seventh Minister. — JAMES S. RAE, from Buccleuch Street, Dumfries, but a
native of Urr parish. Called also to Belfast ; Garscube Road, Glasgow ;
Maryhill ; London Road, Edinburgh ; and Queen Anne Street, Dunferm-
line. Ordained at Ecclefechan, 4th February 1873. On 25th April 1876 he
accepted Trinity Church, Sunderland, and was loosed from his first charge.
In 1890 he was translated to Newington, Edinburgh.
Eighth Minister.— ARCHIBALD SMITH, originally from Kirkwall. Or
dained, 3rd October 1876. After a lingering illness Mr Smith died, 3Oth
January 1889, in the fifty-first year of his age and thirteenth of his ministry.
Ninth Minister. — ROBERT SMALL, M.A., son of Rev. Robert Small, D.D.,
Gilmore Place, Edinburgh. Ordained, 3rd December 1889. Loosed, I7th
April 1895, on accepting a call to be colleague to the Rev. Dr Hutchison,
Bonnington.
Tenth Minister. — ALEXANDER STEELE, from Dean Street, Edinburgh.
Ordained, I5th September 1896. The membership three years after this
was 21 1 and the stipend as before, ,£200, with the manse.
WAMPHRAY (RELIEF)
THE earliest notice we have of this congregation is on loth September 1776,
when a petition for sermon was laid before the Relief Presbytery of Glasgow
from what was called the forming congregation of Annandale, and supply
began on the fourth Sabbath of that month. The parish minister of
PRESBYTERY OF ANNANDALE 47
Wamphray at this time was a man whose dissipated habits compelled him
to retire in 1793. This accounts for the fixing down of the church at Gate-
side, a village in that parish, from which the congregation took the name by
which it used to be best known. "But," said the Old Statistical History,
" it is composed of people from ten or twelve parishes." The place of worship,
with sittings for 300, is understood to have been built in 1777.
First Minister. — THOMAS MARSHALL, from the Havannah, the old Anti-
burgher congregation in Glasgow. According to Ramsay, the minister of
his youth, he was kept back from licence by the Antiburgher Presbytery of
Glasgow, and even advised to turn his attention to some other calling. The
consequence was that in a few weeks he was " a thorough-paced Relief
man" ; but Ramsay's statements when he was out of temper have to be
taken with abatements. We know for certain, however, that in June 1777
Mr Marshall applied to be taken on trials for licence by the Relief Presbytery
of Glasgow, and before the end of December he had a call from Wamphray.
His ordination must have taken place between this and May 1778, as he was
a member of Synod that year. In 1781 his name appears on the Synod list
for the last time, but there is nothing to guide us nearer the date of his
death.
Second Minister. — GEORGE HALIBURTON NICHOLSON, translated from
Pittenweem. Mr Nicholson had been called to Wamphray when it was
in the forming state, but preferred Pittenweem. He had uneasy feelings, it
is said, on the remembrance, believing that his choice was dictated by
worldly motives, and when Wamphray fell vacant a few years afterwards he
made the people aware that he was willing to undo the wrong he had done
them, and would become their minister if invited. Accordingly, before the
Synod in May 1782 his induction into his new charge took place. In 1785
Mr Nicholson was called to Falkirk, but remained a fixture in Wamphray.
He died, 4th June 1792, after ministering there a little over ten years.
The congregation then called Mr James Taylor, who preferred Earlston.
Third Minister. — DECISION LAING, of whose antecedents we only know-
that he was introduced to Glasgow Presbytery for licence by Mr Bell of
Dovehill Church. Ordained, 2Oth July 1797. The stipend was ,£70, with
£4 for sacramental expenses, a house, garden, and two acres of enclosed
land. Mr Laing was loosed, 28th June 1804, on accepting Balfron.
Fourth Minister. — HENRY PATERSON, from the Relief Church, East
Campbell Street, Glasgow, but a native of Bothwell parish. Some time
before this they had called unsuccessfully Mr William Gilmour, who became
minister of Banff. Mr Paterson was ordained, ist August 1805. Towards
the close of his ministry the congregation got into pecuniary difficulties. In
a report to the Synod of 1845 ^ 's stated that their seventy years' lease of
the property was nearly expired, and they were in debt s -veral hundred
pounds to the agent, although they had got partial relief from the Liquidation
Fund. Mr Paterson died, I4th June 1847, in the seventieth year of his age
and forty-second of his ministry. Next year the membership was returned
at 80, and the supplement of stipend was to be ^30.
Fifth Minister. — JOHN BRASH, son of the Rev. William Brash, East
Campbell Street Secession Church, Glasgow. Having preferred Wamphray
to Aberchirder he was ordained, i3th February 1851. In May 1850 a new
church, built at a cost of only ^300, was opened with 250 sittings. Mr Brash
demitted his charge, i ith July 1854, having agreed to become minister of the
Cameronian Church, Jane Street, New York. He remained there from 1855
to 1868 ; then he was two years in South Boston, Mass. He then joined the
Presbyterian Church, and died at South Amboy, New Jersey, 2ist March
1 88 1, aged fifty-six.
48 HISTORY OF U.P. CONGREGATIONS
Wamphray congregation, after Mr Brash left, called Mr John S. Hyslop,
afterwards of Leven, who declined.
Sixth Minister. — DAVID MANN, from Braehead, Carmvath. Ordained,
26th December 1855. The congregation had improved much before
Mr Brash left, and at the close of 1853 there was a membership of 125.
But times had changed since the days when people gathered in to Gateside
on Sabbath from ten or twelve parishes, and decline now began to show
itself, specially in the attendance, which came down in three years from
1 20 to 70, and in 1860 it was returned at 40. But in February of that year
the Presbytery received a communication from parties who were absenting
themselves from public worship. This led to inquiries, which came to turn
on domestic bearings ; but the Synod in 1861 acquitted Mr Mann of all
blame, considering that nothing had been brought out against him warrant
ing even admonition. But this decision did not make amends for the
mischief done by whispering tongues, or bring back the people who had
left. When the commotion was over the communion roll was exactly one-
half what it had been seven years before. In August 1870 Mr Mann asked
leave of absence for six months, as he was going to Canada to test the
outlook there, and the Mission Board had agreed to grant him .£150 for
that purpose. On 28th March 1871 he sent in his demission in consequence
of an invitation to become minister of Walton congregation in Canada.
In 1877 he removed to Biddulph in Stratford Presbytery, and in 1883 he
was in New Glasgow, where he remained four years. After that he held
various charges, most of them in the United States, besides crossing the
Atlantic five times. He finally reached Scotland in August 1899, and took
up his abode at Dunoon.
Wamphray, on becoming vacant, was reduced to a preaching station,
and since then has been wrought sometimes by students and sometimes by
retired ministers, the manse proving an attraction. In view of approaching
events we may calculate that by amalgamation with the Free Church of
Johnstone and Wamphray an end will come to this congregation's separate
existence. The membership at the close of 1899 was 52, and the sum paid
by the congregation for the support of ordinances was ^33.
MOFFAT (BURGHER)
THOUGH there is no mention of any accessions to the Associate Presbytery
from this parish it furnished from an early period some families to
Ecclefechan church, which was over twenty miles distant. This appears
from an entry in the minutes of the Burgher Presbytery of Edinburgh,
where Mr Johnston, the minister, is appointed to hold session with the
elders of Moffat in order to purge scandal, which implies that at least two
of their number resided there. But the first trace of an attempt in the
direction of separate existence is not found till I5th April 1789, when a
request was made for as frequent supply of sermon as possible during
summer, which from this time was granted with more or less regularity.
The parish minister, Dr Walker, had been appointed Professor of Natural
History in the University of Edinburgh the year before, and keeper of the
museum. It is stated in the Fasli that during a great part of his ministry
he resided away from his charge, and got forward to the church only on
Sabbath morning. In this state of matters the need for a Secession con
gregation in the place may have come to be more deeply and widely felt.
At the Synod in May 1793 calls came up from Moffat, East Linton, and
Peebles to Mr Thomas Leckie, and though the first of these was the only
PRESBYTERY OF ANNANDALE 49
one which he expressed unwillingness to accept, the Synod gave that place
the preference. From this decision reasons of dissent were given in by
Mr John Dick of Slateford, in which he urged that, though appearances
might be more promising in Moffat than they once were, he questioned if
authority were properly exercised " in appointing the settlement of any man
in a place where his comfortable support is not so probable as in another to
which he is called." But Mr Leckie refused to implement the decision, and
the difficulty was got over by the people intimating to the Synod in May
1794 that they wished their call laid aside, as Mr Leckie's aversion had
cooled their attachment to him. After this he became the first minister
of the Burgher Church at Peebles.
First Minister. — HECTOR CAMERON, from Bridge-of-Teith, who was
also called to Ayton and Jedburgh, but though each of these had more
than 300 signatures and that from Moffat only 53, the vote in the Synod
stood thus : for Moffat 59, for Jedburgh 2, and for Ayton, none. Mr Cameron
was ordained, I5th October 1794, and was continued in Moffat, notwithstand
ing repeated attempts to remove him. Not to mention a call from Paisley,
which was withdrawn owing to want of harmony, he was called to the new
and promising congregation of Barrhead in 1799, and again in 1800, but on
both occasions the Synod refused the translation. In the latter of these
years Ayr made a similar attempt, but with no better success. Something
different might have been better both for Mr Cameron and Moffat con
gregation. Towards the end of 1803 bodily indisposition set in, often
unfitting him for duty, and the church was reported to be suffering every
way. Next, mental derangement supervened, and dissension also got in
among the people. In April 1805 Mr Cameron demitted his charge,
pleading " want of health, the divided state of the congregation, and their
inability to support him." A section of the members meanwhile adhered to
Mr Cameron, but on 22nd May of that year the Presbytery decided to
dissolve the connection. Mr Cameron died on 2oth November following,
in the thirty-seventh year of his age and the twelfth of his ministerial
life.
Second Minister. — JOHN MONTEITH, from Dunblane. Ordained, 27th
September 1809, after a vacancy of over four years. The membership had
suffered through contention, and it was down now to 75, and the stipend
promised was ^90, with a house, or ^5 instead. An uphill struggle followed,
which was not got over till Mr Monteith's course was far advanced. He
died, 23rd April 1844, in the sixtieth year of his age and thirty-fifth of his
ministry.
Third Minister. — JOHN RIDDELL, from Greenlaw. Ordained, 4th
March 1845. In the early part of his preacher course, which extended to
four years, Mr Riddell was called to Crail. Then he was located upwards
of a year in a station at Liverpool. Next, he was called to the Secession
Church, Campbeltown, but at that very time the door opened at Moffat.
After his ministerial gifts came to be widely known Mr Riddell had trans
lating calls as follows : — first, to Albion Chapel, London, in 1858, and again
in 1860 ; second, to Hawick, Eastbank, in 1861 ; and, finally, to the forming
congregation of Leicester in 1866. A change might have lessened the strain
of pulpit preparation and gone to prolong his usefulness and his life. He
died, 1 3th January 1868, in the twenty-third year of his ministry and at the
age of fifty A volume of his discourses was published soon after, with a
memoir by the Rev. Dr Thomson, Edinburgh. The present church, with 750
sittings, was built in 1862 at a cost of over ,£3000.
In February 1869 the congregation called Mr Matthew Galbraith, but he
chose Charlotte Street, Aberdeen, instead.
So HISTORY OF U.P. CONGREGATIONS
fourth Minister. — -WILLIAM HUTTON, translated from Cumnock, and
inducted, igth October 1869. On 23rd March 1880 he accepted a call
to Grange Road, Birkenhead, of which he is still the minister. The
membership at Mofifat when Mr Hutton left was 265 and the stipend
,£300.
Fifth Minister. — ALEXANDER R. M'EwAN, M.A., Oxon., son of the
Rev. Dr M'Ewan of Claremont Church, Glasgow. Ordained, 7th December
1880. Mr M'Ewan had also calls to Colston Street (now Ualmeny Street),
Edinburgh ; Mount Pleasant, Liverpool ; and Pollokshields and Woodlands
Road, Glasgow. In 1884 he was again called to Woodlands Road, but
remained in Moffat till 6th July 1886, when he accepted Anderston, Glasgow.
Sixth Minister. — DAVID W. FORREST, M.A., translated from Saffron-
hall, Hamilton, and inducted, 24th May 1887. The stipend was now ^310, but
the membership was slightly on the decrease. Within two years he was invited
to Ibrox, Glasgow, but declined. Accepted a call to be Dr Black's colleague
in Wellington Church, Glasgow, on 3oth January 1894, and Moffat again
fell vacant. In an immature state they called the Rev. James Brand Scott,
from Saltcoats (West), but he very considerately declined to accept.
Seventh Minister. — JAMES TODD, B.D., translated from Duns (South),
and inducted, i$th November 1894. The membership at the recent Union
was slightly over 200, and the stipend ^260, with a stately manse.
LANGHOLM NORTH (BURGHER)
IN the beginning of 1761 there was a movement at Langholm in the
direction of the Antiburghers. A petition to the Presbytery of Sanquhar
for supply of sermon, and for a conference with any of the members, was
answered by the appointment of a probationer for a single day, but there is
mention of nothing further. It was to the Burgher Presbytery of Selkirk
that application was next made, and Mr Lawson of Selkirk opened the
station on the fourth Sabbath of April 1781. In the following year the
building of a meeting-house was resolved on, but it was not till 1 784 that the
walls were finished. At this point the projectors were brought to a stand for
want of funds, till four of their number advanced the sum of -,£37 to have it
roofed in and kept from running to waste. The agreement ran thus : "If
the design is dropped, the house to be sold, and the money divided among
those who have contributed to the building thereof, in their several pro
portions." At this time matters were going from bad to worse at Langholm.
For two winters the people had to dispense with sermon altogether, and
during the whole of 1785 they had supply for only eight Sabbaths. Unable
to fit up the building as a place of worship, the proprietors let it out for a
warehouse. At this juncture help came in a way never to be forgotten. On
6th October 1786 a traveller passing through Langholm observed the state
of the erection, inquired minutely into the circumstances, and the outcome was
that he paid down a sum of money sufficient to complete the humble edifice.
Langholm by and by appeared on the Presbytery's list of vacancies, and in
October 1787 four elders were elected, one of whom had previously held
office in Liddesdale. The name of the above benefactor is not known, but
assuredly it was not, as has been supposed, John Howard.*
First Minister. — JOHN JARDINE, from Jedburgh (Blackfriars). Mr
Jardine had passed most of his trials for ordination at Belford when the call
from Langholm came out. The Presbytery met on gth December 1788 to
* See letter in U.P. Magazine for 1897, page 559.
PRESBYTERY OF ANNANDALE 51
decide between the conflicting- claims ; but a letter was read from Belford
to the effect that, fearing they would not succeed with their call, many of
the members had left, and they found themselves utterly unable to support
the gospel. So the congregation lapsed, to reappear after a time in the
Antiburgher connection, and Mr Jardine was ordained at Langholm, I4th
April 1789. A few years after this the Burgher families in Langholm parish
were represented as numbering about twenty-five, but there would be others
from Canonbie and elsewhere. Towards the end of the century the con
gregation suffered through the introduction of Old Light views and the
unbending attitude of their upholders. Mr Jardine died, 6th April 1820,
in the seventy -first year of his age and thirty -first of his ministry. A
volume of his sermons, with memoir by the Rev. John Law, then of New-
castleton, was published in 1822. Mr Jardine left a widow and six children
poorly provided for, three of them under twelve years of age. His son
George was long a Secession probationer, but never obtained a church.
He supplied a Sabbath at Balgedie about the year 1847, when the psalms
he gave out, more than the discourses he delivered, indicated deep mental
depression. He died suddenly at Langholm, 2nd November 1875, aged
sixty-three, being found dead in his room.
Second Minister.— JOHN DOBIE, from Dumfries (Loreburn Street).
Ordained, 3Oth August 1821. Mr Dobie had got licence earlier than his
fellow-students of the same standing in order to go to America, but when
the call from Langholm came up to the Synod it was sustained and the
prior engagement cancelled. It was decided, however, that in future
preachers so situated should not be eligible -to home vacancies. In 1822 a
new church was built, with sittings for 550. After a lingering illness
Mr Dobie died, 6th February 1845, in the forty-fifth year of his°age and
twenty-fourth of his ministry. One of his sons is Dr John Dobie, now
minister-emeritus of Shamrock Street, Glasgow. Another son, William,
attended our Hall several sessions, but turned aside to medicine, and has
attained to professional distinction in London.
On ist January 1846 the congregation called Mr Alexander Wallace
unanimously. In Mr Jardine's time the stipend was so limited that, accord
ing to his biographer, it precluded him from travelling, and during his whole
ministry he was only once at a meeting of Synod. To Mr Dobie ,£120
was promised, "with a manse as soon as they were able," and now, when
putting in for Mr Wallace, they named .£140. But the object of their choice
was at the same time under call to Avonbridge, Busby, and Alexandria, and
of these he preferred the last.
Third Minister. — WILLIAM BALLANTYNE, from Lauder. Ordained, 3151
December 1846. Langholm had now surmounted its early difficulties', and
the call carried a membership of 252. The present church, which cost'fully
,£2100, and accommodates 600, was opened on 29th May 1867. In 1879
there were 318 names on the communion roll, and the stipend was /2oo
and the manse. Mr Ballantyne died, I3th November 1892, in the seventy-
third year of his age and forty-sixth of his ministry. One of his daughters
was the wife of the Rev. Stephen H. Wilson, M.A., U.P. missionary, first
in Trinidad, and then in Falmouth, Jamaica. She died at the latter station
2nd January 1894, "after a long and severe illness," leaving three young
children.
Foiirth Minister.— GEORGE ORR, from Wellington Church, Glasgow.
Ordained, 24th January 1893. T.ne membership at the recent Union°was
over 280 and the stipend ,£240, with a manse.
52 HISTORY OF U.P. CONGREGATIONS
LANGHOLM SOUTH (RKLIKF)
ON 2 1st August 1797 a petition was presented to the Relief Presbytery of
Dumfries "from the people of Canonbie for supply of sermon.'' There was
no change of ministry in the parish at that time, nor till long afterwards, but,
according to Dr Mackelvie, there was dissatisfaction with the ministrations
of an unacceptable assistant. In answer to this petition the Rev. Decision
Laing, the newly-ordained minister of Wamphray, was appointed to preach
there on the first Sabbath of October. There was a blank now till 4th April
1798, and then the application for sermon was renewed by " the forming con
gregation of Canonbie." For three years partial supply was kept up, but in
summer only, a limitation which implies that public worship was held in the
open air. In July 1800 appointments begin to be divided between Langholm
and Canonbie. Then in August 1801 there is a petition for sermon from
"the forming congregation of Canonbie and Langholm," and henceforth the
former of these names disappears from the records. In the provincial town
of Langholm, five or six miles to the north-west of the village of Canonbie,
the Relief congregation for that parish was now to have its centre. Prior to
this there were, according to the Old Statistical History, between 30 and 40
Seceders in Canonbie, who would mostly attend the Burgher Church at
Langholm. If the two sections of dissenters could have coalesced a site
might have been obtained in the face of difficulties, and a fair congregation
formed nearer home.
As year after year passed without progress being made the Presbytery
began to get impatient, and on I7th July 1805 they ordered Langholm
people to inform them " what they intend to do respecting the erection of a
place of worship, and calling one to break the bread of life among them ;
and that, unless this be done, they will get no more supply of sermon." The
injunction and the threat brought out "a favourable account of their cir
cumstances," but still there was the dead pause in winter, and sermon
sometimes not applied for till summer was far advanced. In that state
matters continued for other four years, but in May 1809 the Presbytery ex
pressed their regret to find that the congregation had "not followed up the
spirit of the resolution lately adopted anent fitting out their church." From
this time supply was kept up over the whole year. In 1811 they issued a
call to Mr John Barr with much cordiality and in the firm belief that he
would accept, but a rival call having come out in his favour from Dovehill,
Glasgow, the situation of affairs was changed. Perceiving that their claims
were to be set aside, Langholm congregation brought a formal complaint
against Mr Barr before Dumfries Presbytery. They alleged that he asked
them to look out lodgings for him till the manse was finished ; that he
told them he would prefer Langholm to Glasgow ; that he was greatly
pleased with their money arrangements ; and that he urged the putting up
of galleries in the church, adding that he would not be the least liberal of the
subscribers. The charges were handed over to Glasgow Presbytery, and
the case ended with the verdict that Mr Barr had given Langholm people
too much encouragement. For this offence he was rebuked, and twelve days
afterwards ordained minister of Dovehill Church.
First Minister. — THOMAS GRIERSON, a licentiate of Edinburgh Pres
bytery. Ordained, i6th December 1812. It cannot be said that during his
preacher course of three years Mr Grierson had a stainless record. In 1810
he acknowledged, when brought before Edinburgh Presbytery, that before
being a probationer he had " embezzled money received from individuals to
obtain licences from the excise, which licences were never obtained, nor the
money accounted for." There was enough admitted to require suspension,
PRESBYTERY OF ANNANDALE 53
but at a subsequent meeting he declared himself in readiness to settle the
whole affair, friends having come to his aid. He was thereupon restored to
his status as a preacher. Another charge, involving dishonesty of a more
flagrant kind, was brought up against him after he went to Langholm, but in
this case the Presbytery pronounced him " honourably acquitted." But
honourable acquittal was not to attend him all onwards. At a meeting of
Presbytery on 2ist March 1815, Mr Grierson being present, a two-fold faina
reared its head against him. First, there was a minute read from Waterbeck
session, bearing that a female member of their church, who was under scandal,
had made a statement before them seriously affecting the moral character of
the Rev. Thomas Grierson. This was supplemented by a report from
Langholm that at a marriage party Mr Grierson had overstepped the
bounds of moderation, and been guilty of improprieties both in speech and
behaviour. Without loss of time a libel was framed against him, and
witnesses brought forward in long array. The case issued on i8th April in
a unanimous verdict of " Proven " on both counts. Deposition ought to have
followed, " but, considering that Mr Grierson has a numerous young family,"
the Presbytery agreed to rest in suspension and the dissolving of the
pastoral tie. Mr Grierson appealed to the Synod, but the sentence of the
Presbytery was confirmed without one contradictory voice.
In December following Mr Grierson applied to Dumfries Presbytery to
have the sentence of suspension removed, but this was declared premature,
and, besides, it was work which belonged to the Syn^J itself. In August
1816 it was ascertained that he was preaching at large, and in opposition to
a law of the Synod. He next set up for himself in a deserted chapel in
Castle Wynd, Edinburgh, and in 1819 he, along with certain elders and
managers, petitioned the Synod to be received into their communion. The
Presbytery of Edinburgh was instructed to inquire into his character and
conduct, but a year afterwards they reported that they could not recommend
his admission. About this time he must have vacated the chapel in Castle
Wynd, as it was taken possession of by Professor Paxton and the congre
gation he gathered round him. Our next trace of Mr Grierson is in May
1824, when a petition for sermon came before the Relief Presbytery of
Edinburgh from parties worshipping in Carrubber's Close, who explained
that Mr Grierson, their minister, had gone to London, and their connection
with him was at an end. All we know further is that he died in Glasgow,
8th February 1829 -the newspaper notice says: "much esteemed and
deeply regretted." " Some hand unseen strewed flowers upon his grave."
Langholm congregation had now a vacancy of five years to pass through.
The cause at this time was altogether at a low ebb, and seemed sometimes
near the expiring point. In May 1817 the Synod was urged by the Presbytery
to aid them with collections, but there is no indication that anything sub
stantial followed. In June 1819, when sermon was declined on account of
pecuniary embarrassments, the Presbytery appointed one of their number to
preach at Langholm, and converse with the people. The visit seems to have
inspirited them, and by November they came out with a unanimous call,
which proved successful.
Second Minister. — PATRICK HUTCHISON PEACOCK, from Canal Street,
Paisley, and manifestly a name-child of the Rev. Patrick Hutchison, the
first minister there. Ordained, 3oth March 1820. The people promised
well. The stipend was to be ^100, with ^10 for house rent and £2, IDS. at
each communion. Drawing upon the uncertain future, they were also to
give ,£5 for every ^100 of debt paid off. But on completing the first year
of his ministry Mr Peacock tendered the demission of his charge. He
explained that he had repeatedly laid before session, managers, and congre-
54 HISTORY OF U.P. CONGREGATIONS
Cation his money difficulties, and urged them to relieve him, but without
effect, and a voluntary separation had now been agreed on. The congre
gation expressed the satisfaction their young minister had given them in
every respect, but, having been unable to pay him his stipend regularly,
they did not object to the step he had taken. His resignation was accord
ingly accepted, 8th May 1821. Mr Peacock then removed to the west, and
was receiving appointments from Glasgow Presbytery so late as April 1826.
Hut meanwhile he was studying medicine, and the last notice we have of
him runs thus in a newspaper death list: "At Paisley, on the 5th May
1831, of a fever caught in the exercise of his professional duties, Mr Patrick
H. Peacock, Surgeon, much and justly lamented by all who had the pleasure
of his acquaintance."
Langholm congregation on the day they fell vacant asked the Presbytery
to appoint the Rev. William Muir, who had recently left Mainsriddell, to
be their supply. This was agreed to, and the arrangement was renewed
from meeting to meeting, till it had the look of permanence. However, in
February 1824, Mr Muir wrote the Presbytery, renouncing connection with
the Relief Synod, and after this Langholm passed into the background for
years, and in 1831 the name even disappeared from the almanac list of
Relief congregations.
Third Minister. — JAMES CROSS, from Dalkeith (West). Ordained, 2nd
June 1835. The money arrangements were now made on a humbler scale,
the stipend being ^80, including sacramental expenses. The minister was
also to receive one-half of the surplus funds, an asset which may be kept out of
the calculation. On loth January 1843 Mr Cross, rinding no doubt the work
uphill, accepted a call to a more trying position still — 'in Newcastle, a place
where the Relief cause had never prospered. In May 1845, requesting to be
relieved from the adverse situation, he intimated to the Presbytery that he
could make no greater or further sacrifices on behalf of Newcastle than he
had already done A letter of concurrence "in the lamented resolution of
their minister," signed by the chairman of a congregational meeting, was
read, and on gth July the connection was dissolved. Two months later
Mr Cross applied for his credentials, as he intended to join the Presbyterian
Church of England. In the course of a year he became minister of Crewe
in that connection, and died there on 2nd September 1849 m tne thirty-
ninth year of his age and fifteenth of his ministry. A tombstone erected by
his congregation and friends records that "he died in the faith of that
blessed Gospel he so faithfully and zealously preached to others," and was
"universally lamented." He was a brother of the Rev. John Cross, Temple
Lane, Dundee, and the Rev. Archibald Cross of West Linton and Canada.
Fourth Minister. — WILLIAM WATSON, from Bloomgate, Lanark. Or
dained, 20th March 1844. The stipend was to be ^80, with £i at each
communion, and the debt was now reduced to ,£160. Writhin a year after
Mr Watson's ordination it was intimated that if the congregation would
raise ,£80 a certain friend would give other ,£80, and have the burden
removed. The movement was entered into with spirit, and the sum realised.
A congregational meeting was held, and a vote of thanks awarded to the
unknown donor, when the preses disclosed that this was none other than their
young minister. It was like security for self-denial and mindfulness of the
apostolic maxim: "We seek not yours but you." It was not till twenty
years had passed that the stipend of ,£105 from the people was supplemented
to ^150, along with the manse. The membership at this period maintained
an average of from 130 to 140, and as the Augmentation Fund improved
Mr Watson got corresponding benefit. On Sabbath, I 5th July 1883, closing
services were conducted in the old church, and the communion observed
PRESBYTERY OF ANNANDALE 55
for the last time. Another was now to be built at an estimated cost of not
more than ^1500, and of this sum ^iioo was already collected. In Sep
tember next year Mr Watson was able to inform the Presbytery that the
new church, which is seated for 350, had been opened free of debt. On the
first Sabbath of February 1889 his public work came to a close. It was
the communion, and Mr Watson had only proceeded a short way with the
service when he became unconscious, and had to be carried home. He
never entered the pulpit again. On the morning of I3th March 1890 he
was found dead in bed. He was in the seventy-fourth year of his age and
forty-sixth of his ministry. Along with fidelity to ministerial duties Mr
Watson had laboured with energy and perseverance in the cause of temper
ance and Christian liberality. The address at the funeral was delivered by
Mr Ballantyne of the North Church. During forty-three years the two
ministers had lived in cordial brotherhood, and now the one was taken and
the other left.
Fifth Minister.— JOHN WALLACE MANN, from Nairn. Mr Mann had
been Mr Watson's assistant, and was under call to be his colleague and
successor when death intervened. He was ordained, 2oth March 1890,
seven days after that unlooked-for event, and exactly forty-six years after
the ordination of his predecessor. The membership had declined before
Mr Watson's death, but at the close of 1899 it reached 173, which was an
increase of about 50, and the stipend from the people was ,£130, with the
manse.
WATERBECK (RELIEF)
ON 1 8th March 1790, when the Relief Presbytery of Glasgow met at
Dumfries for the induction of the first minister there, they received a petition
for sermon from "the forming congregation of Middlebie," this being the
parish in which Waterbeck is situated. There are, however, traces of
supply a year and a half before this, a probationer having been appointed to
preach there three Sabbaths in October 1788. Craigs was the place where
they sometimes met, and hence the earliest tokens bear the letters C. and W.,
for Craigs and Waterbeck. At the latter place the church was built, and a
large stone which was over the door bears the figures 1790. The putting in
of a gallery in 1804 raised the sittings to 490. Now comes the record of
three unsuccessful calls— the first in 1790 to Mr James Grimmond, who
preferred Coupar- Angus ; the second in the early part of 1791 to Mr James
Smart, who preferred Kirkbean, afterwards Mainsriddell ; and the third
towards the end of that year, to Mr David Gellatly, who preferred Hadding-
ton. The stipend they 'undertook was ^80, and ^4 a year for sacramental
expenses. After this the people of Waterbeck and the Presbytery of
Edinburgh got into strained relations. In March 1792 the Presbytery, in
answer to a complaint from a probationer who had supplied at Waterbeck
seven Sabbaths, enjoined the congregation to pay him 153. for each Sabbath,
and nearly .£3 besides for travelling expenses. The latter sum ought not in
their opinion to be grudged, since the preacher "had no horse to encumber
any of the Society with." If payment were not made they need expect no
more sermon from the Presbytery. This decision, and perhaps the issue of
the three recent calls, tempted the congregation to look for supply elsewhere.
In May 1792 an outsider from Workington in Cumberland was allowed to
occupy' the pulpit, and for this offence Waterbeck was disowned for a time.
But in December they brought up a call to the Rev. John Selkrig, the
minister above referred to, " unanimously subscribed by the members of that
56 HISTORY OF U.P. CONGREGATIONS
Society," when the Presbytery declared they could do nothing until the
object of the congregation's choice applied for admission to the Relief
Church, and was regularly received. Negotiations followed, but the move
ment came to nothing ; only, the congregation had to stand a rebuke for
breaking a rule of Synod which forbade them to call or employ any clergy
man or preacher not of the Relief body.
First Minister. — JAMES GEDDES, a licentiate of the Relief Presbytery of
Edinburgh. Called to Coldingham as well as Waterbeck, but he preferred the
latter, and was ordained, igth March 1794. The stipend promised was ^80,
with a comfortable house, and £4 in name of sacramental expenses.* On
1 5th April 1802 Mr Geddes' life came to a tragic end. The particulars have
come through a single link of connection, and are as follows : — He was
much annoyed by a female member of his congregation, and, being of a very
nervous temperament, his mind became completely unhinged. The old
manse still stands, and there are stains on the floor of a certain room,
attesting how the deed was done. He survived the infliction a very few
hours.
Second Minister.— JOHN M'FARLANE, from Head Street, Beith. Or
dained, i6th June 1803. In 1807 Mr M'Farlane was called to Greenhead,
Glasgow, but he wrote declining, and the call was dropped. After a brief
interval they called him again, and having accepted he was loosed from
Waterbeck, 28th August 1810.
Third Minister.— DAVID STRUTHERS, from Anders ton, Glasgow. Or
dained, 23rd May 1811. Died suddenly, 28th October 1829, in the forty-third
year of his age and nineteenth of his ministry. He dispensed the Lord's
Supper on the previous Sabbath, and on Tuesday was in his usual health,
when all at once he was struck down with apoplexy, and in a few hours
breathed his last, leaving a widow and ten children.
Foitrth Minister. — JAMES WATSON, from Dovehill (now Kelvingrove),
Glasgow. Ordained, i6th September 1830. Owing to a breach of morality
Mr Watson was loosed from his charge, gth April 1839. In the beginning of
1841 Glasgow Presbytery took steps to have him restored to office, but the
Synod in May delayed procedure, and the proposal passes out of notice.
Mr Watson afterwards emigrated to Nova Scotia and became minister at
Economy in that colony. Then in 1852 he was inducted to West River,
Pictou, and in 1859 to New Annan, where he died, i2th December 1881, in
the seventy-eighth year of his age and fifty-second of his ministry.
Fifth Minister. — ROBERT HAMILTON, from Saltcoats (now Trinity).
Ordained, i3th January 1840. It has been said that Mr Hamilton's grave
and circumspect demeanour fitted him peculiarly for Waterbeck at that
trying time. After going on for eleven years he resigned his charge, assign
ing as the reason inadequacy of stipend, and the connection was dissolved,
6th May 1851. Emigrated to Australia, and became minister at Fitzroy,
22nd February 1852. Resigned in July 1883 owing to his advancing age
and growing infirmities. He died at Melbourne, 3oth November 1891,
having nearly completed the seventy-ninth year of his age and the fifty-
second of his ministry. In 1888 Mr Hamilton published his "Jubilee
History of the Presbyterian Church of Victoria," a volume into which he has
condensed a large amount of important information, and for which he
received the degree of D.D. that same year from St Andrews University.
* From certain old records of the congregation we find the expenditure on the
property to have been as follows :— in 1789, to building and slating the church,
5 ; in 1794, the manse included, close upon .£170; in 1795, stable building, over
; and in 1803. slating and plastering the church, including galleries, over £62.
PRESBYTERY OF ANNANDALE 57
Sixth Minister. — DAVID S. GooDBURN, from Peebles (West). Called
also to Bankhill, Berwick, and to Beaumont Union, Northumberland. Or
dained, 29th January 1852. A new manse was built in 1868 at a cost of
,£742, in addition to the price received for the old manse, the Board allowing
two-fifths, and on Thursday, 2gth July 1869, the present church was opened
by Dr Eadie, the whole property being almost entirely free of debt. The
collections that day and on the following Sabbath yielded ,£130. On 3oth
June 1874 Mr Goodburn wrote the Presbytery demitting his charge. He
had taken some disappointment to heart in connection with a little money
matter, and the congregation, while appreciating his preaching, acquiesced
in the acceptance of his resignation. There was, however, a settled resolve
among them to part with their minister on friendly terms, and they engaged
to present him with a farewell gift of between ^100 and ,£150. Impaired
health may have induced sensitiveness and some failure in social amenities.
The connection was dissolved on 4th August. Mr Goodburn died in
Edinburgh, igth December 1878, aged fifty-seven, and is buried in Dean
Cemetery. He bequeathed property to the Synod to found two Waterbeck
Bursaries of ^13 each.
Seventh 'Minister. — ARMSTRONG BLACK, son of Rev. John Black,
Newcastleton. Called also to Irvine (Trinity) and St Andrews. Ordained,
6th June 1875. Loosed, 3ist October 1876, on accepting a call to Palmerston
Place, Edinburgh.
Eighth Minister.— JAMES M. SCOTT, M.A., from Milnathort. Called also
to Renfrew. Ordained, nth September 1877. The stipend was to be ^210,
with the manse. Declined a call to Yeaman Place (now Merchiston),
Edinburgh, in November 1884, but accepted Junction Road, Leith, loth
February 1887.
Ninth Minister.— ADAM C. WELCH, B.D., son of Rev. John Welch,
missionary at Goshen, Jamaica. Ordained, 29th November 1887. Loosed,
1 5th November 1892, on accepting a call to Helensburgh.
Tenth Minister.— "THOMAS P. RANKINE, M.A., son of Rev. Edward
Rankine, Shiels, Belhelvie. Having preferred Waterbeck to Moat Park,
Biggar, he was ordained, 3rd April 1894. Continued there till 3rd April
1900, when he accepted a call to Pollok Street, Glasgow. This gives four
translations from Waterbeck within twenty-four years.
Eleventh Minister. — ARCHIBALD ALEXANDER, B.D., from West Linton.
Ordained, I3th September 1900. The membership at this time was a little
over 200, and the stipend as it had been for more than twenty years.
ANNAN (BURGHER)
THIS congregation was an offshoot from Ecclefechan, which lies six miles to
the north. In 1800 an attempt was made to proceed with the building of a
church, but, the Synod having returned no answer to a petition for aid, it was
decided to have no more sermon for the time. There was now a pause of
several years, but on 8th October 1805 the session of Ecclefechan trans
mitted to Selkirk Presbytery a petition for a disjunction from members
residing in and about Annan. At this time 59 persons were erected into
a separate congregation, but on the express condition, volunteered by them
selves, that they would contribute their usual quota to Ecclefechan during
the life of their present pastor. The Rev. James Henderson of Hawick was
appointed to preach at Annan on the second Sabbath of November, and in
conjunction with Mr Johnston he was in the following week to receive
accessions from such as seemed to understand and approve of Secession
58 HISTORY OF U.P. CONGREGATIONS
principles. Supply was now kept up on alternate Sabbaths, or thereby. In
the beginning of 1806 five elders were ordained, one of them being Adam
Hope, a name which figures in Carlyle's Reminiscences. It was fortunate
at this stage that a place of worship belonging to the Independents was ob
tained by purchase, so that they did not require to build a church for
themselves.
First Minister. — WILLIAM GLEN, from Loehwinnoch. Ordained, I5th
April 1807, the call being subscribed by 56 members. Owing to their fewness
in numbers it is not surprising that the congregation soon found themselves in
money difficulties. This again prompted a petition to the Presbytery to be
relieved of the obligation under which they had come, to continue their usual
support to Mr Johnston of Ecclefechan during his lifetime. In the face of
the obligation to which they had voluntarily agreed it was found that this
could not be done, but a committee was appointed to examine into the con
dition of both congregations. The Annan difficulties were aggravated in
1 8 16 through Mr Glen's illness and the congregation's inability to pay for
supply of sermon. To aid them at this time the Synod in September made
them a grant of ,£20, but Mr Glen now resolved to resign his charge and
become a missionary to Astrakan, in Russia. On I2th November 1816 his
demission was accepted, and a long course of productive labour followed.
In 1845 Mr Glen had the degree of D.D. conferred upon him by the
University of St Andrews. He died in Persia, i2th January 1849, in his
seventy-first year. Mr Glen's removal was succeeded by a vacancy of nearly
four years, during which the congregation called first the Rev. George
Lawson of Bolton, Lancashire. The number of subscribers marks consider
able increase, there being 157 members and 117 adherents. As it was
understood that Mr Lawson was transportable his popularity as a preacher
secured him three calls at this time, but Kilmarnock was deemed to have the
best claim, and the Synod pronounced accordingly. They next called
Mr John Law, who was appointed to Newcastleton.
Second Minister. — JAMES DOBBIE, M. A., from East Campbell Street (now
Sydney Place), Glasgow, father of the Rev. Thomas Dobbie of Lansdowne.
Ordained, i6th August 1820. The present church was built in 1834-5 at a
cost of ^iioo, with sittings for 750. The membership at this time was
approaching 300. Mr Dobbie died from accidental poisoning, 22nd May
1846, in the fifty-first year of his age and twenty-sixth of his ministry.
During the vacancy which followed a union was effected between the
Secession and Relief Churches in Annan, and their joint history will be given
further on.
ANNAN (RELIEF)
ON loth June 1833 the Relief Presbytery of Dumfries agreed that each of
the members should preach a day in the town of Annan. This was at the
solicitation of several individuals, who considered that the place was not
adequately supplied with the means of religious instruction. On the fourth
Sabbath of June sermon was commenced by the Rev. Edward Dobbie of
Burnhead, and four others followed in succession. The population of the
parish at this time, exclusive of Brydekirk, was close upon 5000, and there
had been an increase of about 600 within a few years, while, to meet the
demands for church accommodation, there were only the Established and
Secession places of worship available.
Appearances being favourable, steps were taken in a few months to have
a church built, but before this could be accomplished the people deemed
PRESBYTERY OF ANNANDALE 59
themselves ripe for a moderation, and in May 1834 they called the
Rev. William Ritchie, promising a stipend of ^80, with £2 for each com
munion. We find that 200 took part in the vote, of whom all but 1 1 sup
ported the successful candidate. The Presbytery had previously decided
that persons of sound character were entitled to take part in the choice of
a pastor. This call, however, was withdrawn, Mr Ritchie having accepted
a call to Auchtergaven. A second moderation took place on ist August,
when only 166 voted, 144 of these forming the majority.
First Minister. — ARCHIBALD TUDHOPK, from Thread Street, Paisley.
Ordained, I4th October 1834. In the following year the church, with 600
sittings, and built at a cost of between £700 and ^800, was opened. On
3rd April 1838 Mr Tudhope's resignation was accepted, as he had resolved
to leave for America. On I3th September he received a call to the Ninth
Presbyterian Church, Philadelphia, though he was not formally installed till
1 2th January 1841. Two days before this a new place of worship, which cost
19,000 dollars, was opened by Mr Tudhope, the sermon he preached on that
occasion from the text : " We will not forsake the house of our God," being
afterwards published. Owing to dissatisfaction in the congregation he re
signed in 1849, an(l after many movements hither and thither, and several
locations, he died in Cincinnati, 6th September 1861, in the sixty-first year of
his age and twenty-seventh of his ministry.
Second Minister. — WILLIAM WYPKR. Inducted, 3oth October 1839.
Mr Wyper was from Glasgow (Calton). Had been called when a preacher
to Alnwick and Newcastle (Bethel Chapel), and was ordained over the latter
church, 8th August 1838. Before he had been more than a few months
settled there he endeavoured to secure a translation to Duns, but convul
sions followed, and while the strife was going on he got Annan instead.
The stipend promised was ,£20 higher than before. In his first charge Mr
Wyper had acquired some notoriety as a dcclairner on politics, and was the
man to make a sensation ; but his behaviour in connection with Duns
Church having been brought before the Synod, he was found guilty of
fomenting dissension in that congregation, and subjected to rebuke. Three
months after this Mr Wyper set about gaining admission to the Established
Church, and attempted to take both the people and the property with him.
His petition was backed by 302 names, including 90 members of the Relief
and 60 of the Established Church. On 2gth July 1840 Mr Wyper was loosed
from his charge and declared out of connection with the Relief Church.
Next Sabbath Mr Dobbie of Burnhead occupied the pulpit, and preached
to about 100 people, 40 of whom declared their adherence to the Relief
cause. Mr Wyper conducted services in the Black Bull Inn, when about
50 declared their determination to remain with him.
It was next arranged that Mr Wyper should be accepted as minister of
a new church which was in course of erection at Annan in connection with
the Established Church. "His cause," says the author of "The Chaff and
Wheat/' "was warmly taken up by Dr Duncan (of Ruthwell), by whose
instrumentality he was received into the Establishment, and large contri
butions towards his place of worship made by the Evangelical party." But
at the Disruption he did not secede, and before the end of 1843, according
to the same authority, he " secured a call from some residuum of a con
gregation about Paisley." In November 1846 he was inducted to the quoad
sacra church, Norrieston, and on Thursday, 23rd June 1870, a newspaper
report bore that he was found lying on the road between Doune and
Thornhill in a helpless and stupefied condition, and died about an hour
afterwards, from the effects of laudanum. He was in the sixty-eighth year
of his age and thirty-second of his ministry. Mr Wyper had raised himself,
60 HISTORY OF U.P. CONGREGATIONS
after he reached manhood, from an illiterate state and a humble position in
the ranks, owing much, it was said, to the assistance of his wife. Would that
he had had a more consistent life-course and a happier end !
Third Minister. — JOHN DONALD, from Hutchesontown, Glasgow. Or
dained, 2Oth July 1842, and died, 26th May 1844, in the twenty-sixth year of
his age and second of his ministry.
During the three years which intervened before the union with the
Secession Church in Annan the congregation twice attempted to obtain a
minister, but it was now in a shattered state, and preachers were chary about
accepting. The first they called was Mr Allan M'Lean, from Anderston,
Glasgow, who preferred, like Mr Wyper, to cast in his lot with the Established
Church.* The second was Mr John Mitchell, who held back, and some time
afterwards was ordained at Leven. Then in May 1847 the two denomina
tions became one, and the way was cleared for a union between the Secession
and Relief congregations in Annan, both of which were vacant.
ANNAN (UNITED CONGREGATION)
ON 3 ist August 1847 steps were taken by the Presbytery with a view to
coalescence. The Relief congregation had never recovered from the
disaster occasioned by Wyper's defection, who took with him the majority
of the members. Still, it seems to have been on their side chiefly that
reluctance was shown to forego independent existence. But the Presbytery
was urgent, and a joint committee of both congregations drew up terms of
agreement. The main difficulty would arise from the fact that the Relief
place of worship was burdened with debt beyond what a sale would bring.
The understanding come to seems to have been that this burden would not
come on the united congregation. A proposal was made to hand the property
over, encumbrances and all, to the Synod, but this arrangement the com
mittee on the union of weak congregations could not sanction ; parties
would have to adjust pecuniary matters for themselves. On 2ist March
1848 the Presbytery found that both congregations had unanimously adopted
resolutions for immediate union, which was thereupon declared to be effected,
and Mr Douglas of Lockerbie was appointed to preach in what had been
the Secession church at Annan on the first Sabbath of April, and intimate
the final decision.
After hearing candidates for a year Annan applied for a moderation.
A question put by the commissioners on this occasion shows that the union
feeling had not reached the very core. They wished to know whether
parties who had kept aloof from the Lord's table since the union were
entitled to take part in the vote. The answer was Yes, if their names are
on the communion roll, and if they attend public worship.
First Minister. — ROBERT GARDNER, from Johnstone (East), and the
Relief side of the United Church. Ordained, 2nd October 1849. The call
was far from harmonious, as is apt to be the case in such circumstances, but
there is no doubt that it spoke the will of the majority, the entire member
ship being 233 and the signatures 170. When the document came before
the Presbytery it was met by a petition from 75 members, 14 of whom had
signed the call, asking that the legality of the proceedings should be in
quired into. For this purpose the Presbytery met at Annan a week after-
* Dumfries Presbytery reported to the Synod in May 1845 that a unanimous call
from Annan was awaiting Mr M 'Lean's decision. On 6th January 1846 he obtained
extracts of his licence from Glasgow Presbytery, and at next Assembly was admitted
into the Establishment. In the following year he was ordained minister of Calton
parish, Glasgow, where he died of consumption, 8th October 1861, aged 50.
PRESBYTERY OF ANNANDALE 61
wards, and took up the allegations one by one. It was found that sixteen
persons voted who had not joined in sacramental work since the union
of the two churches, and that one voted who was not a member at all. A
charge of canvassing was also brought forward against two individuals, but
the offence was denied, and no evidence in its support was forthcoming.
The Presbytery might have reminded the complainers that the objections to
the sixteen votes had been pronounced on by anticipation, but they preferred
simply to say that, though the seventeen votes were deducted, Mr Gardner
would still have a fair majority. On 24th July the call was accepted, and
that same day a memorial of the no-surrender kind came up from Annan,
and, though it was not received, the Presbytery saw meet to put up the
danger signal. It was carried to transmit a representation of the state of
matters at Annan to Mr Gardner, who had been previously called, first to
Comrie, and then to Blacket Street, Newcastle, and might perhaps incline
now to wait over. But all went on without interruption on his part, and on
nth September the ordination was appointed. When the decisive day
came, objections framed at a meeting of members and adherents were
brought forward by the chairman, but two of these were pronounced invalid,
and the third, which announced danger to the congregation and the cause
of United Presbyterianism in Annan, might have been treated in the same
way. After some sort of investigation had been made the proceedings went
on. On 6th November the objecting minority applied for sermon, the paper
being signed by 88 members and 67 adherents, and one of the members was
appointed to preach on a week-day at Annan and meet with the applicants.
On 27th November the managers of the congregation opposed the new
erection, and sermon was refused by a majority of 1 1 to 6. The case was
carried by protest to the Synod, where, parties having been fully heard, the
following motion was proposed and unanimously adopted : — " That the Synod,
strongly disapproving of divisions in congregations on insufficient grounds,
and of setting up new congregations in localities where they are not required,
dismiss the protest and appeal as ill-founded, and affirm the decision of the
Presbytery." A deputation of three ministers was at the same time appointed
to visit Annan with the view of healing divisions, but so far as visible results
were concerned this'measure might probably have been dispensed with.
There was trouble to the Synod after this with the Relief place of worship.
In 1849 it was reported to have been offered for sale at ^180, or less than
one-fourth of the original cost, but could find no purchaser, and several
parties were involved in legal obligations. Two years afterwards it was
found that the property had been disposed of, but a balance of ^156 re
mained, for which several members of court had become liable, and this
money had been paid out of the Synod Fund. The building is now used as
an Institute.
In 1 86 1 a debt of ^300 resting on the old Secession church was liqui
dated. Mr Gardner was translated to Wolverhampton, 7th August 1871,
and Annan declared vacant. His ministry in his new charge lasted little
more than a year. On 3Oth January 1873 ne was killed when crossing the
railway, where he had been bidding some friends good-bye. He was in the
sixty-third year of his age and twenty-fourth of his ministry.
Second Minister. — JAMES RONALD, previously of Douglas, where he had
been for seven years. Admitted, 23rd January 1872. In 1879 the stipend
was ,£200, with the manse, and there was a membership of 269. Mr Ronald
died, 24th October 1900, in the sixty-first year of his age and thirty-sixth of
his ministry. His was the last name dropped from the roll of the U.P.
Synod. The membership of Annan congregation at this time was given at
277, and the emoluments were as before.
62 HISTORY OF u.p. CONGREGATIONS
CHAPELKNOWE (BURGHER)
ON jOth October 1810 some people in Half-Morton parish and its neigh
bourhood petitioned the Burgher Presbytery of Selkirk for occasional supply
from some of its members. As that place was believed to be in want of the
gospel Mr Dunlop of Dumfries was appointed to preach there on the third
Sabbath of November, and after that the propriety of granting further supply
was to be considered. The outcome was that on loth December a paper
subscribed by upwards of 100 householders and others, none of them
connected with the denomination, was laid before the Presbytery asking a
continuance of sermon. But at this stage a question arose as to the effect
the erection of a congregation at Half-Morton might have on the Burgher
churches of Ecclefechan, Langholm, and Annan, though none of these was
within a less distance than nine miles. After reports came in from Lang-
holm and Annan the Presbytery were afraid they had acted precipitately in
granting sermon without consulting the neighbouring sessions. Supply,
however, was not withdrawn, but for a time it was furnished very slenderly.
On 1 5th July 1811 fully 140 individuals craved to be congregated. Two
members of Presbytery were then appointed to receive accessions, and on
1 7th August they reported that 28 persons had been examined and admitted
into fellowship with the Church. Such was the beginning of Chapelknowe
congregation, a name derived, it is said, from a detached knoll on which the
place of worship is built.
Prior to this the parish of Half-Morton had been for a dozen years
destitute of religious ordinances. The minister of Langholm held the
benefice, the condition being that he was to preach there every fourth
Sabbath. Such was the limited supply of sermon afforded to Half-Morton
when the congregation of Chapelknowe was formed, but for a lengthened
period there was little progress made. Though public worship was kept up
at the rate of two or three Sabbaths each month it was not till 1822 that the
congregation was organised and elders ordained. In April of that year it
was also announced that "a neat and comfortable place of worship has been
recently erected, and is almost completed." About this time the parish
minister of Langholm ceased to preach at Half-Morton,' the plea apparently
being the want of fit accommodation. But though there was greater need
now to carry on the work with vigour at Chapelknowe, a fixed pastor was
not obtained for other ten years. At last in April 1831 the congregation gave
a unanimous call to Mr Alexander Robertson, preacher, Selkirk, who
declined acceptance, and after remaining on the probationers' list for other
sixteen years he was laid aside for immorality, and went to Australia. The
next they called was Mr Samuel Spence, afterwards of Wishart Church,
Dundee, whom the Synod appointed to a forming congregation in Liverpool.
First Minister. — GEORGE CLARK, from Castle Street, Jedburgh. Or
dained, :8th December 1832. There was immediate increase in the
membership, but before the close of another year the Established Church
was revived at Half-Morton, and a regular assistant appointed. Owing to
this, as Mr Clark reported to the commissioners on religious instruction in
1836, his attendance was reduced by about one-fourth. He also stated that
his stipend was ,£75, with manse and garden ; that the church cost only
,£175 ; that twenty-two families came from more than two miles ; and that
the communicants had been doubled in four years and numbered 90, of
whom fully one-half were from the parishes of Canonbie, Kirkpatrick-Fleming
Kirk-Andrews, and Gretna. Mr Clark died, 23rd February 1852, in the
fifty-fifth year of his age and twentieth of his ministry.
Two unsuccessful calls were now issued from Chapelknowe, the one to
PRESBYTERY OF ANNANDALE 63
Mr Andrew Graham, afterwards of Crossgates, and the other to Mr John
Milne, afterwards of Greenlavv, and Rockvilla, Glasgow.
Second Minister. — JOHN C. MEIKLEJOHN, from Denny. Ordained, 25th
April 1854. In 1868 the manse was improved at a cost of ,£418, of which the
Board furnished ^150. On 6th July 1886 Mr Meiklejohn's demission of his
charge was accepted by the Presbytery. Nearly a year before this Edin
burgh had been his residence, the state of Mrs Meiklejohn's health, who
was a sister of Principal Cairns, necessitating this. The arrangement come
to was that Mr Meiklejohn should retain the status of senior minister
without any responsibility, and resigning all claim to emolument. After
this he acted for a number of years as chaplain to the Fever Hospital,
Edinburgh, but has now retired.
Third Minister. — ANDREW LAINC;, from Charlotte Street, Aberdeen.
Ordained as colleague and successor to Mr Meiklejohn, loth February 1887.
The membership at the close of that year was 89 and the stipend from
the people .£70, which supplement raised to ,£160, with the manse. Twelve
years after this the membership had increased to 100, and the funds yielded
an additional £10. A new church, with 20x3 sittings, was opened by Principal
Cairns on Tuesday, 23rd October 1890. The cost, of over .£900, was already
provided for by subscriptions.
RIGG-OF-GRETNA (UNITED SECESSION)
ON 3rd May 1831 about 32 persons, who had been examined for Church
fellowship and approved of, were recognised as constituting the United
Associate congregation of Rigg. The name occurs in the Presbytery
records for the first time in January of that year, when a day's supply at
Rigg from ministers in the neighbourhood was recommended. In July an
election of elders took place, and within a fortnight a moderation was
granted, ^90 being the stipend promised, with sacramental expenses and a
manse. Mr William Miller was the preacher fixed on, but, believing that
they had no chance with West Linton, the people allowed the call to drop.
However, it was Whitburn and not West Linton which became Mr Miller's
destination.
First Minister. — MATTHEW M'GlLL, from Mauchline, the nephew of a
minister well known in the north, the Rev. Robert Campbell of Peterhead.
The call to Rigg came before the Presbytery along with another from Eccle-
fechan, where a stipend at least ^10 larger was offered, but Mr M'Gill ex
pressing a preference for the new place, he was ordained there, 25th May
1832. On Sabbath, 3oth December, the congregation took possession of
their new church, when the building, with sittings for 350, was "crowded to
excess." At this time the manse was also nearly finished, the entire cost
amounting to somewhere about ,£1000. Four years afterwards the com
municants were 148 and the debt ^170. Of the congregation twenty-four
families came from beyond two miles, about one-half of these from the
parish of Kirkpatrick-Fleming. The stipend was now ^95, with manse and
garden. About 70 sittings were taken by Established Church families, for
convenience. Mr M'Gill's ministry began with large promise — he was
described as the very man to build up an infant cause ; but in 1863 it was
found that the funds were behind, the attendance much reduced, and some
of the best contributors away. Reports of insobriety on Mr M'Gill's part
prevailed, and refused to be put down. Laborious investigation followed, but,
as often happens in such cases, it was hard to get definite charges beyond
the point of " Not Proven." Still, the Presbytery considered that enough
64 HISTORY OF U.P. CONGREGATIONS
had come out to demand admonition and the loosing of Mr M'Gill from his
charge. This latter step was deemed essential, if the ruin of the congrega
tion was to be averted. A committee of Synod which finally sat in judgment
on the case found one of the counts established, and they added that from
what had come under their own observation " they were fully convinced that
the mental and moral condition of the appellant was such as to render it totally
inexpedient to continue him in the exercise of his office." The Presbytery in
accordance with this decision pronounced sentence of suspension sine die on
24th May 1864. After clinging to the manse for a time Mr M'Gill removed
to a house of his own at Mauchline, where he died, 4th April 1884, aged
seventy-nine.
The congregation was now reduced to the verge of extinction, and
Central Funds had to be largely drawn from to keep the lamp burning.
Locations were secured in succession, the longest being that of the Rev.
George Thomson, who had been in Campbeltown at a former time. But in
February 1869 they called Mr Thomas Weatherstone, a probationer from
Horndean, who accepted, but illness intervened, and he died, I3th June, aged
thirty. They next made choice of Mr John Robertson, from Glasgow
(Hutchesontown) but he preferred Burton-on-Trent, where he was ordained,
25th January 1870. Then Mr David Drysdale, a brother-in-law of the Rev.
David Russell, St Margaret's, Dunfermline, accepted a call to Rigg, but
withdrew his acceptance. He afterwards joined the Episcopal Church, and
was assistant for some time to Dr Teape in Edinburgh. The membership
at this time was 48, and the stipend was to be £70 from the people and ,£60
from the Board, with manse and garden.
Second Minister. — WILLIAM WILLIAMSON, from Alva. Ordained, nth
April 1871. The manse was now put under repair at an outlay of ^420, the
Board allowing one-third. Mr Williamson had been previously called to
Loanends, Ireland, where he was about to IDC ordained, but he drew back,
alleging that he dreaded personal violence in that part of the United
Kingdom. He had also Gateshead, Newcastle, in his offer, but he saw
reason to decline. Demitted his charge, 26th November 1872, and after
being a short time on the probationers' list joined the Established Church.
He ultimately became minister of the quoad sacra church, Inverallochy, near
Fraserburgh. The end with him was peculiarly sad. Along with four
gentlemen and a lady he was out on a pleasure sail on the Gareloch, 2oth
July 1 88 1, when in a squall the boat struck a little above Shandon, and the
whole party perished. The lady was the daughter of the parish minister of
Erskine, and they were to have been married the following week. His age
was forty-two, and his intended's was twenty-two.
Third Minister. — GEORGE LAMBERT, from Dalkeith, East (now
Buccleuch Street), but a native of Gorebridge. Ordained as a missionary to
Trinidad on igth October 1853. Laboured there for seventeen years, first
at Arouca, and then in San Fernando. Constrained by family considerations
to return home, he was inducted to Rigg-of-Gretna, 5th August 1873. Gave
an address at Lockerbie on the evening of 5th February 1892, and then
went to Lochmaben manse, where he was found dead in bed on the following
morning. Mr Lambert was in the sixty-fifth year of his age and thirty-ninth
of his ministry. His only son is the Rev. John C. Lambert B.D., late of
Cathcart.
Fourth Minister. — WILLIAM HOGARTH, son of the Rev. Robert Hogarth,
Stranraer, and one of three brothers who are ministers of the United
Presbyterian Church. Ordained, 25th October 1892. At the close of 1899
the membership was 65, and the stipend from the people ,£75, with the
PRESBYTERY OF ARBROATH 65
PRESBYTERY OF ARBROATH
DUMBARROW (ANTIBURGHER)
THIS name is met with in the minutes of the Associate Presbytery once for
all on 5th March 1740, when, in answer to petitions from Dundee and
Fettercairn, nearly thirty miles apart, Mr Moncrieff of Abernethy was
appointed to observe a Fast at Dumbarrow. The place was about midway
between, but it appears by-and-by that the parish minister was in deep
sympathy with the Secession movement, and this may be taken as having
dictated the selection.
First Minister.— ANDREW ARROT. Ordained at Dunnichin, i3th Sep
tember 1716. His father, the Rev. William Arrot, was admitted to Channel-
kirk in 1683, during the reign of prelacy, was received into the Presbyterian
Church in 1689, and was translated to Montrose in 1696. It was at
Edinburgh, I3th October 1742, that the son gave in his accession to the
Associate Presbytery. This was nine years after the meeting at Gairney
Bridge, so that, compared with the other eight Seceding ministers, he was
"as one born out of due time." Next month the Commission of Assembly
instructed the Presbytery of Forfar to set about reclaiming Mr Arrot, but,
on reporting that their efforts to that effect had proved fruitless, they were
ordered to proceed against him by libel, and on 5th June 1745 he was
deposed. Mr Arrot was proprietor of Dumbarrow, an estate of some 600
acres in the parish of Dunnichin, and here on his own ground, if not entirely
at his own expense, he built a church, which became the gathering point for
seceders from a great part of Forfarshire, though the following he had from
among his own people does not seem to have been large.
When the breach took place in 1747 Mr Arrot was absent, but he went
to the Antiburgher side. In the winter of 1752-3 he was unable for full work
"owing to his frailty and indisposition," though he held on for other seven
years. On i6th May 1760 he died, in the seventy-first year of his age and
forty-fourth of his ministry. By the marriage of one of his sisters Mr Arrot
was brother-in-law to the Rev. John Willison of Dundee, and his son, the
Rev. David Arrot, was for fifty-eight years minister at Markethill, Ulster,
while his son-in-law, the Rev. Isaac Paton of Templepatrick, was the first
preacher ordained in Ireland by the Associate Presbytery. In his Memoir
of Moncrieff of Abernethy Dr Young says : " About two weeks before his
death he took a journey of forty miles to prosecute measures he had in view
for the support of a weak congregation which had recently become vacant."
This must have been Dumbarrow ; but the people there, though few in
number, had no intention of giving up. So far from this, they set about the
erection of a new church. The impression may have been that, to meet the
expected influx from other parishes under a new ministry, it would be wise to
have the little edifice replaced by a larger. Certain it is that in 1764 they
received £8 from the session of the North Church, Perth, to assist in defray
ing the charges of the house they had built. In September 1762 Dumbarrow
appeared before the Synod in competition with Pathstruie and Ceres for the
services of Mr Thomas Bennet ; but Ceres got the preference.
Second Minister. — MICHAEL ARTHUR, a native of Collessie parish,
whose father, William Arthur, was long an elder of Mr Moncrieff's at Aber
nethy. When a student he taught a school at Kinclaven, where he also acted
as precentor and session-clerk. The Synod having preferred Dumbarrow
66 HISTORY OF U.P. CONGREGATIONS
to Jedburgh (Castle Street) and Kendal, he was ordained there in October
1764, the call being signed by 35 (male) members. Mr Arthur was a man of
talent, but his ministry was not a success either in his first charge or in any
other. After he had been three years at Dumbarrow he took part with his
fellow student, Mr Scott of Dundee, in propounding "scruples" to the
Presbytery as to covenanting and other things. The papers they gave in
were laid before the Synod in September 1767, and for a time their experi
ences ran parallel, both being suspended from the exercise of their ministry.
But at the meeting of Synod a year afterwards Mr Arthur appeared,
declared anew his adherence to the ordination formula, and was restored to
office, while Mr Scott, who continued unyielding, was ultimately deposed. In
one of his pamphlets Scott reflects on the inconsistent conduct of his co
adjutor in turning his back on his own "scruples."
But Mr Arthur had made Dumbarrow too hot for him, and he now asked
to be loosed from his charge "after what had happened." The congregation
was in a divided state, and on 2nd October 1770 the Presbytery of Perth and
Dunfermline dissolved the connection. The congregation of Peebles was
already in course of calling him, and with this the first chapter of Mr Arthur's
chequered history ends.
Third Minister. — JOHN YOUNG, who appears to have belonged to the
bounds of Perth Presbytery. Ordained, 27th April 1774. The limits of the
congregation were now to be greatly circumscribed. The formation of a
church at Forfar, four miles distant, in 1778 cut off a goodly branch, and
stopped supplies from the west. A few years later Arbroath was disjoined,
and that narrowed Dumbarrow in from the east. Then in 1788 there was a
movement for sermon at Barry, to the south, and Mr Young feared his
congregation was to be ruined. But to make amends for this last en
croachment it was agreed to grant an annual allowance of ^5 to the funds of
Dumbarrow, and year after year this sum was paid, the one-half by the
Presbytery of Forfar and the other by the Presbytery of Perth. But these
matters were scarcely adjusted when, on I5th July 1789, the brethren who had
been assisting Mr Young at his communion reported that "he had been
observed much overcome with drink while administering divine ordinances
on the preparation day." He made full confession and was rebuked, the
sentence to be intimated from Dumbarrow pulpit next Lord's Day. Another
member of that little Presbytery had been loosed from his charge for in
temperance only three months before. In those times drinking usages were
fostered on solemn occasions ; and, " Do men gather grapes of thorns ?"
But not till after eleven years did the real crisis come. In 1794 Dum
barrow congregation, as appears from Alyth session-book, was soliciting
collections, "being engaged in an expensive repair of their kirk," and the
number of members did not exceed 120. Self-help was greatly needed, the
sum raised by seat rents being at the rate of is. gd. a year each on an
average. But the final development was now at hand. In August 1799
four of the male members brought before the Presbytery " a report of their
minister being from time to time overcome with drink." One instance he
had acknowledged, and they craved relief from the reproach under which
they laboured. But here, on the other hand, were 22 male and 30 female
members petitioning the Presbytery to oblige these brethren to prove what
they alleged. Mr Young, when questioned, denied both the charge and the
acknowledgment. He could not "freely say" that he was the worse of
drink on the occasion specified. But he had formerly confessed the offence
to five of his brethren, and he was now contradicting himself. The case was
referred to the Synod, and Mr Young was required to desist meanwhile from
the exercise of his ministry.
PRESBYTERY OF ARBROATH 67
At the Synod in October all turned on the accused having acknowledged
guilt and then retracted, and the Presbytery were ordered to censure him for
this. When Mr Young appeared before his brethren at next meeting he was
profuse in his expressions of regret for seeming prevarication, but "he never
intended to make them believe he was not the worse of drink" on the occa
sion specified. On being further interrogated he again veered round, and
declared that "he had gone beyond conscience already in what he had
acknowledged." It carried to Rebuke and Suspend, against which sentence
he protested, and appealed to the Synod. At a meeting of Presbytery in
February 1800 the game of hide-and-seek was resumed. It came to this
now that perhaps he might have been overcome with drink, but it did not
appear to him. For his inconsistency he owned himself "heartily sorry" ;
but next morning he told them that "his inconsistency was owing to in
disposition and inveiglement." Again the motion to Rebuke and Suspend
was carried, and again Mr Young protested and appealed. The Synod hav
ing confirmed the above sentence, he declined their authority, and returned
to Dumbarrow to exercise his ministry as before. The confusion in the
congregation now ended in a rupture, and the two parties seem to have been
nearly equal. Mr Young was deposed 23rd June 1800.
With Presbytery aid withdrawn, and his little congregation reduced to
half its numbers, Mr Young's stipend must have been reduced to a little
above zero, but an attempt by the other party to deprive him of the meeting
house came to nothing. In the latter part of his ministry he used to preach
on Sabbath forenoon at Uumbarrow and in the afternoon in a schoolroom
at Connonsyth, a place on the borders of Carmyllie and Inverkeillor parishes.
When he died cannot be ascertained, but it was later by several years than
1 8 10, the date given in Dr M'Kelvie's Annals and elsewhere. He applied in
August 1813 to be received into communion with the Constitutional Pres
bytery, but they went back over fourteen years, and wished to hear from him
what he thought of his conduct in denying what he had previously confessed.
In February 1814 they had a letter from him, but in the absence of Mr Aitken
of Kirriemuir, who was best acquainted with the case, consideration of the
contents was delayed. It tempts the suspicion that they did not care to be
troubled with him, especially as he had the merest remnant of a congregation
at his back. But at a meeting of Presbytery at Kirriemuir in July 1815
Mr Young appeared in person to be dealt with. What about the paper they
sent him one and a half years before bearing on certain parts of his former
conduct, with the request to have his mind thereon ? " To the best of his re
collection he had received no such communication from the Presbytery." On
hearing this they agreed to let him have a copy of the same to reflect on at
his leisure. In November 1816 the Presbytery appointed a day's supply to
Dumbarrow. Twice the same thing was repeated at intervals, and hence
forth all is blank. Mr Young, we may infer, was dead, and the congregation
too far down to be kept from extinction.
The church, left empty now, was converted into the farmhouse of what
is fitly called " Hillkirk of Dumbarrow." Of Mr Young's family a son, who
died in 1876, at an advanced age, was long parish teacher in Panbride.
Jervise in the Memorials of Angus and Mearns describes him as very con
servative in Church matters, and bitterly opposed to all innovations. It may
have been an Antiburgher element of character received by inheritance from
his father.
68 HISTORY OF U.P. CONGREGATIONS
MONTROSE, ST LUKE'S (ANTIBURGHER)
THE earliest notice of the Secession taking shape in the Mearns and the
northern part of Forfarshire is at Fettercairn in 1738. Then on iyth June
1740 there was an accession to the Associate Presbytery "from some people
in Montrose," and this resulted in a visit to that place by Messrs Wilson,
Moncrieff, and Thomas Mair on the last Wednesday of August, and the
observance of a Fast. The first regular supply we read of was on the first
Sabbath of December 1740, when Mr Adam Gib, then a probationer, offici
ated. In 1742 there is reference to an election of elders. In 1744 the
Seceders in Montrose and Dundee were looked on as forming one congrega
tion, and on aoth December of that year the meeting for a moderation was
held in Dundee. The members from Montrose nominated Mr John Swan-
ston for themselves, and Dundee Mr James Johnston, both of whom were
elected. The call to the former was signed by 22 persons, elders and others,
and adhered to by 45 who could not attend owing to distance. The design
was to make the charge collegiate, for the benefit of Montrose, the weaker
partner, though there were thirty miles between. The cause was referred to
the Synod, who laid aside both calls, considering that the coalescence could
not continue to mutual advantage. So Dundee and Montrose were dis
joined. At the breach in 1747 the great majority of the Montrose Seceders
took the Antiburgher side.
First Minister. — COLIN MACKIE, who seems to have come from within
the bounds of Elgin congregation. Ordained, 23rd October 1751. The
people, we find, applied to Ceres session more than a year before this for
help in erecting a place of worship, which guides to the time when the first
church was built. The cause did not prosper under its first minister. The
Presbytery minutes for 1759 disclose a scene of confusion at Montrose, the
minister along with a single elder sitting in judgment on parties charged
with speaking evil of him. The Presbytery enjoined Mr Mackie to beware
"of an overbearing disposition in the session, of marring the freedom of
members in speaking or voting, and of personal reflections in his doctrine."
A case which came before the Synod from Montrose in 1782 reveals the
same characteristics. Three elders elect had been objected to, but Mr Mackie
went straight on with the ordination, passing over several questions in the
formula, one of these being whether they had used any undue methods to
procure this call. The omission was scarcely accounted for by telling the
Presbytery, as Mr Mackie did, that "the day was dark, and that he wanted
his usual glasses."
In November 1784 the people were bent on securing a junior minister,
but though Mr Mackie concurred they found themselves baffled on attempt
ing the first move. In common with Perth, Dundee, and Kinclaven, they
went in for the Rev. James M'Ewan, but instead of coming up for a
moderation they complained to the Presbytery that Mr Mackie had blocked
their way by refusing to call a congregational meeting. Irritation now
became acute, and nothing remained for Mr Mackie but to retire. His
resignation was accepted, I4th March 1786, the congregation agreeing to
give him an annuity of ^25. The last half-yearly payment was made on
2nd January 1792. This is the nearest we can come to the date of his death.
In 1787 Mr David Williamson, from Abernethy church and Strathmiglo
parish, was called to succeed Mr Mackie, but the Synod, contrary to his
wishes, appointed him to Whitehaven. His is a name which has a place
in Dr M'Kerrow's list of Secession authors. In the early part of his ministry
he published " Lectures on Civil and Religious Liberty," bringing into com
parison the constitution of the two countries, France and England. His
PRESBYTERY OF ARBROATH 69
connection with Whitehaven ended on I5th March 1820 owing to differ
ences between him and a section of his people, not unaccompanied by moral
failure on his own part. He sailed for America, but caught cold on the
voyage, and died at New York, I3th May 1821, in the fifty-eighth year of
his age and thirty-fourth of his ministry.
Second Minister. — FREDERICK M'FARLANE, from Nicolson Street,
Edinburgh. In September 1787 the Synod appointed him to Montrose,
in preference to Craigend and Aberdeen (Belmont Street), but he openly
refused to submit, and the case came back to the Synod in April 1788.
Here, under pressure, he accepted, but the wheel had to describe another
round before the end was gained. After his trials were given in his objections
to Montrose came up as strong as ever. " He found it prejudicial to his
health," he said, " to preach in the place of worship there in its present
state." On 3rd September he was pointedly asked by the Provincial Synod
of Perth whether, if they fixed the day of ordination, he would submit, and
his reply was Yes. The 25th of the month was named, and on that day the
unpropitious bond was formed. The services were conducted in the Estab
lished church, as their own place of worship was undergoing repairs. A
gallery was put in, making the sittings 550, and the primitive-looking build
ing, with the little graveyard round it, was both "repaired and lifted about."
Mr M'Farlane's call carried only 46 (male) signatures. The stipend is not
recorded, but after deducting the ^25 a year to Mr Mackie, and the interest
on borrowed money, it cannot have been great. The chances of increase
were also lessened owing to the Burghers in Montrose having the obtaining
of a minister in near prospect. Two or three years after this the two parties
numbered 376 persons, young and old, within the parish.
In the beginning of 1790 the congregation of Edinburgh, vacant by
Mr Gib's death, applied under Synodical authority to Forfar Presbytery
for two of their number to supply their pulpit a day each, and named
Mr M'Farlane of Montrose for one of the days. Nothing emerged for a
year, but in January 1791 Mr M'Farlane was carried over other two
candidates proposed. Keen feeling was stirred, and the parties being
about equally balanced, the Synod refused to give effect to the call.
Mr M'Farlane's supporters now obtained a severance from their brethren,
and built a church in the Potterrow. In March 1793 they called their former
favourite, with only one dissentient voice, but the Synod, by 41 votes to 5,
refused to translate. This was followed in December by a second call, more
numerously signed, and now the scales were nearly equal, there being 24
in favour and 26 against. Writhing under a sense of wrong, Mr M'Farlane
sent a letter to the Moderator, throwing up his charge at Montrose. Had
proper tenderness, he said, been shown to his friends in Edinburgh, they
would not have been in a state of rebellion against the Synod, and he would
not have been tempted to risk health, and perhaps life, by casting in his lot
with them. But the Synod pulled him sharply up, and the letter was with
drawn.
There was a calming down no\v, the understanding being that Mr
M'Farlane's friends in Edinburgh would try once more. Accordingly, a third
call was laid on the Presbytery's table in March 1795, but only to be laid
aside. Against this decision a protest was taken, but it was unanimously
dismissed by the Synod. Mr M'Farlane, who had previously withdrawn
from attendance at meetings of Presbytery, now sent in his resignation, and
broke away from the Antiburgher connection ; but all we know of his subse
quent movements shrinks into little compass. It is certain that he removed to
Edinburgh, where he began to conduct Sabbath services in a hall provided
for him by a large party from Potterrow church. On 25th September 1795
yo HISTORY OF U.P. CONGREGATIONS
the Synod deposed him from office and membership "on account of his
having deserted his profession and connected himself with a society in
a state of separation from the Synod." In the end, as comes out under the
heading of Potterrow, Edinburgh, Mr M'Farlane emigrated to the United
States. All I have met with bearing on his after history is a statement in
an American periodical that "he was located in Long Island, and adopted in
part the profession of the Friends." When in Montrose he married a
daughter of the Rev. Thomas Bennett, Ceres. During the vacancy of two
and a half years which followed in Montrose, the congregation called
Mr James Methven, whom the Synod appointed to Balmullo.
Third Minister.— ARCHIBALD WILLISON, from Dennyloanhead. Forfar
people applied on the same day for a moderation, " but, as it was believed
this was for the same object, the petition was laid aside." The call was
signed by 41 male members, and Mr Willison was ordained, I4th March 1798.
On 22nd May 1804 he resigned, alleging that for the suitable maintenance of
his family he required a stipend of ^100, and he seems to have received no
more than ^80. " Some in the congregation," he also alleged, " maintained
doctrines and principles in direct opposition to the standards of the Church."
This may relate to Congregationalism which, we know, had been asserting
itself in Montrose. "The church consisted of only about 16 members at
first, but about 12 from the Secession congregation were added at once."
Mr Willison's demission was met by a minute of the congregation, to the
effect that it would not be for his comfort or their edification that he should
continue among them. Meanwhile, Mr Willison had removed to Denny, his
native place, where he owned some property, and at next meeting he had
a letter forward, intimating that he was not to return. On 25th June 1804
he was loosed from his charge. What remains of Mr Willison belongs to
the history of Birsay congregation, Orkney.
Fourth Minister. — ANDREW WILSON, a native of Dunning parish, but
brought up at Cairneyhill. The number who signed the call was much as
before, 39 male members and 14 male adherents. The stipend was ^80 in
all. At three successive meetings Mr Wilson refused to accept, but on the
last occasion the congregation, though distrusting their resources, agreed to
come up ^10. He still had difficulties, arising chiefly from being required
to give three services each Sabbath, but he at last accepted, and was or
dained, i6th April 1806. There were tokens of progress now, and in 1812
the people were furnishing Mr Wilson with a house, in addition to the ^90
of stipend. In 1836 the communicants were about 150, of whom all, except
5 or 6, were parishioners. The sittings were let at rates so low that the
yearly income from this source was only ,£35. The debt on the property
was ,£^6. In April 1844 the congregation got supply of sermon, with the
view of choosing a colleague to Mr Wilson. The first they fixed on
was Mr Robert Dick Duncan, but Wishart Church, Dundee, supervened,
and was accepted. The money arrangements were that Mr Wilson should
receive ,£75, and the junior minister ^100.
Fifth Minister.— ALEXANDER ANDERSON, M.A., from Perth (North).
Ordained, I2th August 1845, but the collegiate relation lasted little more
than a year. On 29th December 1846 Mr Wilson handed in to the Presby
tery the resignation of his charge, assigning as a reason what had passed
between him and three of his elders at the close of public worship on a
recent Sabbath. Inquiry by a committee brought out that the elders had
spoken very plainly to Mr Wilson about the attack which he had just made
on his colleague's doctrine, and told him, " if such things were to go on,
they would not make the sacrifices they had done for the support of two
ministers." Mr Wilson, on the other hand, alleged that his doctrine had
PRESBYTERY OF ARBROATH 71
been attacked first of all by his colleague, a charge which the latter re
pudiated. The committee proposed that the two ministers abstain in future
from all reference to each other's doctrine, but while Mr Anderson assented
Mr Wilson adhered to his resignation. The congregation reported their
deep regret that anything had occurred to mar the peace and harmony
which had prevailed among them during Mr Wilson's lengthened ministry.
They had hoped the obtaining of a colleague would increase his comfort,
but now they did not intend to oppose his resignation. At next meeting
of Presbytery Mr Wilson was absent, but on 2nd March 1847 he appeared,
but declared he could not accept the recommendation to abstain from all
public reference to his colleague's doctrine, and it carried to accept the
demission. Mr Wilson then intimated that he felt it his duty to withdraw
from the United Secession Church both as a minister and a member.
After this he entered into fellowship with the Free Church, and continued in
that connection till the end. He died at Montrose, i6th April 1854, in the
eighty-fourth year of his age. His son, of the same name, was minister of
the E.P. Church, Wark, Northumberland, 1862-79.
Mr Anderson was now sole pastor, and the congregation appears to have
escaped unharmed from the turmoil. In 1851 the old church was displaced
by another, with 650 sittings, built on the same site, but taking in the little
burying-ground. The entire cost was .£1250. There was ,£400 of debt
resting on the property in 1859, but it was cleared off a few years afterwards
with the aid of ^100 from the Liquidation Board. Mr Anderson's stipend
at this time was ^120, but there was now to be a supplement of £20 from
the central fund. In 1865 the congregation reached .£150, and became
self-supporting. In June 1876 Mr Anderson required rest for six weeks ;
but the long rest was drawing on. He died on igth August, in the sixty-first
year of his age and thirty-second of his ministry. Mr Anderson, as the
Presbytery minute testifies, was a man of superior gifts and acquirements,
and in his student days at St Andrews he was specially strong in the de
partment of mathematics. He was also very pronounced in his Voluntary
ism, as became one who, like Principal Hutton, was brought up in Perth
under the ministry of Dr Young. In 1870, when the Union movement was
going on, he published a pamphlet, entitled " The Voluntary Principle Vindi
cated : a Criticism on the Articles of Agreement," which, owing partly to its
hard, logical style, obtained less attention than it deserved.
Sixth Minister. — JOHN GOOLD, son of the Rev. Marshall N. Goold of
Dumfries. The membership was almost exactly 200, and they were pre
pared to make the stipend ,£200. Mr Goold was also called to Mordaunt
Street, now Dalmarnock Road, Glasgow (Burra Isles, Shetland, may be
kept out of account). Ordained, I3th February 1877. In three years the
stipend was raised to ^220, with ,£30 in name of house rent, and ^10 for
sacramental expenses. On 2$th July 1882 Mr Goold accepted a call to
Elgin Street, Glasgow. The communion roll had now risen to 270.
Seventh Minister. — DAVID B. CROOM, M.A., son of the Rev. David
M. Croom, Lauriston Place, Edinburgh. The call was signed by 236
members, and the ordination took place, 2ist February 1883. It was
deemed proper at this altered stage to pitch the figures somewhat lower and
make the stipend ,£230 in all, but in the course of some years it rose to
,£300. In 1892 the trustees of Miss Joan Kerr, Sanquhar, where Mr Groom's
father had been minister, handed over ^2000 to the Synod's Debt Liquida
ting Fund, but stipulated that ,£1000 should go to Mill Street Church,
Montrose. Thus a debt of ^100 was cancelled, and the property improved
at a cost of ,£735, with the prospect of the whole sum being required.
Owing to a painful ailment, Mr Croom, much to the regret of his people,
72 HISTORY OF U.P. CONGREGATIONS
surrendered his charge on 25th October 1898, and since then he has only
been able to resume pulpit service occasionally. The congregation now
called Mr Alexander M. Wright, but, owing to want of harmony, the call
was not proceeded with.
Eighth Minister. — ROBERT F. LOCKHART, from Paisley (Abbey Close).
Ordained, 4th October 1899. The membership at the end of the year was
329, and the stipend ^300.
MONTROSE, JOHN STREET (BURGHER)
A FEW of the Seceders in Montrose separated from their brethren at the
breach in 1747, and in June of the following year they applied for sermon to
the Burgher Presbytery of Dunfermline, when Mr Johnstone of Dundee was
recommended to give them a Sabbath as soon as practicable. This little
party had one elder at their head but no session, and hence a case of
discipline among them had to be dealt with by the Presbytery, and Mr John-
stone was to rebuke the offender " when he shall have occasion to be in that
corner." " The Societies of Brechin and Montrose," now begin to figure
in the Burgher records, sermon being kept up at one or other of these
places at varying intervals and in nearly equal proportions. After 1761, when
the congregation of Tough (now Lynturk) was formed, the general arrange
ment was for preachers to supply a Sabbath at Montrose or Brechin on
their way to and from the north, but in the end of 1767 these "Societies,"
disappear from the Presbytery minutes.
After a blank of sixteen years sermon was appointed anew to Montrose
on 2ist June 1784, but not now along with Brechin. In September 1787
the Synod recommended congregations to aid them in removing part of
their debt, which indicates that the meeting-house was already built. In
May 1788 a call was brought up from Montrose to the Rev. John Kyle
of Kinross, and in a few months it was followed by another, but the trans
lation was in each case refused. These calls were signed, the one by 38
members and the other by 40, but the people could not engage for more than
^55 of stipend, with a house, till their debt was lightened.
First Minister. — JOHN KING, from Beith. He was brought up in the
Antiburgher congregation there, but about the close of his Arts course
"he left his profession " and joined the Relief. However, in January 1787
he appeared before the Antiburgher Presbytery of Glasgow and acknow
ledged that, while his mind was embarrassed about the Lifter controversy,
he had been drawn away from his steadfastness, but he now wished to be
restored, with the view of studying divinity at Whitburn. Though a letter
was read in his favour from Mr Mitchell, his minister, the Presbytery re
buked him, and ordered the sentence to be intimated to Beith congregation.
This severity overtaxed endurance, and in July he obtained admission to the
Burgher Hall, and, having already attended the theological classes in
Glasgow University for two sessions, he was ready for licence in the end of
1788, and was ordained at Montrose, 26th May 1790. Mr King's experiences
were fitted to liberalise him, so that in 1797 his church and pulpit were
opened to the " Missionary Preachers," the Haldanes. The contrast
in liberality between the Burgher and Antiburgher congregations of
Montrose may partially account for the former shooting ahead in numbers
and prosperity. A new church, with sittings for 750, was built in 1824 at
an outlay of ^iioo. From a touch of description in Hay's "History of
Montrose " we picture Mr King as a minister of plain exterior going his
rounds of pastoral duty among a plain and much-attached people. No
PRESBYTERY OF ARBROATH 73
appeal or case of discipline came up to the Presbytery from Montrose
session during his whole incumbency. He died, i;th May 1827, in the
sixty-sixth year of his age and thirty-seventh of his ministry. His son,
afterwards Ur King of Greyfriars, Glasgow, was at this time in the middle of
his theological course.
Second Minister.— JAMES LILLIE, from Kelso (First). Some were
against going forward, and the call was signed by only 132 members, the
stipend being .£120, without a house. Ordained, nth March 1829. Of Mr
Lilhe's characteristics we read : " He was a man of great abilities, and
highly educated ; he was very honest and outspoken ; but he was positive,
combative, resolute, and almost reckless, sometimes to the amusement,
often to the regret of his friends, and generally to the disadvantage of him
self." Voluntaryism he made a burning question, and the temperance cause
he championed with untempered zeal. In a few years John Street got
weakened through one family after another withdrawing, and on 27th
February 1833 Mr Lillie's resignation was accepted. The congregation
expressed regret at the step he had taken, but for himself he declared he
stood inflexibly to his purpose. In 1835 he emigrated to the United States,
where he was a minister, first in the United Presbyterian Church, then in
the Dutch Church, then in the Presbyterian Church, and then he joined the
Baptists. He also held a professor's chair, first in Wisconsin, and then in
Upper Canada. Next, he returned to this country, studied medicine in
London, took his diploma, and began to practise. He was, says Dr
Scouller, " a man of noble presence, a grand preacher, and a man of ripe
and varied culture, but too restless to be successful." Besides the degree of
M.D. he had that of D.D., presumably from some American college. He
died at Kansas, United States, on 7th October 1875, aged seventy-five.
Third Minister.— HENRY HYSLOP, from Annan. Ordained, 2ist January
1834. The funds had suffered during the late pastorate, and the stipend was
reduced now to ^100, but in 1835 it rose to ,£115, and in 1859 it was £145.
In 1836 the communicants were reported as increasing at the rate of 20
a year, and the entire number was 325, of whom about a dozen were from the
parishes of Logic-Pert, Dun, and St Cyrus. The debt on the church was in
course of being reduced, but it was still over ^600. In the beginning of
1877 the state of Mr Hyslop's health required him to withdraw from active
duty, and in view of this the congregation decided to give him a yearly
allowance of £70, an arrangement with which he expressed his entire satis'-
faction. On 6th March 1877 he was relieved of all responsibility, though
retaining the status of senior minister.
Fourth Minister.— JAMES W. HAY, from St Vincent Street, Glasgow.
Ordained as Mr Hyslop's colleague and successor, I3th November 1877.
The call was signed by 286 out of a total membership of 300, and the stipend
was to be .£150, augmented by ^10 of supplement, a share in the Surplus
Fund, and ^20 from the Board in name of house rent. In 1879 the people
undertook ^160, and a year later they came up to ,£180. Mr Hyslop, who
had removed to Langholm after his retirement, died, 3rd October 1880, in the
seventy-third year of his age and forty-seventh of his ministerial life. A
volume of his sermons was printed for private circulation soon after his
death. The Rev. John Thomson of Campbeltown was a son-in-law of Mr
Hyslop. The ^70 which the congregation had been paying to the senior
minister was now transferred to Mr Hay, making ,£250 in all. In 1882 a
commodious manse was finished at a cost of ^1450, of which the Board paid
^350 and the people raised ^iioo. The present stipend, along with the
manse, is ,£210, and the membership is a few units over 300.
74 HISTORY OF U.P. CONGREGATIONS
MONTROSE, KNOX'S CHURCH (UNITED PRESBYTERIAN)
THIS congregation originated in a territorial mission which had been
carried on in Castle Street, Montrose, for many years, in connection with
Free St John's Church. On I2th October 1858 a petition was laid before
the U.P. Presbytery of Arbro'ath from a body of people worshipping in the
Thistle Hall under the care of Mr Campbell, a probationer of the Free
Church. In the preceding March the Mission Committee of St John's
had attempted to remove Mr Campbell, but the people rallied round him,
and now he and they had resolved to seek admission into the United
Presbyterian Church. On 7th December a committee which had inquired
into the state of the communion roll reported favourably, and it was
decided to constitute the petitioners into a congregation. At next meeting,
on 8th February 1859, it was reported that three elders had been ordained,
and that a building in a suitable situation had been bought and fitted up
as a hall for public worship.
First Minister. — ALEXANDER CAMPBELL, a native of Caithness-shire.
Admitted to the status of a preacher by the Synod in May 1859, and
ordained, ist November of that year. The call was signed by 85 com
municants and 75 ordinary hearers, and the stipend was ,£90 a year from
the people and ^20 from the Home Board. Mr Campbell was now in his
fortieth year, and before commencing his studies for the ministry he had
been engaged as a teacher in Edinburgh under the auspices of Tolbooth
Free Church. He had at last found a sphere of Christian activity, where
he was to labour for thirty-three years. The severance from the Free
Church left dregs of bitterness behind it, and the Rev. William Nixon,
minister of Free St John's, subjected himself by his utterances to an action
for defamation before the sheriff of Forfar, with damages and costs. The
present church, which accommodates 550, was opened on Sabbath, 8th
May 1864, — a point which was not reached without friction. The Free
Church had a mission church organised in the same district, with a minister
ordained over it, and it was deemed unseemly that Mr Campbell's con
gregation should have its centre in the immediate neighbourhood, but
after building operations were begun it was too late to arrest procedure.
The entire cost was to be ,£900, and the Mission Board promised a grant
of ^100 on condition that the people should raise ,£500, which would
leave only ^300 of debt. Energy and perseverance on the part of a
minister can effect much, and so the difficulties were surmounted. In
1868 the funds yielded ,£115 for stipend, which a supplement from the
Board raised to ,£150. In 1874 there was a membership of nearly 250,
and the stipend was made up to ,£167, los. In the beginning of 1882
Mr Campbell reported that by the aid of friends his church was free of
debt, and in October 1883 he expressed the wish to dispense with all
assistance from central funds, and after being conversed with he thanked
the Presbytery for their kindly interest, but adhered to his purpose.
The communion roll was now within a few units of 300, and the people
paid him ,£150.
Five years before this, when the Board wished to press on the con
gregation the need for greater liberality, Mr Campbell wrote declining to
receive a deputation, and gave as his reason that he believed his people
were already doing their utmost, and that too much urgency was fitted to
do harm. Rather than have them interfered with in that way he would
dispense with all grants in aid. At this time, in addition to his regular
mission work, Mr Campbell was actively engaged evangelising among
foreign sailors at Montrose, Dundee, and other seaports. He conducted
PRESBYTERY OF ARBROATH 75
ninety-eight meetings with this neglected class in 1877 alone, and the
Presbytery were wishful to have his income raised to ,£200, exclusive of
house rent, but it never exceeded ^180 in all. Mr Campbell died, I2th
March 1892, in the seventy-second year of his age and thirty- third of his
ministry.
Second Minister. — GEORGE P. MACFIK, M.A., from Glengarnock.
Ordained, 3ist August 1892. As usually happens with congregations of
this class, when the minister whose watchful care kept them together is
removed, there was a great reduction in numbers during the vacancy.
The membership at the close of 1899 was 190, and the sum contributed
for stipend was ^120.
JOHNSHAVEN (ANTIBURGHER)
IN Johnshaven the Antiburgher cause originated about the year 1763, as
appears from the first baptism having been on 27th May 1764. The
parish minister had abolished the reading of the line in the service of
praise, and this measure, as his successor explained in the Old Statistical
History, gave great offence, the plea being that it kept those who could
not read from joining in that part of public worship. Finding their re
monstrances vain, "they abandoned the church, built one for themselves
at Johnshaven (the principal village of Benholme parish), and invited a
minister of the Secession to settle among them." Their first church
consisted of two dwelling-houses with the dividing wall removed.
First Minister. — DAVID HARPER, a licentiate of Earlston Presbytery.
Ordained, 22nd February 1769. Johnshaven being in a remote part of the
bounds, there were only four ministers present. The Presbytery of Perth
stretched at that time from Montrose to Crieff, and from Burntisland to
Elgin and Nigg, so that absenteeism at that season was to be excused.
Up till then the Secession had a very slender hold in Kincardineshire,
and, according to the above authority, all the parishioners of Benholme
belonged to the Established Church, except a few Episcopalians. But
after Johnshaven was organised there was a gathering in from wide
distances. In the beginning of Mr Harper's ministry one elder had the
parishes of Kinneff, Arbuthnot, and Bervie ; another, the greater part
of St Cyrus ; a third, part of Benholme and what remained of St Cyrus ;
and a fourth, the other part of Benholme and also Garvock. At first
there were only 54 members, of whom a few may have been previously
connected with the Antiburgher congregation of Montrose, but there was
now a large increase. From the session minutes we reckon up 48 accessions
within the first six months, and in the following year there were 29. The
family which tenanted the farm of Brotherston rendered important service
at this time. The husband was one of the elders, and, in view of Mr
Harper's first communion, his wife presented the congregation with a supply
of tokens and a set of sacred vessels. But in Church life what displace
ments time makes among the pillars ! Thirteen years afterwards trouble
arose in connection with this leading man, and the Presbytery was appealed
to. He was first granted a certificate, with the view of joining the sister
church at Montrose, but at a later period he had to be excluded from
Church fellowship altogether.
In 1785 affairs were going back, and the non-payment of seat rents may
have betokened ebbing vitality. When the pulpit loses tone everything is
sure to go wrong. In May 1788 a report came before Forfar Presbytery
that Mr Harper was addicted to intemperance. He pleaded guilty, and was
76 HISTORY OF U.P. CONGREGATIONS
rebuked. On i3th April 1789 he came forward with his demission, assigning
as the reason that he was determined to stay at Lauriston, a village in the
parish of St Cyrus, as Johnshaven did not agree with his health ; but this
arrangement displeased the people, so that his comfort was gone. Com
missioners offering no objection, the demission was accepted. Being
questioned as to matters of greater moment, they signified that Mr Harper
had given fresh occasion for scandal. It proved to have been a case of
flagrant drunkenness in the face of day. At next meeting the poor man
made humble acknowledgments, and was laid under suspension, but it
carried by the Moderator's casting-vote not to intimate the sentence from
Johnshaven pulpit. So far as indications go, he resided at Lauriston, two or
three miles out from Johnshaven, till his death, the date of which cannot now
be ascertained ; but it appears from the register of Benholme parish that he
had a wife and family. It would have been satisfactory to know that he
attended his old place of worship and was in membership there, but infor
mation to this effect is not to be had.
Second Minister. — JOHN MURRAY, from Glasgow (Duke Street). Or
dained, 1 2th April 1791. From the diary of his old fellow-student, the Rev.
Samuel Gilfillan of Comrie, we learn that Mr Murray had to push his own
way at college, and that " he taught a school in an unhealthy room, and
acquired knowledge at the midnight lamp." The call to Johnshaven gave
41 male members, and the Old Statistical History puts down the adherents
in the parish at about 100. In the neighbouring parishes the Secession
seems to have been rather losing ground, though St Cyrus was still sending
in fifteen families. The whole membership we cannot reckon at more than
120, and, whatever the excellences of the young minister were, they did not
keep down discord. In 1802 irritation arose through the treasurer's books
being in confusion, with ^35 in dispute, and through Mr Murray taking part
in the investigation. The Synod about the same time sent him to Orkney,
the more readily, perhaps, that he had a connection with Stronsay manse by
his sister's marriage. But complaints were made that he went away without
meeting with the session ; that instead of writing them during his absence
he sent a letter to a member of another community, and that after his return
he preached a sermon in which he made his own people contrast unfavour
ably with the Orcadians.
In the midst of the turmoil three of the elders resigned, and on loth
August 1803 Mr Murray tabled his demission. He explained that the
treasurer, after resigning office, "set himself to undermine the credit and
influence of his minister." He stated further that this man's circle of
relationship took in one-fourth of the congregation, a peculiarity marking
Johnshaven as a fishing village. That party had most weight in money
matters, and they had withdrawn their support from ordinances, and at a
recent communion only 13 male members took part out of a total of 32. On
1 2th October 46 members petitioned against Mr Murray's removal, while
1 8 men intimated that, unless this was to be the issue, "they would not be
bound for one penny in name of stipend." The demission was accepted,
but the Presbytery laid these 18 men aside from communion. They will
reappear when we reach the origin and history of the Burgher congregation.
By these bitter contentions the cause was now " covered with great odium,"
and the session was reduced to one acting member. The Synod at their
next meeting made Johnshaven a grant of ^30. Mr Murray they also
allowed ^20, and sent him back to Orkney, where they might expect him
to find a profitable sphere of labour. But Carnoustie was to be his field
instead.
Third Minister. — WILLIAM CAIRNS, M. A., from Duke Street Glasgow.
PRESBYTERY OF ARBROATH 77
Prior to this Mr Cairns was called to Dublin, but he firmly refused to accept.
Johnshaven call showed a better muster of names than was to be expected :
" 19 male members and an adherence of 43 female members, also 65 males
and 63 females not in full communion, but who usually attend." The stipend
promised was ^60, with manse and garden. Mr Cairns was ordained, 2nd
March 1808, but he craved to have it marked that he went under the
impression that it was a hazardous situation. For nearly seven years Mr
Cairns was kept in this humble position, but from the stipend being ^80
in 1812 it is to be inferred that there was progress made. At a meeting
of session on igth September 1815 he signified to the five elders present that
he intended to resign, "being elected for a professor in the new academy,
Belfast." No sympathy had the worthy men with their minister's readiness
to accept promotion, and indeed, after a good deal of reasoning and con
versation, they testified " their disapprobation of his conduct." The
congregation when they met showed worthier feelings, agreeing to pay up
the stipend, and over against some repairs he had made in the manse he
was to retain ^3, which he had received for the reading of books in the
library, "of which he had the management." They parted on friendly terms,
and on I2th October he gave in his demission to the Synod, which was
accepted, and no doubt with all good wishes.
Dr M'Cosh in his " History of Scottish Philosophy" says that Mr Cairns,
who long enjoyed the degree of LL.D., was chosen to the chair in Belfast
College "from his known intellectual ability." He further states that as Pro
fessor of Logic and Belles-Lettres "he helped to produce a fine taste among
the ministers of religion and the educated men of Ulster." It is specially
gratifying to be informed that in this high position his interest in evangelical
religion remained unchanged. Dr Cairns died, 2ist April 1848, in the sixty-
fourth year of his age. The book by which he is best known is his "Treatise
on Moral Freedom." His gifts must have made themselves known in student
days, since, with nothing from his pen, they could never have emerged into
distinction from their hiding-place at Johnshaven.
The congregation he left lingered on for other five years, and in 1818
they called Mr William Hannah, afterwards of Arbroath, but he firmly
declined, owing to the smallness of their numbers and the inadequacy
of the stipend. The Union of 1820 was now in prospect, and the two
congregations in Johnshaven behoved under the pressure of necessity to
melt into one. Particulars will come up under the United Church.
JOHNSHAVEN (BURGHER)
OUT of the turmoil in the Antiburger Church in 1803 this congregation took
shape. The resignation of Mr Murray was accepted on 27th December of
that year, but the hostile party went off to the Burgher Presbytery of Perth
for sermon all the same. The Antiburgher Presbytery of Forfar had laid
1 8 of their number under suspension from membership, and that was
enough to alienate them from that section of the Secession for ever. The
Burgher Presbytery of Perth were in doubts about how to treat the ap
plication, and a letter from Mr King of Montrose, explaining the situation,
did not quite clear their way. But at next meeting, on 27th December,
misgivings were got over, and a petition for supply signed by 74 persons
was granted. In June 1804 a paper of accession was given in with 34
names. There was an election of elders before this, but most of those
chosen belonged to the 18 who were under censure by the other Presbytery.
This again involved a pause, but nothing more. In April 1805 the Synod
78 HISTORY OF U.P. CONGREGATIONS
in answer to a petition for aid in view of building a place of worship,
allowed them ^20, with this proviso that the money was to be paid back
should the building "come to be used for other purposes." When finished
it accommodated 330 people.
In 1807 they called Mr Robert M'Laurin, but at the Synod they had only
43 members' names to show, and Coldingham with 271 was preferred.
First Minister. — THOMAS TROTTER, a native of Lauder, but brought up
under the ministry of Mr Johnston, Ecclefechan. Johnshaven being pre
ferred to New Deer by the Presbytery, he was ordained, I3th April 1808,
exactly six weeks after Mr Cairns of the other church. Here now were these
young men, the one twenty-four and the other twenty-six, planted down in the
village of Johnshaven, each of them over a section of a congregation which,
when united, had scarcely 90 members. In numbers they were not un
equally balanced, but the money power was with the Burgher party. Mr
Trotter, like Mr Cairns, is said to have been "a man of great mental power
and extensive knowledge," less scholarly by much, but in the pulpit perhaps
quite his equal. Both were victims of position, but though for the one a
great door and effectual was opened, there was no similar outlet for the
other. Mr Trotter held on fully two years after his brother was raised to a
professor's chair, and then resignation became imperative. Stagnation of
trade came in the rear of the French war, and the congregation, weak before,
got weaker still. On 2nd March 1818 he was loosed from his charge, with
the view ot emigrating to America. His people said they would have done
everything in their power to make him comfortable, but believing that any
attempt of theirs to retain him would be vain they remained passive. In
Nova Scotia Mr Trotter became minister of a far-scattered congregation,
with its centre in Antigonish, Presbytery of Pictou. The most distant ex
tremities were from thirty-six to forty miles apart, at no station had he more
than 40 hearers, " and the number of communicants, taking the whole
together, amounted only to 15." In 1834 he reported that they numbered
80 or 90, but the stipend was small, uncertain, and paid in agricultural pro
duce. To provide for his own, he had still, like eight or nine of his brethren,
to engage in farming. But he held on, " highly esteemed and respected," till
1851, when he had a paralytic stroke. He recovered so far as to preach
once a day till 1853, when his successor was inducted. He died, 2oth April
1855, in the seventy-fourth year of his age and forty-eighth of his ministry.
After this Johnshaven Burgher congregation, like the other, made an un
successful endeavour to have the vacancy filled up. In January 1819 they
called Mr William Nicol, and the settlement bade fair to become an
accomplished fact, but when the Presbytery met at Johnshaven on the day
fixed for his ordination Mr Nicol was not present. A call had come out in
his favour from Airdrie, and between the two places there was no com
parison, so he stopped short, and refused to go a step further. The
Presbytery ultimately set the call aside, and referred the case to the Synod,
where a slight utterance of dissatisfaction with Mr Nicol's conduct sufficed.
But this disappointment may have done something to prepare the people for
the amalgamation with their Antiburgher brethren, which was to come on
by-and-by.
JOHNSHAVEN (UNITED SECESSION)
WHEN the Union of 1820 was drawing on the two congregations in Johns-
haven were in the mood for coming together again. In December 1819 the
Antiburgher party intimated that they could not pay for much more than half-
PRESBYTERY OF ARBROATH 79
supply and in April 1820 the Burgher party wished preachers for only the first
and second Sabbaths of each month. In September 1820, when the roll of
the United Synod was made up, Johnshaven was entered as one congrega
tion. Calculating from the signatures to recent calls, we make the com
munion roll at the junction point 140 or 150. Had the stipends promised,
£6$ and ^75, been likewise put together, they would have made a sub
stantial figure, but these sums implied large drafts upon future possibilities.
The joint burden of debt amounted to ^357, but the sale of the Antiburgher
property brought £170. Had all gone well otherwise, difficulties would
have been surmounted, but the time had not yet come.
First Minister. — WALTER SCOTT, from Selkirk (Burgher). Ordained, i8th
November 1823. Entered the hall thirteen years before this, and had been
long a teacher. The stipend named was ,£90, but a few months brought
the funds of the church to the verge of collapse. In April 1824 the elders
requested advice in relation to Mr Scott. Shortly after he was settled " a
weakness appeared about him," the attendance had fallen off, and the seat
rents had come down by more than a half. Mr Scott, who seems to have
been quite submissive, gave in his resignation on 29th June, and it was at
once accepted. From this time till 1829 his name appeared regularly on
the list of probationers. He then settled clown as a teacher in Edinburgh,
was connected with Bristo Church, and died, 3rd July 1837. This early
and entire failure must have lowered the general cause in Johnshaven, even
though there were no moral elements involved. It also increased their
debt by some ,£60.
Second Minister. — JOHN LIDDELL, from Dennyloanhead. Ordained for
Nova Scotia, and admitted to Amherst in that province on 22nd October
1817. Returned to this country n 1820, and had his name put on the pro
bationer list in May 1822. Inducted to Johnshaven, i6th November 1825.
The stipend was to be ^100, with a manse, but for this the people claimed
three services each Sabbath, In 1827 the membership was 135, and in
1837 the New Statistical History gives forty-five families within the parish of
» Benholme alone. In 1838 Mr Liddell gave in his demission, owing mainly
to the existence of dissensions within the congregation. The observance
of a third communion in the year, without the usual accessories had caused
dispeace ; but there had been alienation of feeling on other grounds, and
Mr LiddelPs resignation was accepted on 24th April 1838. He then re
moved to Denny parish, and had his name on the preachers' list during the
remainder of his days. He died at Wardhead, near Bonnybridge, where he
owned a small property, 2Oth June 1844, after a short illness, in the twenty-
seventh year of his ministry.
In February 1839 the session drew up a statement of their affairs for
transmission to the Debt Liquidating Board. Their late minister, they told,
was engaged to preach three times each Sabbath, but he only gave them
five services in the fortnight, and this ought to have abated the stipend by
one-sixth, but they gave him the full ,£100 for seven years, and ,£90 the
remaining five. Still though he got ,£150 too much he claimed other .£50
to make up for the five years' reduction, but on the Presbytery's advice
renounced his claim. Then it was announced in the Montrose Review that
they were bankrupt, and the elders were afraid the bills for borrowed money
would not be renewed. In answer to this appeal the Board promised a
grant of ^60, provided the congregation made up ^100, and they would add
other ^50 if an equal sum were raised the second year. Both conditions
were met, and in 1841 the debt of ^250 was got rid of. A rumour, how
ever, reached headquarters that the money required to secure the second
grant had been borrowed, and the Presbytery were asked to institute in-
8o HISTORY OF U.P. CONGREGATIONS
quiries. The rest may be given in the treasurer's words. " He made the
following proposal at a meeting of their congregation — viz. that he would
himself advance the whole ^50 on condition that 50 of them would agree
to pay him a penny a week for five years ; that he would ask no obligation
beyond their bare promise ; that to this they readily acceded, and more
than the number he proposed had given their promise, so that in two years
he had received from them ^30, and the whole sum would be discharged
to him in another year and a half." The artifice might scarcely be con
sistent with the understanding of the Board, but it was conceived and
wrought out in a way creditable to all concerned.
In June 1841 the congregation called Mr William Barrie, but opposi
tion took form at the bar of the Presbytery. The call was sustained, but
Mr Barrie was engaged to go to Canada, and the Committee on Foreign
Missions intimated to him that they would oppose his settlement in Johns-
haven or any other part of Scotland. Mr Barrie was a preacher of ten
years' standing, and into his forties. He was from Edenshead, and of
humble origin. Report bore that diffidence marred his public appearances,
and kept him on the probationer list. It is remarkable that, after it was too
late, openings came both at Midmar and at Johnshaven. But he had
special aptitude for "enduring hardness" among the settlers in Canada,
West. On 4th January 1843 he was ordained at Eramosa, and on the day
following at Nichol, the latter place to have every third Sabbath. His field
of labour, he said, was as large as the three Lothians, and he had ten times
more travelling than when he was a preacher in Scotland. Mr Barrie
became a prominent man in the Canadian Church, and received the degree
of D.D. from Monmouth College, United States. He retired from the active
duties of the pastorate on 28th May 1877, and died, 28th July 1879, m the
eightieth year of his age and thirty-seventh of his ministry.
Third Minister. — GEORGE WALKER, from Greenock (now Trinity
Church). Ordained, 3ist March 1840, and located at Muirkirk as a mis
sionary. Johnshaven congregation having asked the Presbytery to secure
them a hearing of Mr Walker, he was called in due time, and inducted,
27th October 1842. On 22nd March 1848 he resigned, as he felt "there
was a cry for help from abroad." The congregation deeply deplored his
resolution to leave them, but they knew that further pleadings were in vain,
and the demission was accepted. " They had surmounted many difficulties,
and Mr Walker had laboured five and a half years with acceptableness, and
also with appearance of success, particularly among the young, in which
part of his work he much delighted." He sailed with his family for Nova
Scotia, under the auspices of the Mission Board, but passed over to Canada,
and was settled in New Glasgow, where he died, minister-emeritus, ist
February 1884, in the eightieth year of his age and forty-fourth of his
ministry.
Fourth Minister. — JOHN COOPER, from Broughton Place, Edinburgh.
A year before this they called Mr John Primrose Miller, who accepted
Carnoustie. The stipend was to be ^75, with a manse, which they purchased
that year. There were about 120 names on the communion roll. Mr
Cooper, who had declined Walker two years before, was ordained, 3oth
October 1849 > but ill-fortune was again upon their track. On I4th February
1854 he was loosed from his charge, and laid under suspension for "culpable
imprudence." The sentence was removed at the meeting in April, and on
6th June he received a certificate of ministerial standing. After a brief
sojourn in America he went to Australia, where he was admitted to Geelong
on 2gth August 1855, the stipend being ,£400, "and the place of worship
one of the finest ecclesiastical buildings in the town." In the end of 1857,
PRESBYTERY OF ARBROATH 81
the majority of the people being unfavourable to the broad Presbyterian
Union, he left, and in 1859 became minister at Rokewood. Thence he was
translated to Coburg in 1866, where he also held a Government appointment
as prison chaplain, and remained till his death in December 1885, in the
thirty-seventh year of his ministry. He published several works, of which
Dr Robert Hamilton says : " Some criticisms have rated these productions
very high for their intellectual ability and metaphysical grasp." Such titles
as "Christian Evolution" and "The Province of Law in the Fall and Re
covery of Man " indicate the department of theology to which they belong.
Affairs had not progressed at Johnshaven during Mr Cooper's ministry,
and the congregation could only engage for ^60 of stipend, with the manse,
but there was u the prospect of some members returning who had left during
the former incumbency." They came up by-and-by to £70, and the Board
was to give £20 of supplement. During the next four years rive preachers
were called without success: (i) Mr John Milne in October 1854, who
accepted Greenlaw ; (2) Mr David Williamson in January 1855, who de
clined, and was afterwards in Queensferry ; (3) Mr Ebenezer E. Whyte in
June 1856, who got Yetholm five years afterwards ; (4) Mr Robert Brown
in January 1857, but with Zion Chapel, Newcastle, in near prospect, he put
Johnshaven aside ; (5) Mr John Pettigrew in December 1857, but the
Presbytery, with the consent of the congregation, decided to drop the call.
Fifth Minister. — JOHN M'NAB, from Alyth. Ordained, 23rd February
1859. The call was unanimous, and the signatures in advance of what they
had been on the five former occasions. The stipend was now raised to
^100, with the manse, by the addition of other £10 from the central fund,
and the membership was slightly under 100, the figure at which it continued
with little variation for the next thirty years. As a student at St Andrews,
Mr M'Nab had distinguished himself, particularly in mathematics, in which
he took the gold medal. A tractate of his, published anonymously when
a preacher, entitled " The Trade Spirit versus the Religion of the Age,"
gave evidence of a strong, earnest intellect, and a vigorous pen. But, want
ing the graces of delivery, Mr M'Nab found himself outdistanced among the
vacancies, and it was not till the six years of his probationership were
ending that a door opened for him at Johnshaven. He died, I2th April
1889, in the sixty-fifth year of his age and the thirty-first of his ministry.
Sixth Minister. — ALEXANDER A. RUSSELL, son of the Rev. Robert
Russell, Blairgowrie. Ordained, 27th November 1889. A debt of .£130, which
had long rested on the property, was cleared off in 1892 by the aid of ^50
from the Liquidation Board. The membership at the close of 1899 was 104,
and the stipend from the people ^80, with the manse.
FORFAR (ANTIBURGHER)
THOUGH we have no authoritative documents to guide us, we may take it
for certain that the nucleus of this congregation consisted of families dis
joined from Dumbarrow, four miles to the east, about the year 1778, and
that the first church, with sittings for 470, was built in 1780 or thereby.
First Minister. — JOHN JAMIESON, M.A., son of the Rev. John Jamieson,
Glasgow. The call from Forfar was preferred by Perth Presbytery to
another from Dundee, and the Synod confirmed this decision, the reason
assigned being that Dundee was divided and Forfar unanimous. Mr
Jamieson's feelings, when Forfar opened out to his view as he crossed the up
lands from Dundee to supply there, have been described by himself, and how
the thought arose : "What if this gloomy place should be the bounds of my
82 HISTORY OF U.P. CONGREGATIONS
habitation?" There he was ordained, 23rd August 1780. The stipend is
given as only ^50 to begin with, but it is not correct to say that it never was
more. His successor was to have ^60, with house, garden, and some land,
and this was stated to be the same as their former minister had. At this
time Mr Jamieson was in the flush of youth, being only in his twenty-second
year. In the following August occurred what George Gilfillan has called
his "romantic, moonlight marriage." To Mr Jamieson belongs the honour
of being the first Secession minister who obtained the degree of D.D., and
it was fifteen years before there was another. His title to take precedence
thus far of even his most distinguished Seceding brethren is not easy to make
clear. He had, indeed, published in 1786 an ordination sermon, and in 1787
an anonymous pamphlet entitled " Socinianism Unmasked." These were
followed in 1789 by " Sermons on the Heart," in two vols., a series of dis
courses which he had preached to his own congregation, and by his " Sorrows
of Slavery," a poem which counts for little. Yet on these grounds he was
singled out in 1791 by Princeton College, New Jersey, for this unique
distinction.* Professor Bruce of Whitburn at a later time treated "the
New Jersey Doctor" with little ceremony, and in view of what his own pen
had done might think himself excused. But Dr Jamieson did ample honour
to the selection as years passed.
The time for removing Dr Jamieson to a more congenial sphere of labour
came at last. Adam Gib's congregation in Edinburgh had split over a
successor, and in September 1792 the party adhering to the old walls made
choice of the Doctor for their minister, but in May 1793 the Synod decided,
by a majority of forty to seventeen, that he should remain in Forfar. This,
no doubt, was in trying antagonism to his own wishes, and no such possibility
was likely to come within his reach again. Yet in four years the same door
opened, and the Synod refrained from closing it a second time in his face.
On 2nd May 1797 the motion to translate was carried amidst opposition,
Ramsay of Glasgow coming through for the express purpose of giving a
hostile vote, and when that failed, he, along with some others, entered his
protest against the deed. This is what Ramsay's unhappy temperament
might have led us to expect when promotion for the son of his former
colleague was involved. During his stay in Forfar Dr Jamieson's taste
for antiquarian research was developed, and material collected which had its
outcome in his "Dictionary of the Scottish Language."
Second Minister. — ANDREW AEDIE, from Pathstruie. The family
belonged originally to Orwell congregation, as the records show, but
Auchtinny, where they resided, is within a mile of Pathstruie, and they be
came connected with the church there. Of two sisters of Mr Aedie's one was
married to the Rev. Thomas Dick of Stirling (Viewfield), better known now
as Thomas Dick, LL.D. , Broughty Ferry, and another to the Rev. Andrew-
Murray of Carnoustie. Mr Aedie was appointed by the Synod to Forfar in
preference to Kinross (East) and Ceres, much against his will, and was
ordained, gth October 1798. The call was signed by 57 male members and
108 male adherents. It is as if under Dr Jamieson the cause had taken a
fair hold of the community. While the calls were pending the stipend was
raised to ^70, with house, garden, and some land, as given above. Mr
Aedie died at Alloa on 8th July 1838, in the house of the Rev. Peter
* On this matter there has been some confusion as to dates. Dr M'Kerrow places
the degree as early as 1788, when a stray sermon and an anonymous pamphlet were
all his claims had to rest on. In a memoir prefixed to the Scottish Dictionary, and
followed by the National Dictionary, the degree is linked with the reply to Priestley,
which was not published till 1795. The date given above has been got from the
records of Princeton University, and is bound to be correct.
PRESBYTERY OF ARBROATH 83
M'Dowall. He had been enjoying a few days' relaxation at Bridge of Allan,
and was on his way to assist at Lochgelly communion, "when he was
suddenly seized with apoplexy, and after a short but severe illness he
expired," in the sixty-fourth year of his age and fortieth of his ministry.
An attempt was twice made to form a Relief congregation in Forfar prior
to this, but without success. The first was in February 1793, when Dr
Jamieson was under call to Edinburgh, but the Synod refused to sanction
the translation, and the appointments ceased. The next was not till August
1829, and it was part of that swell of denominational activity which led to the
formation of Relief churches in Kirriemuir, Brechin, and Arbroath. On
1 8th August some people in Forfar applied to the Relief Presbytery of
Perth for sermon, and Mr Reston of Coupar-Angus was appointed to preach
to them on Sabbath first. He reported at next Presbytery that "he had
both opened and shut up the meeting in one day." For this masterly stroke
of business he was admonished by his brethren. Mr Frew of Perth was
sent to take up the broken thread, but he told, on coming back, that "he
deemed it unnecessary to make any further attempts there at present."
Two years before the close of Mr Aedie's ministry the number of com
municants was 265, but 40 of these belonged to the preaching station at
Letham. The stipend was now between ^105 and ^no, with manse and
garden, and £12 for sacramental expenses. The building, including a
schoolroom, had a debt of ,£263, but over against this three properties
yielded a rental of ^40. About a third of the congregation was from
beyond the parish of Forfar, and of the sittings So were let to outsiders,
chiefly members of the Established Church. But in 1836 a qiioad sacra
chapel was opened in the town, and an Independent church was also
organised. Thus the Secession had more to contend with, but, on the other
hand, the population was advancing at the rate of 200 a year.
Third Minister.— ANDREW MURRAY, son of the Rev. Andrew Murray
of Carnoustie, and a nephew of the former minister. Ordained on 8th
October 1839. The stipend promised was ,£100, with manse and garden,
and ^5 for sacramental expenses. After a dozen years disputes arose in
the congregation, and Mr Murray demitted his charge ; but peace being
restored, and the people having expressed much attachment to their minister,
he withdrew his resignation. In 1854 the present church, with sittings for
500, was built, an undertaking which left them under a burden of debt. Mr
Murray may have felt this, and, if M'Cheyne's account of Forfar was correct,
he may have found discouragement in the moral tone of the community
around him. He was also of opinion that an entire stranger might labour
with greater efficiency than he had done, which indicates that Mr Murray
was ministering to those who had known him from his youth, the family
having removed to Forfar after his father's death. Accordingly, on 6th June
1857, he intimated to the Presbytery that, although he had neither want of
harmony nor alienation of feeling to complain of, the measure of success he
had met with did not warrant him continuing his ministry at Forfar. The
resignation was accepted on 23rd June, the congregation expressing un-
diminished affection for their pastor, and the Presbytery recording their
conviction that Mr Murray had acted from a high sense of Christian duty
and responsibility. His name was then placed on the probationer list,
where it continued till June 1860. He then took charge of a mission for
some years in connection with Anderston Church, Glasgow. After that he
became a farmer in Forfarshire, but returned to the list in 1868 to complete
his term of probation. He died in Edinburgh, i6th February 1890, in his
seventy-sixth year.
Forfar congregation now called Mr Alexander Aikman, but the call was
84 HISTORY OF U.P. CONGREGATIONS
signed by only 64 members, while 3 elders and 9 members prayed that it be
not sustained, "on account of disunion." Meanwhile, Mr Aikman was called
to Muckart, and set Forfar aside. They then united on Mr James M'Owan,
who intimated that he could not accept, and before the letter reached the
Presbytery he was ordained at Bannockburn. The next call had the
misfortune to be accepted.
Fourth Minister. — HUGH NIVEN, a married preacher from Greyfriars,
Glasgow. I recall his smart, mature, clean-cut look, and his methodical
note-taking in the divinity classes. It occurs to me that he kept by himself,
and was smooth and polished in his bearing. His call to Forfar was signed
by 102 members, and he was ordained, 24th February 1859. The stipend
was lowered from ^90 to ^70 during the vacancy, but other ^30 was
expected from the Board. Before the end of the year an effort was proposed
for clearing off the debt, Mr Niven being active in work of this kind, besides
figuring in the temperance movement and other good causes ; but drags
were put on by certain leading members. Then a fania of serious import
got into circulation against the minister, but, by means of a letter opportunely
produced, his leading elders were satisfied. At this crisis a paper was sent
up to the Presbytery, subscribed by 102 members, 18 adherents, and 19
occasional hearers, expressing esteem for their pastor in his trying circum
stances. Thus other fifteen months were tided over, and then, on the 8th
or gth of July 1862, Mr Niven suddenly disappeared, the way and manner
giving rise to some graphic touches of description. On 23rd September a
committee of Presbytery served up an assortment of charges against the
fugitive, such as has seldom been put upon paper, and on the threshold of
further procedure the pastoral relation was dissolved. But the object of
their quest was gone, and the Presbytery wound up the case on 6th January
1863 by pronouncing sentence of deposition on Mr Niven " for refusing to
obey a citation of Presbytery, deserting his family and charge, and con
tracting an irregular marriage," though these were only the fringes of his
alleged misdeeds. Where he went, or what his after fortunes in life were,
is never likely to be known.
Fifth Minister. — PETER WRIGHT, from Kilmarnock (King Street). The
call was not quite harmonious, there being 72 signing and 16 objecting ;
but a committee reported that "the opposition did not appear to be factious,
or likely to be carried further." So Mr Wright was ordained, 2oth October
1863. The stipend was ^70 as before, with ,£50 from the Board, but in
1868 the people were giving ^100 instead of ^70. That year the present
manse was built at a cost of ,£1200 in the end, of which ^300 was promised
from the central fund. A great part of the ,£900, it has been stated, was
raised by the minister. In 1873 it was intimated to. the Presbytery that
^157, ios., the point of self-support, was henceforth to be aimed at. But
owing to adverse fluctuations the membership declined from 25010 212 in
five years, and it was seen that aid would be required to the extent of ^40
a year, an arrangement in which the Board acquiesced. In 1881, though
the membership was scarcely over 200, the stipend was fixed as high as
;£i6o, entitling the minister to a full share in the surplus of .£40. On 2$th
June 1895 Mr Wright was enrolled minister-emeritus, and he died, i8th
April 1899, in the seventieth year of his age and thirty-sixth of his ministry.
Prosperity had returned before the close, and at the time of his retirement
the communion roll was over 250.
Sixth Minister. — ALEXANDER GRIEVE, M.A., Ph.D., from Millport.
Ordained, 28th January 1896. The membership now exceeds 320, and the
stipend is .£185, with the manse.
PRESBYTERY OF ARBROATH 85
MUIRTON (ANTIBURGHER)
THE origin of this congregation has been put as far back as 1758, but this
is too early by eight years. It was on i8th March 1767 that the Seceders in
the district petitioned the Antiburgher session of Montrose (now St Luke's)
for a disjunction. They must, however, have had sermon before this, as
we find from an entry in the parish register of Marykirk that there was a
child baptised in February of that year in presence of " the Secession congre
gation." Though the distance of seven miles from Montrose pleaded for a
severance, the session, having surrendered their hold of Brechin three years
before, hesitated about allowing a second encroachment, and referred the
case to the Presbytery. But the congregation intervened, and at a general
meeting expressed approval of the disjunction, and on 3rd July 1769 the
session was brought to unanimous concurrence in the application. As two
names disappear at this time from the sederunts of session, we may
assume that Muirton people had an eldership among them from the very
beginning. In the prosecution of the petition for disjunction there is
mention of two commissioners from Fettercairn, a parish which furnished
acceders to the Associate Presbytery so early as 1738.
In 1771 the new cause gained an accession of strength through an un
popular settlement at Marykirk, the parish to which Muirton belongs.
The patron, who had bought the right shortly before, presented his own son
to the benefice, and the General Assembly, before whom the case was brought,
set the charge of simony aside, and confirmed the action of the Presbytery
in ordaining him. The result was, as the minister himself stated, "a very
great alienation of affection." Their numbers being increased through that
dispute, the erection of a church was proceeded with, though this also has
been ante-dated, and put as early as 1769. But in November 1773 there is
a collection entered in the session minutes of the North Church, Perth, on
behalf of Muirton, " for enabling them in the building of a house for public
worship, and a manse." They had a minister now, which made the double
undertaking the more urgent. The site was well chosen, being equidistant
from the parish churches of Marykirk, Fettercairn, and Logic-Pert, and these
fully three miles off.
First Minister. — JAMES IMRIE, from Glasgow (now Cathedral Square).
Ordained, I2th May 1773. As feeling died out there may have been a
seeking back to the Established Church by those who were not Seceders
from conviction ; and in April 1779 the Presbytery of Perth brought the state
of Muirton congregation before the Synod, explaining that it was very weak,
and considerably in arrears to Mr Imrie, with a good deal of debt resting on
the property. They had received ,£10 some years before, and now en
deavours were to be made for their assistance ; but in May 1780 the Synod
instructed the Presbytery to loose Mr Imrie at their meeting on the last
Tuesday of that month, unless the congregation gave satisfaction for his
future maintenance. In August the Presbytery reported that they had
dissolved the connection. As for Mr Imrie, he acted for some time as a
preacher, but in 1782 he intimated to the Presbytery of Glasgow that, "as
he was entering on a new line of life, he did not mean to take any more
regular appointments." He now resided in Paisley, and in 1786 he was
inducted to the eldership in Oakshaw Street, and besides supplying pulpits
he was occasionally appointed to moderate in calls within the bounds of the
Presbytery. In 1819 he was in the membership of Duke Street Church,
Glasgow, and he died, 3oth May 1835, in the ninetieth year of his age.
Second Minister. — DAVID MEEK, from Kirriemuir (West). Ordained,
1 9th November 1794. During the vacancy of fourteen years which went
86 HISTORY OF U.P. CONGREGATIONS
before Muirton was scarcely more than a preaching station. Mr Meek's
call was signed by 33 male members, and, as the stipend was raised to ^45
in 1807, it must have been under that sum at the beginning. In 1812 the
congregation consisted of 20 male members and 50 female, and the stipend
was ,£50, with a house and four acres of land. Mr Meek's ministry closed
on 25th March 1818. At his request the Presbytery of Forfar had been
summoned to meet that day at Muirton, and amidst deep penitence on his
part and painful feelings on theirs he was deposed from the ministry and
from Church fellowship. At a meeting on gth June he was restored to
communion without demur, but he never held office again. Having removed
to Edinburgh, he became one of Dr Paxton's people at the Union of 1820,
and died, 2oth October 1848, in his eighty-fifth year. His son, the Rev.
James Meek, was long minister of the Original Secession Church, Carnoustie.
After being vacant for two years Muirton called Mr Robert Paterson, but
finding themselves in hopeless competition with Kirkwall they withdrew
from the contest.
Third Minister. — JAMES RENWICK, from Moniaive. Ordained, 6th
March 1822. In 1824 the present church was built at a cost of ^400, with
sittings for 430. In 1835 there were 90 communicants, two-thirds of these
from Marykirk parish, and most of the other third from Fettercairn and
Logic-Pert. Ten of the families came from over four miles. The stipend
was ^60, with ^5, IDS. in name of sacramental expenses, and there was
also the driving of fuel and the working of the glebe. In summer there
were two discourses in the forenoon and one in the afternoon, and in winter
two discourses without an interval, and an evening service once a month all
the year round. Mr Renwick died, 22nd October 1845, in the sixtieth year
of his age and twenty-fourth of his ministry, leaving a widow and a very
large family in dependent circumstances. Their claims were met by an
appeal to the Church generally, and a fund of ,£800 was formed, the pro
ceeds of which lasted till 1868.
In 1846 Muirton was the first of six vacant congregations that made
choice of Mr William Cowan, who accepted Buckhaven.
Fourth Minister. — JOHN BuiCK, from Alyth. The call was signed
by 1 02 members, and was preferred to another from Banff. Ordained,
24th March 1847. His resignation given in under constraint was accepted,
loth January 1849, and he was suspended sine die for intemperance. On
2 ist January 1850 a committee of Presbytery was appointed to meet with
him, to prepare the way for his restoration to Church privileges, but on
25th February they reported that he had been removed by death. He
was buried, we find from the Montrose register, on the 5th of that month,
in the twenty-eighth year of his age.
Fifth Minister. — JOSEPH LECKIE, from Falkirk (Erskine Church), to be
afterwards known as Ur Leckie of Ibrox, Glasgow. Ordained, 3ist October
1849. This quiet sphere »was favourable to culture and calm reflection ;
but it was not befitting that it should be the young minister's permanent
abode. After he had been laid aside from regular work for a considerable
time Mr Leckie's resignation was accepted, 8th June 1858, the congregation
paying a high tribute to the character of his ministrations and the piety
of his life. In 1864 he entered on his second field of labour at Millport.
Sixth Minister. — THOMAS SWAN, from Leslie (now Trinity). Ordained,
3oth October 1860. In the preceding year they called Mr Andrew G.
Fleming, now of Paisley, but Alva came in, and was accepted. Under
Mr Swan's ministry there were five years of peace and harmony, but the
introduction of the hymn-book, though cautiously gone about, occasioned
disturbance, and Mr Swan, who had suffered a severe domestic stroke not
PRESBYTERY OF ARBROATH 87
long before, felt this state of things so keenly that he demitted his charge,
but after some kindly dealings on the part of the Presbytery peace was
restored and the resignation withdrawn. On 7th October 1873 it was
intimated to the Presbytery that Mr Swan was seriously ill. Their next
meeting was at Muirton on his funeral day. He died, 2Oth October, in
the thirty-ninth year of his age and thirteenth of his ministry. Mr Swan was
a nephew of the Rev. James Anderson, who was long Secession minister in
Dunblane. After a pause of a year the congregation unanimously called
Mr Alexander Duncan, but he preferred Muir-/£/r/£ to Muir-/0w«.
Seventh Minister. — JAMES Y. THIRD, who had been six years in
Ollaberry, Shetland, but resigned in July 1874, and returned to the
probationer list. Inducted, 8th June 1875, but after three years he accepted
an invitation to labour at Lahore, in the Punjab, India, and was loosed
from his charge on 24th September 1878. In May 1881 Mr Third, who
had returned to this country in full ministerial status, was again enrolled
as a probationer. When his term of three years was nearly expired he
emigrated to Canada, but it was only to find a grave. Having been
appointed to take charge of Hantsville, Ontario, he had scarcely been a
month there when he was seized with inflammation of the lungs, which
after a week terminated fatally. He died, 9th April 1884, in the forty-fifth
year of his age and sixteenth year of his ministry, leaving a widow and
three children.
After Mr Third left Muirton it was a question whether the congregation
could go on. In the early years of Mr Swan's ministry the membership
reached its maximum of 133, but the population was now to experience
rapid decline. The straggling village of Luthermuir, where the church
is situated, decreased from 868 in 1861 to 383 in 1881, and Mr Swan spoke
sometimes of being in all likelihood the last minister of Muirton. A little
before his death there were only 80 names on the communion roll, 26 men
and 54 women, and when his successor left the numbers were scarcely
over 50.
Eighth Minister. — WILLIAM ARNOT MITCHELL, from Brechin (High
Street). Ordained at Durham, i6th April 1873. Called to Muirton by a
majority, only 19 taking part in the vote, but the call was signed by 35
members and 26 adherents. Inducted, 2ist May 1879. Since then there
has been a steady gathering-up, so that the membership now stands within
a little of 100. As for stipend arrangements, Mr Swan was to have ^80,
with manse, garden, and a glebe valued at ^24, and there was also to be
a supplement of £10. When preparing for a moderation in 1874 the people
stated that with their reduced numbers they could not offer more than
^70, with the glebe. This offer was approved, and in view of Mr Mitchell's
induction the same arrangement was continued. The sum paid by the
people in 1899 was ^74, while supplement and surplus made up other
,£92. The glebe of four acres is still possessed, by the minister, but £6 of
the stipend goes to pay the rent. Thus does Muirton hold its place among
the older congregations of the U.P. Church, and whatever ecclesiastical
displacements may be impending it has a district of its own, within which
a dispensation of gospel ordinances behoves to be upheld. Mr Mitchell,
it should be stated, has bestowed special attention on the young, and in
the returns of the Synod's Committee on the Care of Youth Muirton has
held a foremost place.
88 HISTORY OF U.P. CONGREGATIONS
BRECHIN, CITY ROAD (ANTIBURGHER)
IN sketching the beginnings of this congregation we have original docu
ments to draw from. These bear that on 7th February 1 764 a number of
members of the Antiburgher congregation of Montrose residing in Brechin
accordingly granted by the Presbytery, and as two of those disjoined ^yere
elders, a session was constituted forthwith. The first church, with sittings
for 550, is found from a reference in the session minutes to have been
occupied in the early part of 1766. A year after this the congregation
called Mr Colin Brown, whom the Synod appointed to Abernethy.
First Minister. — JOHN GRAY, from Edinburgh (Nicolson Street). Called
also to Elgin, but the Presbytery of Perth and Dunfermline gave Brechin the
advantage, and Mr Gray was ordained, 22nd December 1768. During the
five years they were without a pastor the accessions to the Act and Testi
mony averaged about a dozen each year, and during the early part of
Mr Gray's ministry that number was doubled. Calculating from the
baptisms recorded in 1770 we may put down the membership at" not less
than 200. The collections at the church door were about ,£40 a year, and
this money the session, with some slight deductions, handed over to the
managers. There is no mention of disbursements for the poor, which in
many congregations absorbed this source of income almost entirely. In
1769 the session enacted "that persons in this congregation intending
marriage shall have public proclamation made of the same three several
Sabbath days." There are traces of the same thing in other old Secession
churches, but it can hardly have superseded the proclamation of banns in
the parish church.
In a brief memoir of Mr Gray which appeared in the Christian Magazine
it is stated that throughout his ministry he generally delivered four discourses
each Lord's Day. This means that there were three services, and in the
forenoon he gave both a lecture and a sermon. It was inconsistent with
efficient pulpit preparation, and in Mr Gray's case it may have aged him
before his time. It is certain that at the end of twenty-four years the
congregation took steps to provide him with a colleague, as " he was un
able to fulfil his ministry to the same extent as formerly." But a section of
the members had scruples as to ways and means, and they might think it
better to dispense with the evening service than undertake the maintenance
of two ministers. The Presbytery also hesitated about going forward, and
the Synod advised them not to proceed till they had better evidence of it
being for the ends of edification.
Second Minister. — JAMES GRAY, son of the old minister. Licensed in
July 1792, when he was little over twenty, and the fact that he was on the
field may have hastened the movement for a colleague. The call was signed
by 46 male members, but it was accompanied by a paper from a minority,
giving reasons why they could not concur in the election of another minister.
The stipend promised was ^50, the Presbytery having strictly stipulated
that it should not beless, and Mr Gray was ordained, i6th April 1794. In
the Old Statistical History we have a view of the congregation's position
shortly before the collegiate charge began. The stipend of the minister was
only ^60, but in 1790 the congregation built a commodious house for him,
and the chapel was very elegantly repaired. Of examinable parishioners
under his care there were 243, and there would also be a goodly proportion
from other parishes. The old minister was able to take part in the work
PRESBYTERY OF ARBROATH 89
for other eight years, and only a few weeks before his death he preached
the communion sermon, though he had to be supported to the place of
worship. He died, 8th September 1802, in the thirty-fourth year of his
ministry. In 1806 an effort was made to reduce the debt, and in 1812 the
stipend was £100, with the manse, and payment of taxes. In 1819 the two
sections of the Secession were drawing together, and on igth March the con
gregation met to consider the propriety of petitioning the Synod " to facilitate
a union in the truth with other denominations." The draft of a petition to that
effect was unanimously approved of, and Mr Gray was to present it to the
Synod at its approaching meeting. Nothing as yet of divided counsels,
and nothing to forebode a parting asunder.
But in April 1820, when the Articles of Agreement came to be voted on,
James Gray stood prominent among the dissentients, and in September,
when the Union was consummated, he stood aloof. All went on for a time
in pulpit and pew as before, but on 2ist April 1821 the preses, who was on
the Unionist side, called the managers and trustees together. A rumour
was going that their minister intended to leave them, and two of their number
waited on him to say how extremely sorry the congregation would be if he
came to any such resolution. They were also to express the hope that
matters would be made up between him and his brethren. But on 2nd May
the Synod received a letter from Mr Gray and seven others, intimating that
they could not accede to the Union, as they had not " sufficient security for
the maintenance of the public cause of the Secession/'
On the afternoon of the following Monday the congregation met for some
thing decisive. Mr Gray opened with a sermon from Abraham's words to
Lot when they were about to part, and before pronouncing the benediction
he intimated that he was to remain, and asked to be allowed to preside.
Then a list of the male members was produced and adjusted, making 109 in
all. Mr Gray then gave his views of the principles involved, and stated that
he would read over the list of names, and let those who were willing to re
main under his ministry say so, the state of the vote to be, Continue as
formerly, or Not ? The result was that 48 voted Continue, 2 voted Not
Continue, and 26 declined to take part.
The two parties were more equally balanced than the above would indicate.
Besides the 48 who voted adherence to Mr Gray, 10 men and 115 women
afterwards signed a paper of concurrence. The other party mustered 52
male members, and, as two or three of the majority had passed over to their
side, the two sections were within a few units of equality. Sagacity and good
feeling among the leaders availed to arrest legal proceedings about the
property. The Unionists, indeed, entered their case before the sheriff, but
this was scarcely done when David Reid, one of their number, mentioned
at a meeting of the managers that Robert Moir, who was prominent on the
other side, had expressed his earnest wish that the law process should be
stopped, and that with this view he and his friends would give up all right
to the property on the receipt of ^150. The offer seemed reasonable,
counsels of peace prevailed, and the meeting unanimously agreed to the
proposal. It is pleasant to have a consummation like this to put upon record,
and the names of the two mediators are entitled to honourable mention.
On 29th May 1821 Mr Gray, along with six other ministers and five elders,
took part in forming the little Synod of Protestors, and on 25th June the
Presbytery of Forfar declared him out of connection with the United Secession
Church. Regular supply of sermon was now granted to the party who had
withdrawn from his ministry. In the interim they had worshipped with
their brethren in Maisondieu Lane, but in six weeks they were to get posses
sion of all their former belongings, except the communion tokens. The
9o HISTORY OF U.P. CONGREGATIONS
sum of .£150 seems little to give in return, but the property was burdened
with .£424 of debt. In July 1822 they brought out a unanimous call to
Mr James Gilfillan, signed by 38 male members, and the 14 absentees, to
a man, afterwards gave in a paper of adherence. There was also a paper
subscribed by 70 persons " who professed friendship to the congregation
and to the present call." The stipend was to be ^100, and instead of the
manse, which was occupied by Mr Gray at a rent of ^10, they were to allow
,£15 for a house ; but Mr Gilfillan was appointed to Stirling.
Third Minister. — JOHN CRAIG, who had resigned Kinkell two and a
half years before. Inducted, 28th August 1823, but it cannot be said that
prosperity followed. Though animated by a good spirit the people had
heavy burdens to bear, and instead of adapting himself to his situation Mr
Craig was complaining before the end of another year that his stipend was
inadequate, and, though the people agreed to allow him £10 "by way of
compliment," the money had to be raised by subscription. In 1825 the
debt was slightly reduced, but in 1826 the income fell short of the expendi
ture by ^20, " owing to the dearth of provisions and the dulness of trade."
In 1829 a deputation was sent to Mr Craig to suggest the need for returning
to a third service each Sabbath if the ^100 was to be raised, but he said
he considered the call a sufficient guarantee for the sum named, " and he
would look to the Presbytery to enforce it." The gearing was now getting
out of sorts, remissness in duty was complained of, and want of interest in his
people, and it was even moved at a congregational meeting "to apply to the
Presbytery for a separation." In this state matters continued till February
1833, and then, apparently with perfect unanimity, they petitioned to have
the relation between them and Mr Craig brought to an end.
In the paper presented to the Presbytery it was explained that many of
them had made great exertions to meet the necessary expenditure, that a
number had now left off attending, and that many more were threatening
to do so if no alteration were made. But Mr Craig was not in the mood for
retiring, and as there were delicate matters involved the case was handed
over to the Synod. This ended in Mr Craig being recommended to demit
his charge, " as, from the state of feeling between the parties, he could no
longer fulfil the duties of the Christian ministry there with advantage," and
on 4th June 1833 he tabled his resignation to the Presbytery, which was at
once accepted, and the church declared vacant. But in fixing the arrears
of stipend he claimed £70, whereas the commissioners produced a written
account to show their indebtedness to be neither more nor less than 8s. The
Presbytery pronounced for ^27, ios., which led Mr Craig to intimate an
appeal to the Synod, but instead of the case coming up his name was put
on the list of probationers, where it continued for five years. In 1838 he
was residing in London, where he began a preaching station on his own
account in Pell Street, which was afterwards formed into a congregation.
But at a week-evening service there was a sudden collapse in his capacity to
go on, and it ended his connection with the work there and with the
exercise of the Christian ministry. He died in Glasgow, 28th July 1847.
Mr Craig was twice married— first, in Kinkell days, to a daughter of the
Rev. James Pringle, Kinclaven ; and second, to a daughter of the Rev. John
Thomson, Belford, Northumberland. His daughter, Catherine Pringle
Craig, was known for her literary gifts, and specially as the authoress of
Isodore and other Poems," and also of a drama of much merit, entitled
"Mary, the Mother of Jesus."
Fourth Minister.— JAMES BOYD, M.A., from Wellington Church Glasgow.
Ordained, 26th August 1835. They had previously called Mr William B
Berwick, who accepted Bell Street, Dundee. The stipend of ^100 was to
PRESBYTERY OF ARBROATH 91
include everything. Fourteen months afterwards the membership was 184.
Before Mr Craig left the original debt of ^470 had been augmented to
^530, but now, through having apparently parted with manse and school,
the people were able to tell : " There is no debt affecting the property." The
collections had risen largely, but the income from seat rents was deplorably
low, averaging only ^24 a year. There was strengthening needed at this
point if the principle of self-support was to have free course.
On 1 2th August 1845 tne Presbytery of Arbroath met at Montrose for
Mr Anderson's ordination, and Mr Boyd was to address the people, but
the clerk stated that, in consequence of a letter he had received from him,
he had arranged otherwise. That was the summer in which the Atonement
Controversy reached its height, and in the afternoon Mr Boyd explained that,
"owing to his dissatisfaction with the state of matters in our church, he
intended to withdraw from its communion and attach himself to the Free
Church." The congregation intimated by commissioners their regret at the
step their minister was taking, but, as they had no sympathy with the
feelings he expressed, " they would not offer the slightest objection to the
acceptance of his demission," which was received accordingly. Mr Boyd
was admitted into the ministry of the Free Church on the 23rd of that month
at the Inverness Assembly, and he was inducted to Polmont on 23rd
September 1846. He died in London, I4th April 1885, in the seventy-sixth
year of his age and fiftieth of his ministry.
Fifth Minister. — WILLIAM S. HEDDLE, from Kirkwall. Ordained, 2/th
January 1847. The call was signed by 1 18 members, and the stipend was .£105.
Under Mr Heddle's ministry the congregation prospered, but owing to the
state of his health he had to retire in little more than three years, amidst the
regrets of the congregation. The stipend had been paid up, and a sum sent
to Mr Heddle in addition, " which he had been induced to accept." On I2th
March 1850 the pastoral tie was dissolved, the Presbytery bearing testimony
to Mr Heddle's eminent qualifications for the ministry. In November 1851
he was inducted to the charge of Rosehill, Jamaica, but in 1854 he had to
remove, first to another part of the island, and then to Scotland. He
eventually resided in Kirkwall, where he was much respected. He died of
paralysis, i5th February 1881, aged sixty-one.
Sixth Minister. — SAMUEL HUSTON, a native of Larne in Ireland. In
the early part of this vacancy the congregation called Mr David Young, who
accepted Milnathort. The signatures were now about 160, and the stipend
was to be ,£120. Mr Huston had been a student of the English Presbyterian
Church, but after his trials for licence were sustained by London Presbytery
he asked permission to make some explanations as to the magistrate's power
before subscribing the Confession of Faith. This request being refused he
joined the U.P. Church, and on 22nd July 1851 he was ordained over City Road,
Brechin. But Mr Huston was now entering on his forties, and after being
so long engaged in scholastic duties he may have been wanting in adaptation
for regular ministerial work. Whatever the reason, discontent cropped up
early, and on 2Qth March 1853 a minute of session brought the divided state
of the congregation under the notice of the Presbytery. They met with the
people on the evening of nth April, and of the members present 52 to 36
voted " Dissatisfied." A private interview followed, and next day Mr Huston's
resignation was accepted, with complimentary mention of his amiable dis
position and large acquirements. The congregation had previously decided
that in the event of Mr Huston leaving they would indemnify him for any
pecuniary loss he might sustain, and the Presbytery, after all was over,
expressed their appreciation of the satisfactory manner in which this
engagement had been fulfilled.
92 HISTORY OF U.P. CONGREGATIONS
Mr Huston now remained on the probationer list for three years, and
then settled down in Newcastle as the proprietor of Elswick Academy, and
became an elder in Blacket Street congregation. In 1877, when he had
reached the age of sixty-six, he entered on a mission charge in the Island of
Alderney, where he was also chaplain to the soldiers, and this post he occupied
for six years. Brief as his ministry in connection with the U.P. Church was,
by a benign interpretation of the rules he was placed in 1884 as an annuitant
on the Aged and Infirm Ministers' Fund. Mr Huston spent his closing
years in Belfast, where he died, 3ist July 1899, aged eighty-eight.
We now reach an interesting chapter in the history of the two congre
gations which parted company at the Union of 1820, and this takes us back
over a period of thirty-three vears. Mr Gray's people took possession of their
new church in the South Port early in 1822. It cost £700, and besides the
^150 received from the other party they raised ^130 by subscription ; but in
1836 there was a debt of ,£263 resting on the building. The minister was
true to his convictions of duty, but the congregation by reason of its isolated
position was bound to decline, and the willingness of his people to exert
themselves for his support could not overcome the growing difficulties of
the situation. Unlike his brother in City Road, Mr Gray, finding that the
funds in 1830 were a good way behind, wrote surrendering ^10 of his stipend.
Various expedients were adopted "to raise as much as possible," but always
the treasurer was behind, and in 1840 the minister agreed to accept whatever
might be over after the common creditors were paid. The amount available
got less year by year, till it came down to ^62 in 1844. About this time Mr
Gray completed the fiftieth year of his ministry, and on that occasion the
Provost of Brechin, in name of the community generally, presented him with
a purse containing 220 sovereigns. In 1847 the funds only afforded him ^51,
and on Wednesday, 5th July 1848, he was removed by death, in the seventy-
seventh year of his age and fifty-fifth of his ministry, having taken ill in the
train on the previous Friday, when on his way to Kirkintilloch to fulfil a
preaching engagement.
It was a question now with the congregation whether they should attempt
to go on, but Mr Aitken of Aberdeen met with them, and "they unanimously
agreed to use their utmost endeavours to continue." However, after being
vacant for a year they were divided about the propriety of calling a minister.
The fact stared them in the face that the membership was now reduced to
84, of whom 27 were males and 57 females. Still they ventured forward,
and had Mr David Simpson ordained over them on New Year's Day 1851,
the stipend to be ,£68 in all. In 1852 the congregation along with their
minister unanimously acceded to the union with the Free Church. In 1854
Mr Simpson was called to Laurencekirk, and having left himself in the hands
of the Presbytery they decided for the translation. The people felt aggrieved,
and the next we hear is that a proposal to unite with their former brethren
in City Road had been cordially entertained, and on 25th July 1854 the
advice of the U.P. Presbytery was asked as to formal procedure. Already
the union had taken practical shape, and for three Sabbaths the congre
gations had been worshipping together in the South Port church. On the
evening of 2gth August the Presbytery met with them in the same place,
when the Rev. Jarnes Gibson of Brechin preached from the text : " Behold
how good and pleasant a thing it is for brethren to dwell together in unity."
The basis of union was the U.P. standards, with mutual forbearance where
slight differences of opinion might exist, and the communion roll was to be
made up of the combined rolls " in so far as the members of the South Port
should accede." At the close the united session was constituted, when the
two sets of elders gave each other the right hand of fellowship.
PRESBYTERY OF ARBROATH 93
In a carefully drawn-up memoir of Mr Gray, which appeared in the
Original Secession Magazine, it is testified that the breach of 1820 in the
congregation was comparatively peaceful, and that "he carried with him
the undiminished respect of almost all who left his ministry, and from not
a few of them he continued to receive the most decided expressions of
friendship to his dying day." A little incident at the close of 1836 brings
out the kindly feeling which prevailed among the leading men in both
churches towards each other. A legacy of ^25 fell due "for behoof of the
poor of the Antiburgher congregation," but instead of upholding their
own exclusive claims Mr Gray's people agreed that, after payment of
expenses, "the money should be divided between them and their brethren."
For the spirit displayed by both parties all through the reward came in
1854, when they entered anew into Church fellowship. City Road had
recently issued a call to Mr Robert Angus, who accepted Peebles (East),
and this declinature kept the way open for co-operation in the choice of
another.
Seventh Minister. — HUGH AIRD, M.A., from Greyfriars, Glasgow.
Called unanimously, and ordained, 3ist January 1855, the services being
conducted in the South Port church. The stipend was to be ,£130, with
a manse, which was a rise of ^10 compared with the sum named when
Mr Angus was called. From this and other things it is to be inferred that
the union did not add greatly to the resources of the congregation. The
gain was probably more in weight of character than in actual numbers,
but altogether it was a happy consummation. The united congregation
worshipped in the South Port church till nth September 1859, when
they took possession of a new church in City Road, with sittings for 550,
and built at a cost of ^1200. The funds now admitted of £,20 being
added to the stipend, which was increased from time to time till in 1882
it reached ^280. In 1869 a new manse was built at a cost of ^850, of
which ^650 was raised by the people and ,£200 received from the Board.
Mr Aird, who obtained the degree of D.D. from Glasgow University in
1889, died, 1 8th July 1895, in the seventy-first year of his age and forty-first
of his ministry. An elder brother of his, the Rev. John Aird, was for
fifty years one of our missionaries in Jamaica, first in Mount Olivet, then
in Bellevue, and then in Goshen. He died, nth February 1889, aged
eighty-one.
Eighth Minister. — DAVID M. MORGAN, M.A., translated from Partick
(Newton Place), where he had been for twelve years, and inducted to City
Road, 24th December 1895. The present membership is 330, and the
stipend ,£280, with the manse.
BRECHIN, MAISONDIEU (BURGHER)
AT the breach of 1747 most of the Seceders about Brechin, like their
brethren in Montrose, adhered to the Antiburghers ; but a few in both
places took the other side, and for twenty years they had sermon occasion
ally between them. For example, in 1752 eight Sabbaths were filled up,
but next year there were only three, two in Brechin and one in Montrose.
After 1767 there is no reference in the Burgher minutes to "The Societies
of Montrose and Brechin," or to preachers supplying at either place on
their way to Tough or Banchory. How the glimmering light was kept
burning for the next thirty years there is nothing to indicate, though it is
understood that ministers passing to and from Aberdeen at communion
times preached occasionally at Brechin. But in 1798 the cause woke
94 HISTORY OF U.P. CONGREGATIONS
up anew, and entered upon vigorous existence. On 26th September of
that year a petition, signed by 26 men, was laid before Perth Presbytery,
and it was forthwith agreed to recognise Brechin as a regular vacancy.
This application is traced very much to a sermon said to have been
preached at Brechin in the summer of 1798 by Ebenezer Brown of
Inverkeithing, and we know that Mr Brown was on an evangelistic tour
in Aberdeenshire, Banff, and Moray in August and September of that
year, and would almost to a certainty be passing through Brechin on his
way. But,1 prior to this, Mr King had come in frequently from Montrose
on Sabbath evenings and conducted services in what was called the
Gardeners' Lodge.
Supply was now kept up at Brechin at the rate of about three Sabbaths
each month, and in the end of 1799 a committee of thirteen was appointed to
take steps towards the erection of a meeting-house. In the early part of
the following year the membership consisted of 41 men and 29 women,
and in 1802 building operations were entered on, the Synod aiding in a
slight way, but taking security "that, if ever the church be alienated to
any other purpose, they shall repay the sums received, amounting to £,20."
Affairs were at a low ebb not long before, and in the first month of the
century the congregation represented to the Presbytery that unless they
obtained aid "they would not be able to defray the expense of sermon."
It was a trying winter for Scotland as well as for Brechin. Then, in 1802,
we have traces first of a barn and barnyard being purchased for ,£105,
and then of seat rents fixed at from 2s. to 35. a year, and of a gallery in
course of erection. The building when finished furnished 400 sittings,
and the debt amounted to ,£240.
First Minister. — DAVID BLACKADDER, a native of Blackadderton in
Berwickshire, but admitted to the Hall from Blair-Drummond. At that
time he was minded to go abroad as a missionary, and was allowed to
enter on his theological course after being two years at the university.
Ordained, 4th April 1804. The call was signed by 57 members, and
adhered to by 65 ordinary hearers. Among those who joined the con
gregation about that time were the mother of Dr Thomas Guthrie, his
brother, afterwards Provost David Guthrie, and their oldest sister. The
Doctor in his Autobiography gives the following account of the matter.
Referring to his mother he says : " She felt that the welfare of her own
soul, and the importance of getting spiritual food on the Lord's day, must
over-rule all other considerations, and so she sought the teaching of Mr
Blackadder, and joined herself to the communion of the Seceders." Three
years before this five elders had been chosen and ordained, and to the pen
of Dr Guthrie we are indebted for a graphic sketch of a sixth, who was
his first teacher, though in a very primitive way. " I remember," he says,
"how impressed I was with the prayers this old man offered up at meetings
of the congregation. I have never heard anything like them since. With
a remarkable knowledge of the Bible and perfect mastery of its language,
he so interwove its sublimest passages into his prayers that they seemed
like the utterances of a seraph before the throne." Piety of this stamp was
the strength and the life-blood of our congregations. It might not help
much with the ^80 of stipend at Brechin, but it did much to advance the
building up of " a spiritual temple unto the Lord."
Under Mr Blackadder's ministry things went quietly on year by year.
In 1806 an addition of £10 was made to the stipend, the congregation being
of opinion that, owing to the high price of provisions, the present stipend was
insufficient to maintain him in the station to which his office entitled him.
In 1820 the congregation set about providing him with a dwelling-house,
PRESBYTERY OF ARBROATH 95
and in 1 836 the debt on the whole property was ^380. The communicants at
this time were 157 and the stipend ,£90, with the manse. Besides preaching
frequently at different stations on week-days, Mr Blackadder regularly con
ducted three services in the church on Sabbath, and also superintended the
Sabbath school. He died, 4th August 1843, m tne seventy-second year of
his age and fortieth of his ministry. Mr Blackadder was described as a
stately man, "very kindly and of sunny temperament." He was never
married.
Second Minister. — WILLIAM THOMSON RANKINE, from Galashiels
(East). Ordained, 2nd September 1844. The call was signed by 101
members, and the stipend was still ^90, with manse and garden. The people
went on now with renewed vigour, and in 1845 the remaining debt of ,£250
was cleared off with the aid of ,£100 from the Liquidation Board. In 1849
the old church was replaced by another on the same site, with 500 sittings,
and in 1859 the stipend was ,£100, or ^10 higher than before. Mr Rankine
died, 24th June 1860, in the forty-second year of his age and sixteenth of
his ministry, "after a long and severe illness, borne with remarkable
patience and resignation." He is said to have been a man " of cultured
mind and refined tastes, but hampered by ill-health."
Third Minister. — ALEXANDER H. DRYSDALE, M.A., from Bridge of
Allan. The first call was declined, but it was promptly followed by a
second, unanimous and cordial, and Mr Drysdale was ordained, 23rd June
1861. The stipend was to be ,£120, with the manse, "and interest on £100
for a life insurance." This last was a legacy from Provost Guthrie, who
died in May 1854, and to whose work and worth a Minute of the congrega
tion bears high testimony. Almost from the beginning he had been one of
its most valued members, and " contributed much to its support, both by his
means and his personal example." On 4th June 1867 Mr Drysdale accepted
a call to Rochdale, Lancashire, and was loosed from Maisondieu Lane. In
1883 he was translated to Morpeth, Northumberland, where he still ministers.
His " History of the Presbyterians in England," published in 1889, is a book
of enduring value, and evidences a large amount of care and labour skilfully
and successfully employed.
Fourth Minister. — THOMAS KIRK, from Erskine Church, Stirling. The
membership was now 230 and the stipend ^150 instead ,£120. There was
a minority of 19 in favour of Mr Peter Stewart, a preacher from Campbeltown,
who died on 2nd April 1868. A protest taken against sustaining, on the
ground of illegal correspondence, bore only one signature, and it came to
nothing. Mr Kirk had been previously called, first to Kinkell, and then to
two places in Orkney, Holm and Sandwick, but these calls were at once
declined. Banff came next, and was accepted, but Brechin intervened and
secured the preference, even at that late hour. The ordination took place
on 22nd April 1868. On 26th March 1873 Mr Kirk accepted a call to
Haymarket, Edinburgh.
Fifth Minister. — GEORGE MORRISON, M.A., who had resigned Gourock
three years before in uncertain health. After spending a couple of years on
the Continent and in America he returned to Scotland, and was inducted to
Brechin, i8th March 1874. C*n Thursday, I2th November, he spent the
evening at Coupar- Angus, in Dr Marshall's manse, with whose family he was
expected to become united in marriage bonds. On retiring to his bedroom
about midnight the death spasm came, and next morning he was found
stretched on the bed, partially undressed ; but all was over. He was in the
thirty-third year of his age and ninth of his ministerial life. Soon after his
death a volume of his discourses was published, with a biographical and
critical sketch from the pen of the Rev. Fergus Ferguson, then of Dalkeith.
96 HISTORY OF U.P. CONGREGATIONS
Sixth Minister.— JAMES .LANDRETH, M.A., son of the Rev. Peter
Landreth, once of Aberchirder, but better known in the literary world.
Mr James Landreth, when a preacher, had received three Orkney calls in
close succession— from Westray, Sunday, and Stromness — not to mention
Cabrach. Ordained, 26th January 1876, the stipend being then ,£160, with
the manse. Under his ministry of eight years the congregation made steady
progress, and at the close there was a membership of 288. On 26th February
1884 the Presbytery of Arbroath met, pro re nata, and a letter was read
from Mr Landreth, tendering the resignation of his charge, "as he feels he
is out of harmony with the ecclesiastical policy of the U.P. Church." On
4th March, when the case came to be disposed of, the congregation in
timated that they had nothing to suggest, and the Presbytery in accepting
Mr Landreth's resignation, recorded their "satisfaction with the ability and
success with which he has discharged the duties of the ministry in Maisonclieu
Lane." At next General Assembly he was received into the Established
Church, and he was chosen soon after to be parish minister of Logic-Pert,
near Brechin, where he still labours.
There was now a short period of confusion. At the first moderation the
number of candidates nominated gave evidence that there was not ripeness
for an election. In the final vote there was a majority for Mr Charles
Christie, M.A., Dunblane, but the call, having only 84 names out of 283,
was beneath the level of validity, and the Presbytery did not sustain it.
The commissioners acquiesced, but Mr Christie felt aggrieved, and with
drew first from the preachers' list and then from the denomination. At
the Assembly of 1885 he was received into the Established Church as a
probationer, and in 1 886 he became minister of Augustine Chapel, Greenock,
his present charge. In the end of the year the congregation called Mr
David Smith with entire unanimity, but he accepted St Ninians.
Seventh Minister. — WILLIAM GRAY, M.A., from Stonehouse, one of
three brothers who became ministers in the U.P. Church, at Rothesay,
Brechin, and Cathcart, Glasgow, respectively. Ordained, 22nd April 1885.
The stipend was ^180 at first, with the manse, but in two years it rose to
,£200. Maisondieu Lane, which was long the weakest of the three Brechin
churches, both in numbers and resources, was now coming abreast of the
others, and in one respect it resolved to take the lead. A new church was
planned for in another situation, the cost of which reached .£6000. It was
opened on I7th April 1892, by Mr Gray's former minister, the Rev. H. A.
Paterson, Stonehouse, when the name was changed into Maisondieu, the
undignified appendage dropping away. On 7th December 1896 Mr Gray
accepted a call to Cambuslang, and was loosed from Brechin.
Eighth Minister. — JOHN T. ALLAN, from Broughton Place, Edinburgh.
Ordained, 26th May 1897. The membership at the close of 1899 was about
350 and the stipend ,£200, with the manse.
BRECHIN, BANK STREET (RELIEF)
AT a meeting of the Relief Presbytery of Perth on 29th December 1829
regular supply of sermon was granted to Brechin on an application from the
Rev. John Cross of Dundee, and exactly six months after that a congrega
tion was formed. In December 1830 the people wished to proceed with a
moderation, but the Presbytery " earnestly enjoined them to cultivate peace
and unanimity among themselves, suffer no undue influence to bias their
minds in the choice of a minister, and if they cannot agree about their
present candidates, to make trial of others." This well-timed counsel put back
PRESBYTERY OF ARBROATH 97
procedure, and gave disunion leisure to die out. On 3oth June 1830, the
day after being organised, the congregation leased a place of worship in the
High Street for fifty-seven years. It was an English Episcopal chapel, and
had been built a century before. When the town was visited by the forces
of the Duke of Cumberland in 1746 it was partially burned, the members
being looked on as friendly to the rebels. The building was repaired and
reoccupied, but, as there was a Scottish Episcopal church in Brechin, it
could be dispensed with. The Relief people became responsible for a debt
of ^150 which rested on it, but they were to be relieved or repaid at the
expiry of the lease. The terms were surprisingly easy, but within a few
years .£500 had to be laid out on needed repairs.
First Minister. — JAMES GOODWIN, from Kilsyth, but brought up in
Glasgow under the ministry of Dr Struthers. Ordained, 2ist December
1831. Mr Allan was ordained at Arbroath on the previous day, and Mr
Stirling at Kirriemuir a few months before. It was the Relief Church
lengthening her cords in Angus-shire. A fourth attempt was made in the
town of Forfar, but it proved a failure. In Brechin Mr Goodwin built up a
large congregation. So early as 1836 there were 650 names on the com
munion roll, and the sittings, 536 in number, were all let, the highest at
45. a year. The stipend engaged for was ^100, but the people were
now giving ^20 additional. Since 1832 the seat rents had risen from £66
to ,£90, the collections from ^85 to ,£120, and of the debt on the building
^50 had been paid up. The public work on Sabbath was three services one
half of the year and two services the other. Thus all went on successfully
till Sabbath, 4th July 1847, when Mr Goodwin preached forenoon and after
noon, but was taken suddenly ill on his way home. Reaching the house, he
lay down on the sofa, and in a few minutes breathed his last. He was in
the forty-eighth year of his age and sixteenth of his ministry.
Second Minister. — JAMES GIBSON, who had recently resigned Dun-
fermline. This step was taken to facilitate the union of his congregation
with Professor M'Michael's, and there was widespread satisfaction when,
within six months, he was invited to High Street, Brechin. At the modera
tion 179 voted for Mr Gibson and 152 for the Rev. Alexander Walker,
formerly of Newcastle, but the call was signed by more than the two
numbers put together. Inducted, I4th March 1848. The membership at
Mr Goodwin's death was over 700 ; but in their stipend arrangements it
cannot be said that they devised liberal things. At a congregational meeting
it carried to give ^110 in preference to larger proposals, many of those
who went in for this limited provision being probably of opinion that, look
ing at their own scanty incomes, nothing more was needed. Under Mr
Gibson's ministry the work of compacting went on, but in a congregation
which had been rapidly collected this involved a formidable reduction in
membership, which in itself was discouraging. So after labouring in Brechin
for eight years Mr Gibson agreed to go out to Canada under the auspices
of the Mission Board, and a pro re nata meeting of Presbytery was held on
9th April 1856 to receive the tender of his demission. The reasons given
in by the congregation against his leaving were strongly supported by the
commissioners, but he declined to recede from his engagement, and the
pastoral bond was dissolved. Very soon after reaching Canada Mr Gibson
was inducted to Sydenham, Owen Sound, where he had at first a member
ship of 40 and an attendance of about 100. After labouring there with
success for a few years he removed to New York, where he died of a painful
illness on 7th April 1860, in the forty-ninth year of his age and twenty-sixth
of his ministry. He was the father of the Rev. John Monro Gibson, D.D.,
of St John's Wood, London, a name well known in the Presbyterian Church
of England, and far beyond it.
98 HISTORY OF U.P. CONGREGATIONS
Third Minister —PETER DAVIDSON, from Craigdam, who had been
nreviouslv called to Shiels and Stonehaven. The membership was down now
To 400, which implies a large melting away from the outskirts of the encamp
ment yet the stipend was to be £140, or ^30 more than when there were
718 names on the communion roll. The call was signed by 222 members,
instead of 333 as on last occasion, and Mr Davidson was ordained 24th
December i 856. In two years his stipend was raised to £i 50. In February
1860 Mr Davidson was invited to take charge of the mission station in
South Gray's Close, Edinburgh, but he decided to remain in Brechm On
7th February 1862 he intimated to the Presbytery that illness in his family
necessitated their removal to a wanner climate, and that he had accepted a
call to Adelaide, South Africa. The congregation, as the case admitted oi
no alternative, acquiesced, and amidst ample recognition of the prosperity
which High Street Church had enjoyed during his five years' ministry the
bond was severed. Mr Davidson laboured in Adelaide till 1893, when he
retired from active service. He died, 3ist December 1895, in the seventy-
third year of his age and fortieth of his ministry, having taken part in pulpit
work the Sabbath immediately preceding.
Mention should be made of a terrible trial which befell Mr Davidson and
his family sixteen years before. In June 1879, when the mother and
children were on a visit to Glenthorn, their little boy of four mysteriously
disappeared on a Sabbath afternoon while communion work was going on.
Every nook and crevice of the country around was explored, hundreds being
engaged in the search for four days, but no trace of the child could be
found. The last they heard of him was that a Kaffir maid on her way to the
service had seen him about a quarter of a mile from the house,
blow," wrote the father, "has taken away a great part of my earthly life.
Durin^ eight shaded years rumours came from time to time that a boy
answering to the description had been found, but these were mere air
bubbles upon troubled waters. At last, when grief was calm and hope was
dead, the remains of the lost child were discovered in a mountain cave four
or five miles from Glenthorn church. It was for the mother now to go
through and identify her own by "the buttons, boots, and part of the
clothing." Beyond the fact that this must have been the work of heathen
Kaffirs nothing was ever known.
In November 1862 High Street congregation called Mr Richard Leitch,
probationer, from Coldstream (West), but he was already under call to
Blacket Street, Newcastle, where he was ordained, 28th January 1863.
Fourth Minister.— ROBERT WORKMAN ORR, son of the Rev. William
Orr of Fenwick. Ordained, 22nd December 1863. On 22nd September
1875 a new church on another site was opened, and the name of the congre
gation changed from High Street to Bank Street. The sittings are 650,
arid the cost was ,£4000. The present membership is a little over 300, and
Mr Orr's stipend has risen by degrees from ,£170 to ,£250, with a manse.
ARBROATH, PRINCES STREET (ANTIBURGHER)
THE first Seceders about Arbroath formed part of Dumbarrow congregation,
nine miles to the west, but there is reason to believe that they had occasional
services from an early period. Kinclaven books, for example, show that there
was no sermon there on a certain Sabbath in 1762, as their minister was at
Arbroath. Their own records begin in December 1783, and they speak of
an elder who had been disjoined from Dumbarrow " along with the rest in
1782," which fixes the year of the congregation's origin. Another elder had
PRESBYTERY OF ARBROATH 99
settled down since then in Arbroath, and these two were constituted into a
session on 24th February 1784. In 1791 the people set about erecting a
place of worship, and we find, accordingly, that in January 1792 Alyth con
gregation had a collection " for Arbroath in straits, being under the necessity
of building a new meeting-house." In a memorial notice of Robert Greig,
merchant in Arbroath, which appeared in the Christian Magazine for 1807,
it is explained that, "being few in number, and none of them in affluent
circumstances, they were not able to contribute much." A church and
manse having to be provided, this worthy man laid out at that time upwards
of ^600 in the interests of the congregation, ^400 of which he freely dis
charged some years after, and the other ,£200 before his death. It was his
custom besides to make up in a great measure any deficit in the yearly
balance. Beneficence like this in a sacred cause deserves commemoration.
In 1785 a call signed by 23 male members was addressed to Mr James
Browning, but the Synod appointed him to Auchtermuchty (North). In
1788 a second moderation was applied for, but Mr Young of Dumbarrow
objected because Arbroath people had still accounts to settle with his con
gregation. The matter was put to rights by a payment of ^2, us. 6d., "to
be in full for all demands." A call followed to Mr William Wilson, who
comes up more fully under Kinclaven ; but it was not harmonious, and on
the plea of irregularities it was set aside.
First Minister. — JAMES MILLER, from Comrie. Ordained, I4th July
1789. The stipend was ^55, and it is to be assumed that there was also a
manse in near prospect. After going on for seven years there was a
membership of 70. Among those who had been accustomed travelling
eight or nine miles to church there was sure to be a large infusion of the
rigid element. Hence turmoil arose in 1790 over an election of elders, the
allegation being that more than one of those chosen wanted the qualification
of having " a good report of them that are without." The evil reached its
height when the "New Light Testimony" was in course of being enacted.
In April 1804, on a petition against the proposed change being presented to
the session for transmission to the Synod, it came out that of the elders
three were on the Old Light side, and only two went with the Moderator. At
a meeting in May 1805, when arrangements were being made for observing
the Lord's Supper, " a majority of the elders and a number of the people."
as Professor Bruce put it, " declared against proceeding upon the new terms,"
It might have been well if the parties had agreed to defer the observance,
but the matter was carried to the Presbytery, by whom minister and session
were enjoined to go forward under the Synod's recent deeds. At next
meeting of session the three " Old Light " elders gave in a declinature, and
withdrew, leaving their two brethren and Mr Miller to take their own way.
Before the year closed four others were ordained, including David Lumgair,
a family name which long had prominence both in this congregation and
in the town of Arbroath.
North Grimsby Street Church must have suffered seriously at this time,
though Dr Scott of Saltcoats goes too far in making those who left about
half the membership. Professor Bruce speaks of them as a number of the
people, and the petitions sent up to the Synod against the New Testimony
were signed by only 17 or 18 members, male and female. This party wor
shipped for fifteen years in a schoolroom, and might almost be looked on as
a branch of Mr Aitken's congregation at Kirriemuir, twenty-one miles
distant. In 1821 they had Mr Benjamin Laing, a son of the Rev. Robert
Laing, first of Duns and then of America, ordained over them, but in 1829
he resigned "owing to difficulties and discouragements." He was subse
quently admitted to Colmonell. After the congregation had gone on for
ioo HISTORY OF U.P. CONGREGATIONS
thirty years there were 89 names on the communion roll, and the stipend
was /8o in all The minister at this time was the Rev. John Sandison, who
with the majority of his people united with the Free Church m 1852. The
little party who kept by the old ground retained the property, and under
their present minister, the Rev. Alexander Stirling, they had a membership
of 145 in 1884, and furnished a stipend of ^153, with a manse, betokening
prosperity beyond what was to be looked for.
After the disruption Mr Miller moved on, with weakened resources, and
in i8n his stipend was only ^80, and a house. In 1817 disaster came in
the form of charges seriously affecting his moral character, and though the
Presbytery pronounced against the accuser the people with apparent un
animity insisted on his removal. The case being referred to the Supreme
Court, it was declared that, though there was nothing proven against Mi-
Miller, "the alienation of affection on the part of the congregation was such
that the Synod found his continuance in Arbroath would not promote the
great ends of the gospel ministry." Having accepted a mission to America
he was loosed from his charge, 7th October 1818. On landing in the United
States he joined the Associate Synod, and was admitted to Putnam,
Washington County, New York, and continued there till 1826, when he
was deposed for immorality of the same stamp as was charged against him
in Arbroath. Dr Scoullcr in his manual adds : " His subsequent history is
not known." The end showed that the aversions of congregations are not
always at fault.
In 1819 the congregation called Mr William Hannah, but he declined to
accept, owing to want of harmony, and after a time was ordained over the
other Secession congregation in the place (now Erskine Church). In
August 1820 they called Mr David Young, and came up with the stipend
from 28° to £l°°. At next meeting of Presbytery, to help them in the
competition with Carnoustie, the commissioners intimated an additional rise
of 2s- Three months afterwards Mr Young stated that "he would take the
call to Arbroath in preference to any vacancy in Angus," but the North
Church, Perth, pressed in, to which he was appointed by the Synod. In
February 1822 Mr David Allison became their unanimous choice, and the
call was accepted ; but Stewartfield intervened, and Arbroath was again
disappointed. At this time the congregation suffered through a number of
Mr Hannah's friends withdrawing, and joining the other church, so that the
younger was strengthened at the expense of the elder.
Second Minister.— ]OSKPH HAY, a son of the Rev. James Hay of Alyth.
Anstruther came forward with a rival call, but the time to favour Arbroath
had now come, and Mr Hay was ordained, I5th October 1823. The stipend
named was ^105, with house and garden, and at this figure it stood thirteen
years afterwards, with the addition of a piece of land valued at ,£15 or £20 a
year. In 1836 there were 225 communicants. The church had been en
larged the year after Mr Hay's settlement, and it was now seated for over
700. The debt on the property might be reckoned at ,£550. Throughout
his whole ministry, or at least until visited with partial blindness, Mr Hay
was abundant in labours. At the date just mentioned he was able to report
an attendance of 233 young people at his weekly classes. He was also
accustomed preaching in the villages around, and of the sick visited by him
about one-half, and of the young instructed by him nearly three-fourths,
were not of his own congregation. Work like this must have been productive
of untold good, and at the centre of all else there was the building-up of his
people, Sabbath by Sabbath, in solid acquaintance with the Word of God,
while his consistent life gained him the respect of the whole community.
Mr Hay was Moderator of Synod at the memorable meeting in July 1845,
PRESBYTERY OF ARBROATH 101
when Dr Marshall of Kirkintilloch libelled Dr John Brown for heresy. He
died, nth July 1859, in the sixty-third year of his age and thirty-sixth of his
ministry.
On taking steps to obtain a successor to Mr Hay harmony was disturbed.
Canvassing was alleged, and some were against going forward, but at the
moderation the only candidate proposed was Mr John Wilson, Ph.D. If
any unkindly feeling lingered it was superseded by Mr Wilson's acceptance
of Mitchell Street, Glasgow.
Third Minister. — ROBERT JOHNSTON, I.L.B., from Biggar (now Moat
Park). Ordained, 4th December 1860, the stipend to be ^130, with the
manse. Within ten months Mr Johnston was called to Shamrock Street,
Glasgow ; but removal would have been premature, and he elected to stay.
The present church, with 850 sittings, and built at a cost of ^2600, was
opened, 2/th January 1867, and the name changed from N. Grimsby Street
to Princes Street. In the earlier part of his ministry at Arbroath Mr
Johnston published the first of his expository works : " Lectures, Exegetical
and Practical, on the Epistle of James.'' On 5th December 1871 he accepted
a call to Parliamentary Road, Glasgow, and was loosed from Arbroath,
where he had been for eleven years and a single day.
The membership of Princes Street was now considerably over 410, and
the stipend was to be ,£200, with the manse. At the first moderation Mr
Peter Morton, afterwards of Strathaven, had an absolute majority over other
two preachers , but the call was not signed by over three-sevenths of the
members, and he very considerately declined to accept.
Fourth Minister. — ARCHIBALD B. CAMERON, B.D., from Newmilns.
Mr Cameron had declined St Paul's, Birkenhead, and had also been called
to Belfast, an honour to which a succession of preachers attained in those
days. Ordained, 26th March 1873, and remained there till 25th April 1882,
when he accepted College Street, Edinburgh. The communion roll had
now risen to 450.
Fifth Minister. — JAMES MURRAY, from Kilmarnock (King Street).
Ordained, 2oth December 1882. The membership at the close of 1899 was
over 530, and the stipend .£262, IDS. with a manse.
ARBROATH ERSKINE CHURCH (BURGHER)
AN unsuccessfulattempt was made to forma Burgher congregation in Arbroath
towards the end of last century, and a member of the Antiburgher Church,
we find, was dealt with by his session for making himself active in promoting
the movement. The petitioners were thirty-one in number, and their ap
plication came before the Burgher Presbytery of Perth on i6th December
1794, and was partially successful. In August 1797 the Synod allowed them
,£20 to aid with debt contracted in paying for their meeting-house, but within
three months the parties wished all appointments cancelled. At next Synod
" the treasurer reported that he had not paid the people of Arbroath the ^20,
as he learnt they had fallen from their design of forming themselves into a
congregation." From this time all is blank till i8th May 1813, when the
Presbytery of Aberdeen appointed Mr King of Montrose to preach in Arbroath
any Sabbath in June that he might find most suitable. Sermon followed at
intervals, and on 4th April 1814 a number of inhabitants, designating them
selves heads of families, requested constant supply. The matter took more
definite shape on 27th June, when twenty-three persons petitioned to be formed
into a congregation. The result was that on 7th July Mr Blackadder of
Brechin met with the applicants, received them into communion, and pro-
IO2
HISTORY OF U.P. CONGREGATIONS
ceeded at once with an election of elders. On the fourth Sabbath of August
this little company were to have the Lord's Supper dispensed among them,
and three of their' number were to be ordained to the office of the eldership
on the preceding Thursday.
In Hay's "History of Arbroath" Dr M'Kelvie's statement is contravened
that this congregation originated in dissatisfaction with the services of the
Established Church. The author alleges that their number was very small,
which is quite true, and that very few of them, if any, had been members of
the Established Church. It cpmes out, at least, that of the 23 who formed
the nucleus of the congregation the whole number were from outside, not
one of them having previously been in communion with the Burgher Synod.
For eight or nine years they met, first in Croal's Rooms, and then in the
Trades' Hall, and in April 1815, and again in September 1817, they were
allowed £10 from the Synod Fund to assist them in obtaining supply ot
sermon In 1818 they explained to the Presbytery that they contemplated
having a church built, and a petition to the Synod for aid was answered by
a grant of £20. In 1819 a like sum was allowed them, and congregations
which had given them reason to expect assistance were recommended " to
fulfil these expectations." The church which they had in contemplation was
not opened till 1821. It had sittings for 630, but, according to the above
authority, it remained for a time in an unfinished state, without flooring, and
the end windows not in. There were few to share the burden as yet, their
own account being that " there were rather more than 40 members in the
congregation." It is all in contrast with the strength and importance which
Erskine Church, Arbroath, has since acquired.
First Minister. — WILLIAM HANNAH, from Wigtown. Ordained, I5th
August 1822. Before the Union the Antiburgher congregation of Arbroath
had divided over the same candidate, and, as the. minority refused to
harmonise with their brethren, Mr Hannah firmly declined to accept. The
Union having taken place, the resolve was formed to have him for the
minister of the new church, and with this view supporters of his had been
finding their way from the one congregation into the other without being
regularly disjoined. This was complained of, and even brought under the
notice of the Synod. But with strength augmented by these accessions the
people saw their way to offer a stipend of 100 guineas. In February 1829
Forfar Presbytery arranged that each minister should give the congregation
a day gratuitously, as their minister had been laid aside for some months by
severe illness. On 23rd March Mr Hannah died, in the forty-second year of
his age, as given on the tombstone, and the seventh of his ministry. A
nephew of his, the Rev. Peter Hannah, became minister of Wigtown, their
native congregation, at an after time.
During this vacancy the congregation called Mr William Nisbet, but
after Cowgate, Edinburgh, came in they wished to proceed no further. The
Presbytery, however, having learned from the commissioners that the peti
tion to have the call withdrawn was the result of private correspondence,
refused to grant the request, the right to pronounce on rival calls belonging
to the Synod alone, and leaving room for no underhand adjustments. But
at next meeting the petitioners carried their point. "They cannot see," they
said, "any reason for continuing the process, as the said Mr William Nisbet
is now ordained pastor of the congregation in the Cowgate, Edinburgh."
Second Minister. — PETER DAVIDSON, from Dundee (now Bell Street).
The call was signed by 155 members, and the stipend was 100 guineas as
before, only with ^10 additional for sacramental expenses. In the prosecution
of this call a family name comes up, long and honourably known since then
in connection with Erskine Church, Arbroath, that of Mr David Corsar. Mr
PRESBYTERY OF ARBROATH 103
Davidson was ordained, gth March 1831, and on igth July 1836 he accepted
a call to Stockbridge, Edinburgh (now Eyre Place). When in Arbroath he
published a sermon, entitled "The Voluntary Support of the Gospel Vindicated
and Explained as an Ordinance of Christ." He had preached it at Alyth in
1833, when moderating in a call there, and also from his own pulpit, and
" a request for its publication was transmitted to him, subscribed by upwards
of 200 individuals."
Third Minister. — ALEXANDER SORLEY, from Falkirk (now Erskine
Church). The signatures amounted to 184, and the stipend was to be ,£120,
with £12 for expenses. The call was presented to him in January 1837, but
he was not prepared to accept at once. He had already set aside a call
from Cumbernauld and another of less importance from West Kilbride. On
20th February he wrote the clerk, intimating his acceptance of Arbroath,
but at the meeting of Presbytery on I4th March he was not forward with his
trials. Eight days after this the congregation of Lothian Road, Edinburgh,
met for a moderation, and the vote stood thus : 195 for Mr Andrew Thomson,
and 1 66 for Mr Alexander Sorley. There was nothing now between Arbroath
and the object of their choice, and the ordination took place, 2oth June 1837.
Under Mr Sorley's ministry the congregation grew and prospered. The
time when he began was favourable, the population of the burgh increasing
by about one-third between 1831 and 1841. During the vacancy the com
municants were put at 274, and the average attendance at nearly double that
number. There was a debt of .£200, but it was in course of melting away.
The weak point in their finances was the seat rents, which only yielded
^40 a year, but the funds by-and-by passed into a sounder state, and in
1859 they furnished a stipend of .£180. The present church, with some 800
sittings, was opened on Sabbath, 6th July 1851, by Dr King of Glasgow.
It cost about £1300, which the hall and other accessories raised to ^2000.
On I5th May 1875 Mr Sorley, owing to failing health, resigned his place as
acting minister of Erskine Church, the congregation allowing him ,£150 a
year as a retiring allowance.
Fourth Minister— HENRY ANGUS, M.A., son of the Rev. Henry Angus,
Aberdeen. Ordained over Union Church, Sunderland (now Trinity Church),
on 2nd March 1859, and inducted as colleague and successor to Mr Sorley,
9th February 1876. The stipend was fixed at .£360. Mr Sorley died, 23rd
January 1877, in the sixty-seventh year of his age and fortieth of his ministry.
Mr Angus received the degree of D.D. from Aberdeen University in 1889.
The membership at the close of 1899 reached 600, and the stipend was .4360,
as before.
ARBROATH, ST PAUL'S (RELIEF)
THIS congregation had a prior history, the details of which are not easily got
hold of. It is certain that the church was built in 1825 for Mr John Graham,
who possessed great elocutionary gifts, and had previously ministered to a
Methodist congregation in the town. For some reason he left that connec-
ion, taking the greater part of his people with him. He and they assumed
the name of Relief Methodists, a hybrid between what they had been and
what they were to become. In 1827 Mr Graham set out for England to
raise funds to free the church from its burdens, but, instead of returning, he
settled down as minister of Wallknoll Chapel, Newcastle, a church out of all
ecclesiastical connection. In this isolated state minister and people re
mained till 1 2th August 1835, when, with the sanction of the Synod, they
were received into the Relief communion by the Presbytery of Kelso. Here
io4 HISTORY OF U.P. CONGREGATIONS
we part with Mr Graham, to meet him again under the history of Blackfriars
Relief Church, Glasgow. Park Street pulpit had been occupied for some
time by a locum tenens, but when the membership went down to 52 he
thought it time to leave. His, no doubt, is one of the cases to which the
parish minister's assistant made reference in the New Statistical History :
"Within the period of a very few years three ministers have been literally
starved out of the town by their congregations," the Independents and
Wesleyan Methodists furnishing the additional material out of which this
weapon against Dissenters was fashioned.
When matters were at this low ebb in Park Street the trustees of the
chapel applied to the Relief Presbytery of Perth for sermon, which was
granted on 3oth March 1830. Without waiting to be congregated the people
applied for a moderation, but they were not sufficiently consolidated for this,
neither had they security as yet for retaining their place of worship. How
ever, the trustees were accommodating, and on 27th July a congregation
was constituted, with a membership of about 60. In March 1831 they called
Mr George Boag, who declined, and was settled a year afterwards in Brandon
Street, Hamilton.
First Minister. — WILLIAM ALLAN, from Tollcross, Glasgow. Ordained,
20th December 1831, the managers undertaking to pay him ,£70 a year to
begin with. In 1836 the membership was returned at little under 250, and
the stipend was ,£120. Of the -5 72 sittings the number let had grown from
70 to 200, and the uniform charge was 35. 6d. a year. The great drawback
was the burden of over ,£600 upon the building. Owing to this the stipend
of ,£120 could not be maintained, and in 1859 it was only .£100. But that
year the Board guaranteed a grant of ,£150 for the liquidation of the debt,
and the people must have grappled successfully with upwards of .£450.
For eleven years more Mr Allan laboured on, his stipend sharing in the
benefit of the improved situation. He died, 22nd October 1871, in the
seventy-first year of his age and fortieth of his ministry. " He was," said
George Gilfillan, " a man who, with some peculiarities, possessed a vast fund
of knowledge and much kindness of heart." He succeeded in building up
Park Street Church by unremitting and laborious service.
Second Minister.— JAMES HOWAT, from Muirkirk. Ordained, loth July
1872. The communion roll suffered a big reduction at the transition time,
but in 1878 there was a membership of almost 500, and the stipend was
,£230. In 1887 the church underwent extensive renovation, becoming very
much a new building, and it was opened in February 1888 by the Moderator
of Synod, the Rev. J. B. Smith of Greenock. The expenses, amounting to
between ,£1600 and ,£1700, were met partly by a bazaar and partly by a
legacy from the widow of one of the elders. The present membership is
about 450 and the stipend ,£230, as given above.
CARNOUSTIE (ANTIBUROHEK)
THE original seat of this congregation was Barrymuir, two or three miles to
the west of Carnoustie. On 8th April 1788 a petition from 171 persons in
the parishes of Panbride, Barry, Monifieth, and Monikie, setting forth their
want of the gospel in its purity, and craving supply of sermon, was laid
before the Antiburgher Presbytery of Perth, and it was agreed to grant them
a few days' preaching. But Mr Young of Dumbarrow voted against this, as
he had a sprinkling of families from that wide district, and his opposition
had to be bought off by an arrangement to reimburse his congregation for
the loss their funds might sustain by the new erection. On nth July it was
PRESBYTERY OF ARBROATH 105
reported that steps were being taken for securing ground at Barrymuir on
which to build a place of worship. The spot fixed on was unattractive, and
the country around thinly peopled, but Carnoustie was not then in existence
to put in a rival claim. On 3rd March 1789, 16 members from Uumbarrow,
along with 8 from Dundee (now Bell Street), were formed into a congrega
tion. Such of the outside petitioners as inclined were left free to seek
admission by acceding to the Secession Testimony, and on this footing 1 1
were added some months later. An elder was also disjoined from Arbroath
in 1792 and annexed to Barry.
When or how the Secession first got footing in this locality is uncertain.
Dr M'Kelvie puts it as early as 1744, and he ascribes it to several parish
ioners of Monikie having taken offence at their minister, the Rev. James
Goodsir, for not joining the Four Brethren, "after the support he had given
to their measures." Mr Goodsir, it is true, was one of the forty-two ministers
who remonstrated against the Act of Assembly which provoked Ebenezer
Erskine's Synod sermon, but he died in less than a month after the eventful
meeting at Gairney Bridge. Now, when half-a-century had passed, there
was double possession taken, the "East Muir kirk" being built at Barry for
the Antiburghers and the "West Muir kirk" at Newbigging for the
Burghers, with some miles between. In September 1789 an election of
elders was arranged for at Barry, two of their number who had held office
at Dumbarrow to be received if no objections were offered. In December a
call was brought out for Mr Samuel Gilfillan, whom the Synod in May 1790
appointed to Cornrie.
First Minister. — SIMON SOMMERVILLE, from Lauder (First congrega
tion). The call was signed by 37 male members and 99 adherents. Or
dained, gth November 1791. The stipend promised was ^50, with a house,
and "they would, as far as in their power, provide him with a horse for
sacraments and for the Presbytery, and would assist with fuel driving." Of
Mr Sommerville's work among the young the Missionary Magazine for
1797 has the following notice : — "At Barry the Seceding minister began a
Sunday School in the beginning of Summer, which has succeeded beyond
his most sanguine expectations. Not less than 60 young people attend
every Sabbath morning." But before this there were signs that all was not
moving smoothly at Barrymuir. In 1794 Mr Sommerville's continuous
absence from meetings of Presbytery was found fault with, and he wrote
in reply that the horse which the congregation promised him for these
occasions had not been provided. In 1798 he brought up that his stipend
was not sufficient, nor regularly paid ; but the congregation did not see how
they could advance it, and the Presbytery counselled the raising of the seat
rents by at least is. a year, which would bring from ^5 to £10 additional.
We hear nothing further till 27th August 1804, when Mr Sommerville tabled
his resignation, advancing some charges against his people with which "the
Presbytery expressed their highest disapprobation." On gth October the
Provincial Synod of Perth brought the ill-assorted union to an end. A few
months after this Mr Sommerville threatened to raise an action against the
congregation in the Court of Session over some money demands, but the
Presbytery wrote him that he had no claim, and ordered him to let the
matter drop. He could afford now to forget Barry and its affairs, as he was
already inducted into the far more important charge of Elgin (Moss Street).
Barry now called Mr Robert Buchanan, promising a stipend of ^65, with
a house and an acre of ground. They were also to drive fuel as before, but
there was no further mention of a horse. While waiting the disposal of the
call they came up ,£5, but the Synod none the less preferred Dalkeith (Back
Street) to Barry.
I06 HISTORY OF U.P. CONGREGATIONS
Second Minister.-}^ MURRAY, who had retired from John shaven
three years before. Inducted, 3ist December 1806. As these two calls were
each signed by only 37 male members, the same number as in I794, we fear
that little had come of the 171 outsiders who petitioned for the first supply
of sermon Money demands and strict terms of communion may have been
too much for the surface zeal of the majority. But when the third year of
Mr Murray's ministry was closing a step was taken which led the way
to better things. For twelve years the Barrymuir ministers had preached
occasionally at the Feus of Taymouth, and the proprietor now offered them
i half-acre of Around on which to build a church. The great majority of the
members favoured the proposal to remove, and in April 1810 it was reported
to the Presbytery that the building would cost from ^180 to £200, of which
/6o had been already subscribed. Soon afterwards there was the transfer
ence from the "Muir" of Barry to the "Feus" of Taymouth. This was
Carnoustie of which the first stone was laid only thirteen years before. 1 he
Constitutionalists had already entered on the field, and a congregation m
that connection was erected in July 1810. The two sections of Antiburghers
were to keep each other's strength in check, while upholding the interests of
a pure gospel. Mr Murray died, ist July 1817, in the fifty-third year of his
ao-e and twenty-seventh of his ministry. The Rev. Samuel Gilfillan of
Comrie, who had been his room-mate at college, referred to him in his
Journal as his " dearest friend, and one of the best men he ever knew. It
is pleasant to read that the last year of his ministry was the most com
fortable, and apparently the most successful, he ever had. Mr Murray by
his marriage in 1808 became brother-in-law to the Rev. Andrew Aedie of
Forfar, and by the marriage of his own sister in 1801 he was similarly
related to the Rev. James Sinclair of Stronsay.
The congregation in October 1819 called Mr William Parlane, procedure
which the Presbytery branded as "fickle and unhandsome," because the
moderation was applied for in view of another. It had surely been less
frequent in those days than now for one candidate to intervene at the
eleventh hour and supplant another. But Mr Parlane's mind was made up
not to go to Carnoustie, and he kept his ground with the same strength of
resolve as he manifested sixty years afterwards, when occasion offered. At
last the congregation wished the matter brought to an issue, and Mr Parlane s
mind being unchanged, the call was laid aside. On 24th October 1820 calls
to Mr David Young were laid on the Presbytery's table from Arbroath and
Carnoustie, but after some time the North Church, Perth, came into view,
with weighty results.
Third Minister.— JAMES CHAPMAN, from Perth (North), whom they had
called three years before. Trials for ordination had been appointed, but he
held back, pleading difficulties of which he had no previous knowledge.
Many of the people had taken up the impression that he had no liking for
the place, and some were afraid his settlement would not be for the good
of the congregation. It was found, on the other hand, that the great majority
of the women in the congregation, who, on the old Antiburgher lines, took
no part in the election, were strongly in favour of Mr Chapman. Still, he
wished the call dropped, and the Presbytery decided accordingly. This
was in April 1819, but in April 1822 Carnoustie was still without a minister,
and Mr Chapman was still without a church. Would it not be possible for
the parties to come together again? A moderation was asked for, a call
brought out to Mr Chapman, and on I4th August he was ordained at
Carnoustie. The stipend was to be ^80, with a house and two acres of
land. It might have been more had not a burden of .£500 rested on the
property. In 1827 Mr Chapman became unfit for regular work. In this
PRESBYTERY OF ARBROATH 107
state matters continued for five years, and then, on a representation from the
people, the Presbytery met at Carnoustie on 5th June 1832, and repaired
constituted to the manse. The conclusion come to was that the congrega
tion could not go on in their present way, and the minister, submissive to
the will of Providence, was prepared to resign his charge, if that were thought
desirable. On igth September the Synod decided that his demission should
be received, and granted him a donation of ,£20. He was to have the use
of the manse till a successor should be appointed. He died, 24th July 1833,
at Barnhill, Perth, in the eleventh year of his ministry. His age has not
been ascertained, but he was probably a good deal older than his official
standing would suggest, as we find from the records of Abernethy Church
that he taught a school there as early as 1805.
Fourth Minister. — LAURENCE PlTCAITHLY, also from Craigend, but the
family belonged to Forgandenny. Ordained, i8th February 1834, and at
the end of 1837 the communicants were 184, and the stipend was ^86, with
the manse and an acre of ground. The debt had also been reduced by
^170 ; but the most hopeful part of the minister's report to the Parliamentary
Commission was that his two classes on Sabbath evenings were attended by
78 young persons, the great majority of whom did not belong to the con
gregation. At this time about one-fifth of the membership was drawn from
the parish of Panbride, and there were two or three families from each of
the parishes of Monifieth, Carmyllie, and Monikie. On 8th July 1845
Mr Pitcaithly intimated to the Presbytery that he had accepted a situation
in an educational establishment at Simla, Northern India, where he would
also have an extensive field of ministerial and missionary usefulness, and
requested his resignation to be accepted without any delay. So, amidst
expressions of unabated affection on the part of the congregation, and deep
regret on the part of the Presbytery, the connection was dissolved. Of
Mr Pitcaithly's fortunes in the Far East we have nothing to put on record,
but the post he filled shows him to have been a man of scholarly attainments.
He died at Simla, igth December 1849.
In October 1845 Carnoustie congregation called Mr James Cursiter, who
preferred Comrie. The stipend at this time was only ^75, as the people
were in the midst of an effort to have their debt of ,£300 cleared off. This
was accomplished by the aid of the Liquidation Board, which made a grant
of one-half, and for the first time in its history the congregation could afford
to breathe with freedom.
Fifth Minister. — GEORGE JERMENT M'KENZIE. Ordained, 24th Nov
ember 1846, amidst bleak wintry surroundings. Mr M'Kenzie was born in
India, but brought up in Edinburgh under Dr Ritchie's ministry, along with an
only sister, who became the wife of the Rev. James Berwick, Rathillet. His
father's family belonged to Nigg congregation, but his mother was a daughter
of Dr Jerment of London, a relation which placed Moncrieff of Culfargie
among his ancestors. He had been called to Nairn four years before, but
declined. " I did so," he explained, "because I thought that after a longer
trial of the work of a probationer I might, if Providence gave me a call to
another church, find my difficulties either lessened or entirely removed."
He died, i8th November 1847, and was buried on the first anniversary of his
ordination. His age, as given on his tombstone in Newington cemetery,
was twenty-eight. A few specimens of Mr M'Kenzie's discourses were
published soon afterwards, with a memoir by his cousin, Mr William Barlas,
"the blind preacher," who, like himself, was a grandson of Dr Jerment's.
Sixth Minister. — JOHN PRIMROSE MILLER, a son of the Rev. James
Miller of Huntly, a grandson of the Rev. John Primrose of Grange, a brother
of the Rev. Alexander Miller, then in South Ronaldshay, and he became a
io8 HISTORY OF U.P. CONGREGATIONS
son-in-law of the Rev. James Scott, Inverness. Johnshaven brought out a
call for Mr Miller a fortnight later, so that in the fifth year of his probationer-
ship he had two vacancies to choose between. Ordained, gth January 1849.
The stipend at first was ,£86, with manse, garden, and a piece of ground.
In seven years the people gave £100, and received ^10 in aid. On iQth
June 1873 a new church in a more central position was opened, with accom
modation for 550 when the galleries were finished, and built at a cost of
slightly under ^2000. In the beginning of 1880 Mr Miller's ministry at
Carnoustie came unexpectedly to a close. On the 29th of December his
elders were present at the Presbytery, and expressed the pain they felt in
dealing with a matter affecting their minister's reputation. Next week a
committee of inquiry reported that they had examined witnesses, but had
failed to get evidence which would justify further action. There had been
indiscretion, and forgetfulness of the injunction : " Let not your good be
evil spoken of," but the Presbytery wound up the case by expressing
" continued confidence in Mr Miller." Unfortunately, the session and con
gregation were still to be reckoned with, and before next meeting, on loth
February. 1880, Mr Miller had seen enough to make him "desirous of
resigning." So, a payment of ,£200 being arranged for, the ministerial tie,
which had lasted thirty-one years, was dissolved. He then removed to
London, where he was employed as pulpit supply, and where he died, 23rd
June 1900, in the eighty-third year of his age.
Seventh Minister. — JOHN F. DEMPSTER, who had been four years in
Lumsden, Aberdeenshire. Inducted, 26th August 1880. The communion
roll in Mr Miller's time never quite came up to 200 ; but Carnoustie was
growing to large dimensions, the population having nearly doubled itself
within ten years. The stipend from the people was to be ,£130, with a manse,
recently built at a outlay of ^850, of which nearly a third came from the
Manse Board. Since then there has been steady increase both in numbers
and in resources. In 1893 the membership was close upon 300, and the
funds afforded ^200 a year. At the close of 1899 there were over 350 on
the communion roll, and the stipend was .£220, with the manse.
LETHAM (ANTIBURGHER)
ABOUT the end of the last century Letham was a scene of busy activity, the
inhabitants being chiefly hand-loom weavers. Had all been right at Dum-
barrow the Antiburghcr congregation there might have shared in the benefit,
but the pulpit was already under eclipse. On I4th March 1797 sermon was
obtained from the Burgher Presbytery of Perth by 77 persons in Letham, with
the view of forming a congregation in that connection. In the course of a year
they arranged for the building of a place of worship, and the Synod in April
1799 allowed them .£20 to assist them in the work. The church, with its 200
sittings, was scarcely opened when a section of the Dumbarrow Antiburghers
appeared to contest the ground. The Burgher cause succumbed early, and
the question with the Synod in September 1802 was how to recover the £20
they had sunk on the building. It had passed to the Independents, and it
gave them a footing in the village, which they retained till 1886. We come
back now to Dumbarrow congregation.
After the Antiburgher Synod of 1800 had deposed Mr Young the party
adhering to the denomination petitioned Forfar Presbytery for aid. They
pleaded the fewness of their numbers "and their being divided and broken in
judgment anent the present dispensation." Mr Young having refused to give
up the meeting-house, they were to worship at Letham, a village a mile to
PRESBYTERY OF ARBROATH 109
the east. As the congregation, when entire, had not over 1 20 members, \ve
may reckon that the applicants did not exceed 50 or 60. They were without
a session, but they had two elders ordained before the end of the year, and
sermon was kept up at Letham in an irregular way, the people being expected
on blank Sabbaths to attend at Forfar, where they enjoyed sealing ordinances.
In 1814 they asked advice about building a church, and next year they even
applied for a moderation, undertaking £60 of stipend and £10 for a house.
The proposal to build a church for themselves was now abandoned, and
services were kept up in the village hall as before.
In July 1826 the Presbytery were taken aback by the announcement
that Letham congregation was to ask no more sermon for the present.
The income was found to be much under the expenditure, and they could
not even provide proper accommodation for the preachers. When there
was sermon the services were attended by about 40 members, none of
them nearer Forfar than four miles. An effort was now made to have
everything put upon a better footing, and in 1828 the congregation was
placed on the list of missionary stations, " as they were not able to pay
the necessary expenses of sermon on the present plan." But a regular
place of worship was still in their thoughts, and at last, in August 1838,
the Magazine announced the opening of a new church at Letham, and
added that " the station presented a most promising appearance.'"' The
sittings were 300, and the debt of ^140 was cleared off in a few years by
a grant from the Board and the assistance of friends. But unfortunately
the village of Letham was now in a declining state through the failure of
the manufacturing interest.
In 1836 the number of parishioners attending the station was given
at about 60, and the Independents had a membership of 44. Still, the
Secession cause showed tenacity of life, and to meet the wishes of the
people to have an ordained missionary located among them Mr Watt,
afterwards of Aberlady, was stationed for some time at Letham. But the
real solution of their difficulties, it was believed, lay in the obtaining of a
settled minister, and with this view a moderation was obtained immediately
after the opening of the new church. Mr John Robb became the choice
of the majority, but it was found there had been no accredited communion
roll to go by, and of a large proportion it was doubtful whether they were
members at Letham or at Forfar. The call having been laid aside, some
members of Presbytery met with the session " for the purpose of separating
between the two congregations," and 43 were put down as connected with
Letham.
First Minister. — JAMES GALLOWAY, from Lauriston, Glasgow (now
Erskine Church). The people were to give 50 guineas, and it was under
stood that ,£20 would be granted by the Synod. The call was signed by
36 members, and there was a paper of adherence with 80 names. Mr
Galloway was ordained, i6th July 1839, but within half a year Letham
was out into the open sea again. Rapidly the income fell behind the
expenditure, and, though Mr Galloway testified that he had done his
utmost to further the interests of the congregation, the Presbytery were of
opinion that he ought to demit his charge, and on i8th February 1840 the
short-lived relationship was declared at an end. The people made no
objections, and had paid him all his stipend and something more. The
Presbytery blamed Mr Galloway for having manifested want of confidence
as to the success of the congregation from the very first, and they felt
so keenly on the point that they refused to recommend the placing of his
name on the roll of probationers. This was done, however, and Mr
Galloway itinerated as a preacher for a number of years. In 1845 ne sought
no HISTORY OF U.P. CONGREGATIONS
admission to the Free Church, and the Assembly authorised the Presbytery
of Glasgow to admit him to the standing of a minister without a charge.
He is then lost sight of till March 1864, when he was introduced to the
Presbyterian Church of Victoria as a minister recently arrived from
Scotland, but he remained in that colony only a year. We can follow
him no farther.
Mr Watt was now located at Letham a second time, but in the beginning
of 1841 a call, signed by 29 members and 108 adherents, was addressed
to Mr Sloan S. Christie, who after a period of indecision accepted
Crossford.
Second Minister. — ROBERT FORBES, from Kinross, where his father was
long Procurator- Fiscal, and an elder in the East United Secession Church.
Ordained, 25th October 1842. The report of the Home Mission Board for
that year gave a membership of 30, and the people could not give more
than ^35 and a small piece of ground. The attendance, it was said, ranged
from 70 to 200. Mr Forbes, after a period of broken health, died on igth
December 1847, in the thirty-third year of his age and sixth of his ministry.
During this brief period the membership doubled itself, and altogether he
must have made the most of the situation. On the roll of the Sabbath
school there were upwards of 100 names entered, and Mr Forbes taught the
more advanced scholars himself, besides a class for young men and young
women during the week. During his ministry there was a debt of ^140
cleared off, the one-half coming from the Board. It was also through his
exertions that a manse was built. Next year the congregation called
Messrs David Young and Joseph Hay, both of whom were under call to
Lethendy ; but while the former declined both invitations, and was after
wards settled at Chatton, in Northumberland, the latter accepted Lethendy
and declined Letham.
Third Minister. — ANDREW R. JOHNSTON, an ordained probationer, who
had been ten years in Duntocher, but resigned in 1849. Mr Johnston entered
on a six months' location in January 1850, but before the first two months
had expired a moderation was applied for. The call was signed by 51
members and 70 adherents, and instead of ^35 the people saw their way to
offer .£50. Though Mr Johnston had difficulties his induction took place,
25th June 1850 ; but the promise of better days to Letham was not yet to be
fulfilled. The funds may have kept up while the novelty lasted, but in 1853
it was found that £11 of the money engaged for had to be made up by sub
scription. But in April 1855 matters at Letham were brought to a point.
In arranging a supplement for another triennial period it was proposed to
make the factors ^50 from the people and ,£40 from the Board, but when
a deputation from the Presbytery met with the congregation the attendance
was limited to three office-bearers, and they were of opinion that the people
could promise no definite sum. At a second meeting in October all present
agreed that ^50 was beyond them, and Mr Johnston, seeing the situation
of affairs, intimated his resignation. On nth March 1856 he urged im
mediate acceptance, and, the congregation having left the case in the hands
of the Presbytery, the connection was dissolved. Mr Johnston's name was
to be placed on the list either of regular or occasional supply as he might
prefer. He chose the latter, and removed to Glasgow, where he died, i5th
April 1875, aged sixty-three.
It was a fair question now whether the time for closing the scene at
Letham had not arrived. There was a Free church in the place with a
goodly following, and the population of the village, which had increased
considerably between 1831 and 1851, was undergoing rapid decline. But
the people were said to be particularly desirous to have ordinances continued.
PRESBYTERY OF BANFE in
A location was accordingly arranged for, and Mr Robert Fisher, afterwards
of Dubbieside, laboured at Letham for a time in that capacity. But a fixed
ministry was once more to be secured, and, though the members only
numbered about 40, it was thought " many who had left would return."
Fourth Minister. — ALEXANDER CLARK, from Bethelfield, Kirkcaldy.
Ordained, 27th April 1858. Letham was now to have "a last trial for
existence," and the new minister was to lead the forlorn hope. Devotedness,
by all accounts, was not wanting, and the progress made was all that could
be expected. In three years the people came up from ^25 to ,£30, and there
was even mention of ,£40 being raised to meet a supplement of ^50. But
as the attendance at the day service in winter was from 20 to 30, and in
summer from 30 to 40, the Board might be excused asking the Presbytery
on what grounds they rested their case for the continued existence of
Letham congregation, " at the expense, not merely of funds, but a separate
minister's labours." But this raised the question of life interests, and in
1871 the matter was referred to the Synod. The decision come to was
that the grant should cease at the end of a twelvemonth, and it was re
mitted to the Home Mission Board " to make such liberal arrangements
with Mr Clark as his circumstances and his faithful labours at Letham for
thirteen years entitle him to expect." At the expiry of the year of grace Mr
Clark intimated to the Board that "he would expect at least ^500, with right
to the Aged and Infirm Ministers' Fund," and their reply was that " they could
not offer him more than .£250, and they thought that liberal." On 6th
October 1874 ^r Clark was loosed from his charge.
It was fortunate that at this time there was an opportunity given for
disposing of the property on fair terms to Dunnichin School Board, but
the difficulty lay in adjusting about the retiring allowance. The Mission
Board was prevailed on to grant ,£350 as compensation money, exclusive of
,£31 which had been obtained by Dr Sommerville from private sources.
The figure Mr Clark kept by was ,£400, and his brethren in the Presbytery
were left to find the remaining ^19 as they best could. At the first meeting
of Presbytery after the resignation was accepted an offer of ,£350 for the
property was given in from the School Board, coupled with the notice
that if this were not accepted another site would be chosen. The bargain
was concluded forthwith, and that day, 3rd November 1874, the congregation
of Letham was formally dissolved, and all that remained to represent the
mother church of Dumbarrow passed out of existence. Mr Clark on leaving
Letham removed to Edinburgh, where he carried on mission work for a
long course of years in connection with Nicolson Street Church, and only
retired recently under the pressure of advancing years.
PRESBYTERY OF BANFF
HUNTLY (ANTIBURGHER)
IN 1770, when Elgin Presbytery was formed, Huntly and Grange are entered
as a single vacancy. It is understood that Craigdam, distant more than
twenty miles, drew members from that locality at an earlier period, and that
these became the nucleus of this congregation.
First Minister. — GEORGE COWIE, a native of Banff district. Ordained,
I3th February 1771, over the united congregation of Huntly, Grange, and
Cabrach, though Grange is ten miles from Huntly, and Cabrach considerably
ii2 HISTORY OF U.P. CONGREGATIONS
more. In September 1773 Huntly received ,£5 from the Synod to aid them
in building a church. This entry betokens the slender sums expended on
Seceding places of worship in those days, and also helps us to fix the date of
the erection. But it came by-and-by to be felt that Mr Covvie's energies
were spread over too wide a circumference, and on 25th July 1775 it was
agreed that the Association should be divided into three, each of them with
two centres — viz. Grange and Keith, Huntly and Culsalmond, Cabrach and
Auchindoir. They all pleaded to have Mr Cowie for their minister, but Huntly
and Culsalmond got the preference.
In a few years Mr Cowie gave evidence that he was not in line with
Antiburghcr strictness. In March 1782 it was reported to the Presbytery
that he had gone to Banff one Sabbath afternoon to hear a Relief minister.
Called before them he admitted that several times he had heard ministers of
various denominations within the last few years, and that he looked on this
as the surest way of ascertaining what their characteristics were. After pro
tracted dealings he acknowledged wrong-doing, and the Presbytery expressed
dissatisfaction "with his principles on the head of promiscuous hearing, and
with his conduct, particularly on a recent occasion, when his own people
wanted sermon." Towards the close of the century Mr Cowie became the
leader of an anti-sectarian agitation which shattered in its progress several
Antiburgher congregations in the counties of Aberdeen and Banff. The
controversy turned on the formation of missionary societies upon a catholic
basis, and the countenancing of the missionary preachers, as the Haldancs
and their coadjutors were called. On these matters contention waxed keen,
first in Aberdeen Presbytery, and then in the Synod. To the Supreme
Court which met in April 1800 Mr Cowie sent an ill-tonecl letter, in which
he characterised some of his co-presbyters as the "south country's leavings."
On the 25th of that month he was suspended from the exercise of his office.
The sentence was disregarded, and, as Mr Cowie possessed remarkable pulpit
gifts, his was "a name that for many years carried with it an electric energy
in the north." He died, as his tombstone bears, on 4th April 1806, in the
fifty-seventh year of his age and thirty-sixth of his ministry.
The bulk of the congregation having adhered to Mr Cowie, the Secession
cause was all but extinguished in Huntly. The remnant who adhered to the
Synod had a long and weary struggle to maintain. In 1805 they petitioned
the Synod to appoint them supply for six months, and pay the preachers,
leaving them to provide the lodgings. In 1809 there was some prospect of
Cowie's people returning to their old connection. Though Independents in
a way, they had a favour for the Presbyterian system, with a session in each
congregation. Had this movement succeeded another church would not
have been needed, but the terms laid down by the Presbytery were too
stringent, and the result was that the majority became Congregationalists,
while a smaller number returned to the communion of the Secession. The
second place of worship was built in 1809, with sittings for 340.
In August 1812 the people called Mr Robert Morrison, who had preached
there, as he said, " to a small handful of seemingly not very opulent people,
many of whom went to church with nothing on their heads but old night
caps," but the Synod appointed him to Bathgate. A year afterwards they
called Mr Thomas Gilmour, a probationer from Strathaven (First), but " he in
the most positive manner refused to accept." The work was too much and
the stipend too little, and rather than submit to be ordained at Huntly he
would remain a preacher all his days. The congregation withdrew their call,
and he was afterwards appointed to North Shields in preference to Moyness.
His ordination took place, 22nd September 1813, and he died, ist July 1841,
in the seventieth year of his age and twenty-eighth of his ministry. Huntly
PRESBYTERY OF BANFF 113
next made choice of Mr Charles Robertson, of whom fuller particulars will
be given under Holm congregation, Orkney. It was not much to be regretted
that this call proved unsuccessful.
Second Minister. — JAMES MILLER, from Haddington (West). Ordained,
loth May 1815. The stipend promised was ^80, with ^10 for house rent,
but the Presbytery took them " as engaged to cast, win, and lead home their
minister's peats, and drive his coals, over and above the ,£90." The
signatures to the call were not given, but it was recorded that " a great many
persons residing in and about Huntly, not members of the congregation,
most cordially approved, and wished the settlement pressed forward." But
the injury done the cause in Mr Cowie's time was never to be repaired. In
1837 the communicants were only about 130, 70 of these in the parish of
Huntly, and the other 60 from Gartly, Drumblade, Forgue, and Glass.
Nearly half of the families were from over three miles, and 9 members came
from beyond ten miles. The stipend now was ,£97, including everything. Of
this sum a great part must have been raised by subscription, as the ordinary
income was only ,£75. In the Independent church there were about 150
communicants, and the stipend was ^100. The two united would have
formed a vigorous congregation, with the means of providing a fair income
for their minister. As it was, difficulties increased with Mr Miller, and on
22nd June 1847, when he was about threescore and ten, his resignation was
accepted. He died at Grange on i6th October 1863, m the eighty-seventh
year of his age, leaving two sons in the ministry — the Rev. Alexander
Miller, afterwards of Huntly, and the Rev. John Primrose Miller of
Carnoustie. Their mother was a daughter of the Rev. John Primrose of
Grange, and in this way the family had a wide clerical connection.
After Mr Miller's retirement the congregation called Mr James Inglis,
who preferred Johnstone, and Mr John Young, who became minister of
Newburgh.
Third Minister. — JAMES WHITE MAILER, M.A., from Perth (North).
Ordained, 29th August 1849. Mr Mailer was the author of several works,
the best known of which is entitled " Philosophy of the Bible ; or, Union
between Philosophy and Faith." In the latter part of his ministry he threw
himself with much enthusiasm into the revival movement. Died, ist May
1869, in the forty-sixth year of his age and twentieth of his ministry.
Fourth Minister.— ALEXANDER MILLER, M.A., previously of Keith, and
son of Mr Miller, the former minister. Admitted, i4th December 1869.
After five years of successful labour Mr Miller was constrained to tender
his resignation, and on 22nd December 1874 he was loosed from his charge.
Next March the congregation called Mr R. C. Inglis, probationer,
from Kirkcaldy (Bethelfield), who declined, and was ordained at Berwick
(Chapel Street) on 28th December following, where he still labours. On
leaving Huntly Mr Miller acted for a number of years as secretary of the
Scottish Coast Mission. Having removed from Edinburgh to London he
died there, I2th June 1900, in his eighty-fourth year, being survived by his
brother, the Rev. John Primrose Miller, only eleven days.
Fifth Minister. — DAVID MERSON, B.D. from Cabrach. Ordained,
i3th December 1875. The membership at this time was 135, and the stipend
from the people ^90. Mr Merson resigned, 5th September 1882, and was
inducted into the English Presbyterian church, Stamfordham, I7th July
1884. In 1887 he published a book which deserves to be more widely known
than it is, "The Heroic Days of the Church." It portrays the working out
of religious liberty in various lands amidst tears and blood. Mr Merson
died, 1 3th June 1897, in the forty-ninth year of his age and twenty-second of
his ministry.
ii4 HISTORY OF U.P. CONGREGATIONS
Sixth Minister.— ANDREW B. DICKIE, M.A., from Kilwinning, a nephew
of the Rev. Andrew Dickie, Aberdeen. Ordained, 5th June 1883. The
membership at the close of 1899 was 88, but the stipend was still .£90, with a
manse.
GRANGE (ANTIBURGHER)
ON 25th July 1775 Grange was disjoined from Huntly, and in conjunction
with Keith, eight miles distant, began to receive supplies as a vacancy.
Their place of worship, a primitive affair thatched with heather, stood at the
northern extremity of the parish, five miles from the Established church. It
may be premised that in sketching the history of Grange and the three con
gregations that come next much information has been drawn from Dr Gordon's
" Chronicles of Keith," etc., a marvel of minute and accurate research.
First Minister.— ANDREW YOUNG, from Eaglesham. Ordained at
Keith, 1 2th November 1777. Grange, however, was considered the chief
centre, and there the manse was built, of which the mason work cost only
^3. On I4th December 1785 Keith was formed into a distinct congrega
tion, but Mr Young, who was of a delicate constitution, preferred to remain
in Grange. He died, 2ist May 1788, in the thirty-seventh year of his age
and eleventh of his ministry.
Second Minister.— JOHN PRIMROSE from Alloa (now Townhead).
Ordained, 28th July 1789. The call was signed by 22 male members, and
the stipend promised was ,£40, with a free house. After receiving licence
Mr Primrose was fixed on by the Synod to undertake a mission to Nova
Scotia, but he preferred to remain at home, and eventually settled down at
Grange. In 1791 the Presbytery granted occasional sermon to Portsoy, a
place which came to obtain a regular share of Mr Primrose's labours, as will
be seen when we come to Portsoy.
Towards the end of the century Grange congregation suffered through
the dissensions which prevailed in that quarter in connection with Mr
Cowie's case, and Aberdeen Presbytery represented to the Synod the
inability of the people to support their minister, which brought them the
promise of ,£20. Soon after this Ord took the place of Portsoy, with the
advantage of being considerably nearer, and Mr Primrose preached there, in
.a carpenter's shop, every third Sabbath till 1819. In 1808 the old church at
Grange was displaced by another and a better.
In 1831 Mr Primrose, who had reached the age of fourscore, was in
capacitated for regular work through palsy, and was allowed an annuity of
£30 from the Synod, which he did not long enjoy. He died, 28th February
1832, in the eighty-first year of his age and forty-third of his ministry. Mr
Lind of Whitehill has described him in his Journal as "a singularly tasteful,
sound, and faithful minister," and as having " died full of honour and in
ripeness for heaven." He says further that on a slender stipend he brought
up an attractive family, and " watched over a flock which has not been very
dutiful to him, as to support at least." Three daughters of Mr Primrose
were married to Secession ministers, the Rev. James Miller, Huntly ; the Rev.
Hugh Douglas, Lockerbie ; and the Rev. John Meikleham, Grange.
Third Minister. — JOHN MEIKLEHAM, M.A., from Buchlyvie. Ordained
as colleague and successor to Mr Primrose, 3ist August 1831. The church
was in a feeble condition at this time, and the aged minister had been appre
hensive that ordinances might be discontinued, but under Mr Meikleham
it improved, till in twelve years the membership exceeded 100. A number
of years before this a manse was built at a cost of ^200, a sum which the
people raised with the aid of friends ; but the church had soon after to
PRESBYTERY OF BANFF 115
undergo repairs to make it comfortable or even safe. This left them with
a debt of £S9i of which the Liquidating" Board in 1839 undertook to pay one-
half, if the congregation would raise the other half. The terms were met,
very much through the kindness of a widow in humble life, who gave £14.
out of her limited means. In 1849 the stipend was £64 and the manse
from the people, with a supplement of ^30 from the Board. In 1875 the
congregation, though a third lower in numbers, gave ,£90, and the entire
stipend was now ,£197, ios., with the manse as before. Mr Meikleham's
resignation, owing to age and infirmities, was accepted on 7th March 1876.
His son John, after passing through a theological course at our Hall, had
settled down as a teacher at Pluscarden, near Elgin, and there the father
died, 1 2th April 1879, in the seventy-sixth year of his age and forty-eighth
of his ministry. Another son is the Rev. M. B. Meikleham, Rockvilla,
Glasgow, and the Rev. James Gilfillan, Longtown, is a grandson.
The congregation now called Mr H. J. T. Turnbull, for whom a quiet
place like Grange might have proved peculiarly suitable, but Nairn super
vened, and was accepted.
Fourth Minister.— GAVIN STRUTHERS Mum, M.A., son of the Rev.
Francis Muir, Junction Road, Leith. Ordained, I5th August 1877, and
loosed, 23rd March 1886, on accepting a call to Slateford. Mr Muir left the
property much better than he found it. Mainly through him the old manse
was replaced at the expense of ^1000, of which only ^250 came from the
Manse Fund. There was also a sum of ,£200 over for the building of a new
church.
Fifth Minister. — JOHN MILLER, M.A., from Carluke. Ordained, 22nd
March 1888. Loosed, 5th April 1892, on accepting a call to the English
Presbyterian church, Belford, Northumberland. There Mr Miller still
labours, and under him the congregation has much improved both numeri
cally and financially,
Sixth Minister. — R. E. GILBERT, from Crossgates. Ordained, 27th
September 1892. A new church, seated for 250, was opened on Sabbath,
8th December 1897, by the Rev. John Young, Home Mission Secretary.
The cost was a little over .£800, and the debt was entirely wiped off
before the Union by subscriptions, monthly collections, and a grant of ^300
from the Mission Board. The membership in December 1899 was 87, and
the stipend from the people ,£70, with the manse. But Grange has still
ground of its own to cultivate, there being no Established or Free church
nearer than four miles, and no U.P. church nearer than eight miles.
CABRACH (ANTIBURGHER)
THIS branch of Mr Cowie's original congregation was long in obtaining a
minister. The church, supposed to have been built in 1772, was a thatched
house of very limited capacity. The contract for mason work was ,£8, ios. ;
for carpenter work, .£4 ; for quarrying, dressing the stones, setting up the
scaffolding, and putting on the slates, ^10, 2s. Mr Troup, the Antiburgher
minister of Elgin and Moyness, is believed to have preached at Cabrach so
early as 1760, when he applied the text, " Like a crane or a swallow so did
I chatter," to the spiritual condition of Scotland in those times of defection.
This tradition may be safely relied on, the material being so memorable.
From this time onwards sermon was kept up at intervals in that neighbour
hood by Antiburgher ministers, and in particular by Mr Brown of Craigdam.
The first preacher they called was Mr Isaac Ketchen, but he had no
u6 HISTORY OF U.P. CONGREGATIONS
clearness to accept. Nairn congregation brought out a call in his favour
soon after, to which the Presbytery gave effect.
First Minister.— JAMES WYLIE, from Muckart. Ordained over the
congregation of Cabrach and Auchindoir, 8th November 1780. In the very
beginning of Mr Wylie's ministry disaster came. A petition from Cabrach
was laid before the Synod in August 1781, setting forth that their manse had
been burned, and that their minister had sustained serious loss besides. The
Synod enjoined a collection from the several congregations, the amount to
be divided between minister and people as might seem best. What the out
come was is nowhere given ; we only know that Perth (North) sent them
^6, half to Mr Wylie and half to the congregation. But a worse calamity
was at hand, which led to Mr Wylie's deposition on I2th December 1781.
In June 1784 he applied to be restored to office, and the application was
referred to the Synod, but it never came up, and after this all trace of him
is lost.
In 1783 Mr Robert Laing was called to Cabrach, and also to Shiels.
Aberdeen Presbytery gave Cabrach the preference, sympathising, perhaps,
with what that congregation had come through, but Mr Laing refused sub
mission to their decision. The Presbytery had held back from granting
sermon to Cabrach some time before, because the people " had not a house
in which the preachers could lodge with safety at that season of the year."
Calls to Mr Laing, meanwhile, came out from Pathstruie and Dundee, but the
Synod in May 1784 upheld Cabrach in opposition to these new competitors.
Mr Laing, however, continued obstinate, and pleaded before the Presbytery
the incapacity of the people to support a minister, but he was told in reply that
his aversion turned too much on worldly considerations. The case dragged
on for another year, and then the Synod, finding that Cabrach people had
cooled in their attachment to Mr Laing, put the call aside and allowed him
to be settled at Duns.
Second Minister. — DAVID WADDELL, from the parish of Auchterderran,
and the congregation of Leslie (West). Ordained, 1 5th August 1786. The
call was signed by 31 men, and Mr Waddell was prevailed on with difficulty
to accept. His labours were to be divided between Cabrach, Mortlach, and
Auchindoir. his residence to be at Cabrach, and the other two places to
"afford at their own expense quarters for himself and his horse." In 1797
the first church, so cheaply got up, was displaced by another at the cost of
^60. Mr Waddell, it is said, laboured with much acceptance among his
people for a dozen years, and then dissensions arose which necessitated his
resignation. In the end of 1799 the Haldanes were conducting evangelistic
work in that region, and a number of Cabrach congregation, including
several elders, went to hear them. Backed by part of his session, Mr
Waddell attempted to make this offence matter of discipline, and the con
gregation went to ruin among his hands. In April 1800 he petitioned the
Presbytery of Aberdeen to loose him from his charge. The people " had
forsaken their principles," and those of the congregation who adhered to
their minister were able to give him little or nothing. The Synod on I5th
April loosed Mr Waddell from his charge, assigning as the reason " the
mournful situation of affairs in that congregation." He was now a minister
at large, but before the end of the year he was admitted to Shiels.
Cabrach now passed from the position of a regular congregation, though
sermon was never entirely discontinued, and in this state matters moved on
for over sixty years, the name sometimes appearing in the almanac list and
sometimes not. There being no valid title-deeds, the church was reckoned
the property of the landlord, the Duke of Richmond. Occupancy was shared
between the representatives of the two old conflicting parties in the church —
PRESBYTERY OF BANFF 117
the Seceders and the Independents — in proportions varying at different
times. The original Seceders even came forward with intermittent supplies
in 1827, which were continued for two years, and on one occasion, as seems
well attested, three preachers turned up at Cabrach, each of them prepared
to occupy the pulpit on the following Sabbath. In 1836 the Secession cause
in Cabrach came near the verge of extinction. The Presbytery wished a
definite arrangement with regard to the place of worship, which the Inde
pendents claimed for alternate Sabbaths, though by this time they had
nearly died out. A deputation who visited the place reported that the people
agreed to take supply three Sabbaths each month, leaving the remainder to
the Independents ; but they were divided among themselves, and it was
not desirable to expend much of the Church's money upon the station. It
was agreed to keep up partial supply through the summer and then with
draw appointments from Cabrach altogether. But still the lamp burned faintly
on, and in 1839 reviving came through the visit of a certain probationer.
A few months after receiving licence Mr James Morison was sent within
the bounds of Elgin Presbytery, and was to proceed to Cabrach for the first
two Sabbaths of August. On his way north, and after reaching his destina
tion, he read with deep interest Finney's " Lectures on Revivals," of which
he wrote home : " I have reaped more benefit from the book than from all
other human compositions put together." Next Sabbath evening, preaching
in a barn, he put aside his carefully-prepared discourse, and spoke from the
heart to the heart, and from this time "James Morison, forgetting in his
enthusiasm that he was a probationer, became to a great extent an evangelist."
Interest was stirred, and his return for another fortnight in September
widened and deepened the previous impression. " The church," he wrote,
" was filled last Sabbath to overflowing -it has not been so full for many
years." A sermon he preached on missions brought a collection of about ^4,
which was larger by one-half than any collection ever made in Cabrach
before. On revisiting the place after some years he wrote : " Here I am in
much-loved, much-to-be-remembered Cabrach, the place of my second birth."
It was at least the place where he got new impulses and a fresh baptism
from above.
But Cabrach did not yet emerge into the position of a regular station
even. In 1842 the people were receiving supply on alternate Sabbaths, and
there was an attendance of about 100. They shared fully in the benefit of
the M'Phail Bequest, a legacy of ^1000, the interest of which went for
evangelistic work in Banffshire. A local committee in charge of these opera
tions in the summer of 1845 reported as follows: — "Several things render
Cabrach interesting to those engaged in Secession Missions. The Secession
manse, tenanted at one time by a succession of Secession ministers (there
were only two), now standing in ruins ; its chapel now old and unoccupied ;
the full and attentive audiences which are still to be seen when the place is
visited by our missionaries ; its district library, Sabbath schools, and prayer-
meetings, all giving evidence of former and better days." After Banff became
the seat of a Presbytery, in 1852, there was more attention given to the wants
and the peculiarities of this outlying district, and on Sabbath, nth November
1855, the communion was dispensed at Altoun of Cabrach after an interval
of two generations. On the previous week 14 persons residing in Glass and
Cabrach were examined for admission to Church fellowship, and they were
formally received on the Fast Day. Mr Miller of Keith officiated on Sabbath,
and, though the communicants must have been a mere handful, he reported
that the attendance was good, and great interest manifested. On I4th April
1863 the congregation was reorganised, but for other ten years there was
little progress made. Then in September 1874 the building of a new church,
n8 HISTORY OF U.P. CONGREGATIONS
seated for 200, was commenced. " Almost every man in the parish subscribed
to the funds for its erection," and Dr Gordon states that £150 was secured
in this way, while friends in Huntly contributed ,£40, and a native of Cabrach,
a teacher in Glasgow, raised ,£115. A grant of ,£100 was received from the
Extension. Fund, and altogether the outlay of ,£700 was successfully met. A
house was built about the same time, " the most handsome in the valley,"
at the moderate cost of ^500, for which the Board allowed ,£225, leaving the
people and their friends to make up the other ^275. The Synod in 1874
allowed the Presbytery of Banff to proceed 'towards a settlement, if the
people engaged for ^60 of stipend, which would be augmented by supplement
to £150. In the following year the congregation called Mr James Landreth,
afterwards of Brechin, but he was not prepared to settle down at Cabrach,
even for a time.
Third Minister. — ALEXANDER WITHER, formerly of Westray, and under
that heading the earlier part of his ministry will be traced. Inducted, I4th
December 1875. At the close of next year there was a membership of 40,
and the stipend from all sources was .£190, with the manse. Some time
afterwards Mr Wither was invited by the Mission Board to remove to Kaf-
fraria, but he remained in Cabrach till 1892, when, rinding himself unable for
regular work, he proposed to resign his charge. The matter was delayed,
and pulpit supply arranged for, but on 2Oth September 1893 the demission
was accepted. Mr Wither now acts as chaplain to the Edinburgh Fever
Hospital, and is an elder in Gilmore Place Church.
Fourth Minister. — GEORGE TULLOCH, from Moyness. Ordained, nth
December 1894. The membership at the close of 1899 was 43, and the
stipend from congregational funds .£40, with the manse. That large parish,
10 miles in length by 8? in breadth, has two churches, the Established for
Upper Cabrach and the" U.P. for Lower Cabrach, with a distance of three
miles between. Though ordinances require to be kept up, not much is to
be looked for where the population does not average more than three families
to the square mile.
KEITH (ANTIBURGHER)
THE first notice of supply being sent to Keith is in November 1772, when
Mr Cowie requested the Presbytery to appoint a certain probationer to preach
some Sabbaths to his people in that quarter. Keith is eleven miles from
Huntly, and he explained that he could not be so often there as was necessary,
having so many other places to attend to. The application was repeated on
3 ist March 1773, and ten days after this Mr Campbell, minister of Botriphnie,
a neighbouring parish, died, to whose evangelical preaching and death-bed
advice Keith church is understood to have been largely indebted for its
existence. At the division of Mr Cowie's territories into three Grange and
Keith, as we have seen already, though eight miles apart, went to form one
congregation, of which the Rev. Andrew Young became the minister. In
the last week of 1777 five elders were ordained, and in 1780 the first church,
seated for 450, was built at a cost, it was calculated, of ,£160. On I4th
December 1785 Keith was disjoined from Grange, the minister deciding to
remain in the latter place. His delicate constitution, which sometimes un
fitted him for public work, made the lighter sphere desirable, and he also
assigned as a reason for his preference that Keith would have more attractions
than Grange for a young man.
First Minister. — JAMES BUNYAN, son of the Rev. Andrew Bunyan of
Howgate. Ordained, 26th September 1787. There was want of harmony at
PRESBYTERY OF BANFF 119
the outset, the call, signed by 27 men, being confronted by a petition from an
elder and 5 male members, to which 32 women adhered, asking that it be
not sustained. They alleged that, owing to Mr Bunyan's manner of speech,
nearly one-third of the congregation could not understand him. However,
after some more hearings, unanimity was arrived at. The stipend at first
was ,£40 and a free house, but in 1812 it was up to £76.
In the last years of the century the commotion which ruined Cabrach,
and turned the strength of Huntly into another channel, told seriously upon
Keith. In 1796 the Synod virtually forbade co-operation with ministers of
other churches in the work of sending missionaries to the heathen, and the
Presbytery of Aberdeen proved itself the headquarters of conservatism on
this and kindred questions. In April 1798 a memorial from 46 elders and
male members of Keith congregation was laid before the Presbytery,
complaining of some actings of the session on strait-laced lines. They
reckoned it their duty, they said, to do much more in the missionary cause
and in Sabbath-school work than they had hitherto done, and they prayed
the reverend court to take measures to preserve them from opposition at
the hands of their brethren. The Presbytery found the complaint ground
less, and referred the paper to the Synod. There the decision come to was
much as before : Sabbath schools were inconsistent with Secession prin
ciples, if addresses were delivered in them "tending to encroach on the
work of the ministry," if full-grown persons were permitted to be present,
and if hymns of human composition were sung.
Instead of troubling the Church courts further, the complainers broke
away to Independency about the time Mr Cowie of Huntly, the standard-
bearer of the party, had his connection severed with the Antiburgher Synod.
This was the beginning of what became the Burgher church in Keith, the
history of which is to follow. In this way the Secession cause in that place
figured before the community as a house divided against itself. The feelings
engendered between the rival congregations found expression in 1820, when
Mr Bunyan's session " were unanimously of opinion that complete adherence
to the union (with the Burghers) was not safe in the present state of matters."
They would wait till the New Testimony appeared, and in the meantime
Church members were left to follow their own light as to communion with
the united body. Had the congregation been nearer headquarters it would
probably have been either rent in twain at this time or drawn into connection
with the Protestors. When the draft of the proposed Testimony was laid
before the session, they complained that the binding obligation of the
covenants upon posterity was not acknowledged, nor the present seasonable-
ness of renewing the bond asserted. They also went back to their old battle
ground about missionary societies intruding upon sacred offices. But in a
few years the harmony of Mr Bunyan's ministry was otherwise disturbed, and
his resignation, under partial constraint, was accepted, I3th February 1828.
He died on ist June thereafter, in the seventy-first year of his age and forty-
first of his ministry. His tombstone bears that he was "an able and faith
ful preacher of the gospel, and having through life been zealous in his duties,
bearing affliction with patience, he resigned his spirit into the hands of his
Redeemer with confidence."
Second Minister. — JOHN MORRISON, from Glasgow (now Sydney Place).
Ordained, I2th May 1829, and remained in Keith ten years. The stipend
promised was ^80, with manse, garden, and sacramental expenses. The
most noteworthy event in his experience during that period was a charge
of heresy brought against him by one of his elders. The case occupied the
Presbytery two days, and came to nothing. In 1837 the membership was
140, having increased about 50 in five years. Of the families fifteen came
120 HISTORY OF U.P. CONGREGATIONS
from more than five miles. A debt of ^136 rested on church and manse. But
with two congregations in a struggling state, and weakening each other,
Keith was not a comfortable place for a minister to labour in, and on gth
April 1839 Mr Morrison, who had been accepted by the Mission Board for
service in Canada, was loosed from his charge. On 5th March 1840 he
became minister of Madrid, in the State of New York, but near the Canadian
border: membership 200, stipend 500 dollars, with 50 dollars for a house. In
1877 we find him in the pastorate of Waddington, from which he retired,
3ist December 1882. He died, 25th March 1883. A son of his is now Bishop
of Duluth, State of Minnesota.
After a vacancy of more than two years this congregation (the other had
now broken up) called Mr Adam Lind Simpson, who, when the time for
decision came, requested a week or two longer to consider. At that same
meeting a moderation was appointed to Forres, and the call having come
out in Mr Simpson's favour, Keith was declined. They next made choice of
Mr John Callander, but he went to Craigdam instead.
Third Minister. — ROBERT GRAHAM, from Kinross (West). Ordained,
i6th May 1843. Ir> ^45 the debt of ,£218 was cleared off, the Board giving
"penny for penny." On 6th April 1847 Mr Graham intimated to the Pres
bytery that " after long and mature consideration he had come to the de
termination to demit, and leave the communion of the Secession." On the
previous Sabbath he took his session by surprise when he told them between
services that this was his last Sabbath among them. A paper from the
congregation bore that he had assigned doctrinal errors in the Secession
Church as his reason for resigning, and they requested that his demission
be accepted instanter, which was done, and the connection dissolved. He
was received into the Established Church by the General Assembly in May of
that year, and it was urged in his favour that he had been in receipt of a large
stipend at Keith, and could have no worldly object in view by the change,
said stipend having been £70 and a manse, with sacramental expenses.
Mr Graham now ministered for a time in Chapelshade, Dundee, but in 1848
he was presented to the parish of Abernyte by the Crown, and ten years later
he succeeded Dr Caird in Errol by virtue of a presentation from the local
patron. He had the degree of LL.D. conferred on him by the University
of St Andrews in 1867. He died, 24th January 1900, in the eighty-second
year of his age and fifty-seventh of his ministry.
During this vacancy the congregation issued a call to Mr Alexander
Walker, but the signatures were so far short, and the want of cordiality so
marked, that the Presbytery instructed the clerk to state the circumstances
to Mr Walker. Fortunately, Newcastle came in, and acceptance was de
clined. Of Mr Walker more will be given when we reach Crail congrega
tion. The next they called was Mr Peter Whyte,* who preferred Wooler.
Fourth Minister.— ALEXANDER MILLER, M.A., previously of South
Ronaldshay. Inducted, 25th January 1849. Under Mr Miller the con
gregation began to emerge from its difficulties, but after a ministry of
seven years he resigned, "having been elected without solicitation on his
part to be superintendent of the Edinburgh City Mission. The connection
was dissolved, 15111 March 1856. Mr Miller remained in this situation till
the end of 1 869, when he became the occupant of what had been his father's
pulpit in Huntly.
* Mr Whyte was from Dalreoch. Having declined North Middleton as well as
Keith, he was ordained at Wooler (now Towerhill) on isth November 1848 Died
nth April 1879, m the sixty-sixth year of his age and thirty-first of his ministry.
His widow, a daughter of the Rev. James Smith of Dunning survived till nth
September 1899. J
PRESBYTERY OF BANFF 121
Fifth Minister. — JAMES FORRESTER, from Ferry-Port-on-Craig. Or
dained, 3rd December 1857. Under the new minister there was marked
progress in numbers and in general prosperity. In 1865 the old manse
was replaced at an expense of ^615 — ,£525 being raised by the people and
,£90 paid by the Board. But Mr Forrester's course was comparatively brief.
He died at Grantown, 24th August 1866, in the thirty-second year of his
age and ninth of his ministry. Mr Forrester was a son-in-law of the Rev.
David Marshall, Lochee, and his son, the Rev. D. M. Forrester, is now
minister of Wellfield, Springburn.
A vacancy of three years followed, during which three unsuccessful calls
were issued. The first was accepted, and trials for ordination sustained,
but illness and death intervened. The preacher was Mr James Urquhart
Blackwood, from Glasgow (Renfield Street), who had been previously
called to Portadown, Ireland. He died, 3ist May 1868, in his thirty-fourth
year. The membership of Keith at this time was close upon 200, and the
stipend offered was ^150, or nearly one-third more than Mr Forrester had
to begin with. The next they called was Mr James S. Scotland, now of
Newport, but he declined. Then came a divided call to Mr Thomas
Finlayson Henderson, son of the Rev. Archibald Henderson, Lathones,
and a nephew of Dr Finlayson, Rose Street, Edinburgh, but from want of
unanimity it was not sustained. Mr Henderson is now engaged at literary
work in London.
Sixth Minister. — WILLIAM NAIRN, M.A., from Glasgow (Greyfriars),
but a native of Irvine. Ordained, 3ist August 1869, and accepted
Hutchesontown, Glasgow, i5th May 1873. Six months after this Mi-
William Paterson was called to Keith, but he declined, and is now minister
of Windsor Place, Portobello.
Seventh Minister. — W. H. MACFARLANE, from Dennistoun, Glasgow.
Ordained, I5th October 1874. Mr Macfarlane has written a very full,
carefully-got-up, and eminently readable history of Keith congregation,
entitled "'Twixt the Land and the Moss." To this little volume the writer
of the present sketch has been much indebted for material. At the close
of 1899 Keith had a membership of 119, and the stipend from the people
was ^120, with the manse.
KEITH (BURGHER)
ON 6th December 1803 a petition for sermon from some people in and
about Keith was laid before the Burgher Presbytery of Perth, and submitted
to the Synod on the following day. The Rev. Ebenezer Brown, who had
been lately preaching in Keith, and the Rev. Fullarton Paterson of New
Deer, having given an account of the petitioners and their circumstances,
it was agreed to recommend them to the Presbytery for as much supply as
possible. We have here the outcome of the commotion which the case of
Mr Cowie of Huntly occasioned in the old congregation at Keith, when a
party who sympathised with his antagonism to Antiburgher strictness
withdrew from connection with the Secession. They built a church in
1801 with sittings for 500, and had a preacher from the Independents set
over them. But dispeace having arisen between him and them he left
soon after, and as they had four elders among them who on the Congrega-
tipnalist system found their occupation gone, they inclined in the direction
of Presbyterianism again. The appearing of the Rev. Ebenezer Brown
in their pulpit at this opportune time was the very thing to fix their
wavering purpose. So application was made for admission to fellowship
122
HISTORY OF U.P. CONGREGATIONS
with the Burghers, and this led to the setting-up of a Burgher congregation
at Keith. In the following year the four who had been elders under
Mr Bunyan were chosen to form the session of the rival erection.
First Minister.— ROBERT MOFFAT, from Kelso (First). Ordained,
oth April 1806, on a call signed by 29 members and 25 adherents, and the
stipend was to be ^70. Shortly after giving him licence Coldstream
Presbytery entered in their minutes that for months Mr Moffat had not
fulfilled his appointments, but had disappeared— tokens, here, of a tendency
on Mr Moffat's part to self-willed ways, which came out similarly when he
was under call to Keith. But, whatever was the reason, his ministry ended
in turmoil, with a tragic element superadded. On 2gth October 1816
his resignation was accepted, and next Sabbath evening he preached a
farewell sermon to a crowded audience, when he declaimed fiercely against
his people. One of the elders ventured to interrupt him, and under the
excitement which this scene occasioned the poor man committed suicide
that night. It was another stroke sustained by the Secession cause at
Keith.
The sermon preached on that occasion was published, and in a long
appendix Mr Moffat goes into a full recital of his ministerial experiences.
He mentions the danger of granting moderations to churches where undue
reliance has to be placed upon one or two leading men. The calculation
is that by the new minister's "superior powers, or by his transcendent
eloquence, his church will be filled to overflowing in a few weeks, or
months at the most. The event has only not to correspond with the too
sanguine expectations, and the game is up." At Keith Mr Moffat no doubt
met with peculiar difficulties, the Secession having little hold in that part
of the country, and there being no other Burgher church near. Under
the pressure of circumstances he had opened classes for the higher branches
of education, work in which he seems to have been very successful. But
the people, he says, grumbled, and instead of being paid twice a year
he had little sums brought in to him at twenty or thirty different times.
But the narrative was written in a vindictive spirit, and specially to be
condemned was his heartless reference to "the poor unfortunate."
Mr Moffat's after course was fitful. In 1818 the Synod made him
a grant of ^10, which might be raised to ,£20, if thought necessary. He was
also employed for a short time as a preacher. He afterwards conducted
an academy at Whitby, and ministered at one period to a congregation in
Newcastle. In 1832 he lost his standing, and was placed under a sentence
of suspension for six months by Kelso Presbytery, but he seems never to
have applied for restoration. In 1841 Glasgow Presbytery made inquiry
at the Rev. Henry Renton of Kelso about a Mr Moffat who had ^come
whhin their bounds, and was professing himself a minister of the United
Secession Church. He died near Alnwick on 23rd November 1853. Mr
Moffat is entered as the author of a poem in two volumes, entitled " The
Glories of Messiah."
Second Minister. — ANDREW KENNEDY, a native of Leadhills, but from
Sanquhar (North). Ordained, loth December 1817. The call was signed
by 50 members, and the stipend promised was ^80, with manse and garden.
When the First congregation fell vacant in 1828 a committee of Presbytery
met with the members to advise union ; but feeling was adverse, and the
vote went against attempting negotiations, while Mr Kennedy's congregation
declared unanimously that union was most desirable. The Presbytery found
that the membership of each congregation was about 100 ; that hostile feeling
came between, which was likely to increase unless union was effected ; and
that the one congregation could only prosper at the expense of the other.
PRESBYTERY OF BANFF 123
The case was referred to the Synod, where the decision ran as follows : —
" The Synod cannot, in the circumstances of the First congregation, advise
the Presbytery to delay granting a moderation." This led, as we have seen
already, to the Rev. John Morrison's ten years' ministry at Keith, and when
he left in 1839 things were in the same situation as before. Union being
found impracticable unless both pulpits were vacated, the end could only be
gained through Mr Kennedy also retiring, and perhaps not even then. But
he kept by his trying post for other two years, and then the Strathbogic case
told upon the ecclesiastical arrangements of the town.
The parish minister was one of the seven whom the Assembly of 1840
deposed for ordaining the presentee at Marnock, but, like the others, he
obtained an interdict from the Court of Session, and kept possession of his
pulpit. Those of his people who sided with the Evangelicals thereupon with
drew from his ministry. A place of worship being required, they negotiated
with Mr Kennedy's people for the purchase of their church, and when the
bargain was on the point of being struck he tabled his resignation. The
Presbytery met to decide on the case a fortnight afterwards, but by this time
the building was disposed of. On roth May 1841 the demission was accepted,
and Mr Kennedy certified for mission work in Lower Canada. The con
gregation now broke up, two elders and a sprinkling of the members finding
their way back to the old nest, but the greater number adhered to their
former pews, and amalgamated ultimately with the Free Church. The
building is now demolished. Mr Kennedy ministered in Canada to a con
gregation in La Chute for seven years, and then became agent to the
Publication Board at Philadelphia. He died at London, Ontario, igth May
1882, aged ninety-three. When in Keith he did good work in the vanguard
of the total abstinence movement, and was also diligent and successful in
Sabbath-school work.
BANFF (RELIEF)
THIS congregation owed its origin to the doctrines propounded from the
pulpit of the parish church. A single extract from a catechism published
by the Rev. Andrew Skene, who was translated from Keith to Banff in 1762,
will suffice for our present purpose : " Is it difficult to practise what God
requires of us in the New Testament? Far from it, if we begin in time, and
before we have contracted bad habits." As for Jesus Christ, His superiority
to Old Testament prophets consisted in "the perfection of His example, the
purity of His precepts, and the importance of the motives by which He
enforced them." This was too much for even the atmosphere of Banff, and
accordingly hundreds withdrew from his ministry, and acceded to the
Relief Presbytery of Edinburgh, but for want of written documents we
cannot be particular as to dates. However, in the Edinburgh Advertiser
for 2gth September 1775 the following notice occurs : — "A few days ago the
Rev. Alexander Burgess was settled minister of the Church of Relief at
Banff." Mr Burgess, it turns out, was a licentiate of the Established Church,
and though he and his people were nominally connected with the Relief
body, certain entries in the " Annals of Banff" indicate that their place of
worship was looked on very much as a Chapel of Ease. Accordingly, at
Mr Skene's death in 1792 many of them returned to the Established Church.
But Mr Burgess held on for other three and a half years, and then, in
November 1795, tne congregation complained to the Relief Presbytery of
Perth that their minister had deserted his charge. We learn, further, from
the records of the Established Presbytery of Banff, that next May he
i24 HISTORY OF U.P. CONGREGATIONS
" applied to be again received into the Church, and was admitted." Obtain
ing no promotion at home, he is understood to have emigrated to America.
Second Minister. — JOHN M'DERMID, a native of the parish of Kilbrandon
and Kilchattan. Having received licence from the Relief Presbytery of
Perth, Mr M'Dermid was ordained at Banff, I4th April 1796. Of him, the
Haldanes, in the journal of their Evangelistic Tour through the North,
testified that "his people were blessed with a zealous and faithful minister,"
and in the Missionary Magazine for 1798 it is stated that, besides instituting
a Sabbath school, he preached every Wednesday in one or other of the
villages within twelve or fifteen miles of Banff. John Murker also, who
credited Mr Burgess with " little energy," characterised his successor as " a
man of might." Thus did Mr M'Dermid purchase for himself a good degree,
and, after occupying that distant outpost with advantage for six years, he
was invited to Canal Street, Paisley, to succeed the Rev. Patrick Hutchison,
the recognised standard-bearer of the Relief, and on 4th May 1802 he was
loosed from his charge. In 1798 Mr M'Dermid put the number of those
under his pastoral care at 400, of whom about 330 were " examinable
persons," and 40 were from other parishes.
Third Minister. — JOHN LAIDLAW, from Kelso (East). Of Mr Laidlaw's
antecedents we know from a Memoir of Thomas Pringle, the Teviotdale
poet, that in his youth he kept a side school at Morebattle, and was con
sidered " an excellent teacher." But while thus employed he was, for some
sinister purpose, confronted with an old legal enactment, which forbade any
person to officiate as a schoolmaster who had not taken the Oaths to
Government. A first conviction for this offence was to bring six months'
imprisonment, and a further conviction before the Justiciary or Circuit Court
was to be followed by transportation for life. But Mr Laidlaw had scruples
of conscience about the Abjuration Oath, or about swearing these oaths at
all, and the school had to be closed.
On becoming a Relief preacher he was sent to supply at Banff by
request, and his ordination followed on 25th August 1802, the stipend
promised being ,£90. But the Relief cause had sprung up in Banff owing to
press of circumstances, and when the emergency was over, because it had no
depth of earth, it forthwith began to wither away. At Mr Skene's death in
1792 many of them, it is stated, returned to the parish church ; and of his
successor, Mr Abercrombie Gordon, a preacher of a mildly evangelical type,
it is recorded that "his gentle and generous nature, joined to the amenity of
his manners, endeared him to all with whom he was connected." Mr Laidlaw
was unable to breast the adverse current as his predecessor had done, and to
aggravate his difficulties some people in Banff got sermon from the Anti-
burghers in 1804. He now put himself in the way of a change, and, receiving
a call to Dunning, he was loosed from his charge on I7th September 1805.
Fourth Minister. — WILLIAM GILMOUR, from Anderston, Glasgow.
Ordained, 3rd March 1806, at Perth, owing to the remoteness of Banff. The
stipend was down now to ^80. To simplify matters and set him free for
immediate acceptance of a call to Wooler, which was on its way, Mr Gilmour's
resignation was accepted, 8th July 1808. The congregation and the property
now passed quietly out of the hands of the Relief, and, as the result of the
Haldanes' visit eleven years before, those who adhered to the building got
sermon from the Congregationalists. Their first minister in their new
connection emigrated to America in 1827. He was succeeded in 1833 by
the Rev. John Murker, who continued in the pastorate amidst abundant
labours till his death in 1879. Seven years after this the congregation
was dissolved.
The church in Wooler, to which Mr Gilmour was inducted on 8th August
PRESBYTERY OF BANFF 125
1808, had come over from the Northumberland Class to the Relief a year
before. Their place of worship, with 1000 sittings, was built in 1778, and
they promised a stipend of .£120. Mr Gilmour died, 2nd May 1835, in the
seventy-fourth year of his age and thirtieth of his ministry.
BANFF (UNITED SECESSION)
ON gth July 1821 several persons in and about Banff petitioned Aberdeen
Presbytery for sermon, and Mr Primrose of Grange, the nearest minister,
was appointed to preach there on the fourth Sabbath of July and encourage
them. In Imlach's " History of Banff" it is explained that a dispute had
arisen in the Congregational church, and that the chief deacon and about 40
of the members were arrayed against the minister. This was the party that
formed the nucleus of the Secession church in Banff. At a meeting of
Presbytery on i6th July 1822 it was reported that a congregation had been
organised and five elders chosen. Four weeks after this a moderation was
applied for, ^100 of stipend being promised. The call, signed by all the
members, 30 in number, and by 84 hearers, was addressed to Mr David
Carmichael, whose fortune it was to inflict deadly harm on the young con
gregation of Burghead. A church was in course of election, with sittings for
490, the ultimate cost being put down at ^800. On 2gth July 1823, 12 com
municants and 50 adherents were disjoined from Grange that they might
connect themselves with Banff. The call to Mr Carmichael hung in
suspense for over a year, and was finally laid aside, a majority, as was
calculated, having after a two months' trial of his gifts and qualities become
decidedly averse to the settlement being proceeded with.
First Minister. — WILLIAM PATERSON, from Ayr (now Darlington
Place). Ordained, 2Oth April 1826. Within three years Mr Paterson
resigned his charge. He stated that after all he had done in the way of
raising money to assist in paying the debt on the place of worship, which
amounted to ^730, his ministry had not been sufficiently successful in
increasing the congregation. If their income were to be kept up evening
sermon was indispensable, which his health would not admit of. He at the
same time testified that his people had treated him well, and had fulfilled
their obligations to him. Adhering to his purpose, he was loosed from his
charge, i7th March 1829. After this he went to America, and Dr George
Brown condenses all else into the fateful words, " Character lost."
Second Minister. — ROBERT BLACKWOOD, from Alloa (now Townhead).
The signatures to this call showed much better than before, there being 84
members and 125 adherents. Mr Blackwood had accepted a call to Sanday,
and delivered part of his trials for ordination, but, instead of awaiting the
decision of Synod, Sanday people withdrew from the contest, and Mr
Blackwood was ordained at Banff, 2Oth July 1830. In 1837 there were 140
communicants, two-fifths of them from other parishes, Gamrie in particular.
Eleven families came from farther than four miles. The stipend was ^100 in
all, and the income averaged ^150, of which fully the larger part came from
extraordinary collections. Most of the sittings brought not more than 33. a
year, the entire yield being ,£23. In 1840 the debt of ,£550 was reduced to
^150, with the aid of ^150 from the Board, and with further assistance the
burden was entirely removed in 1845. But by this time there was a change
of ministry impending. On 26th August 1845 Mr Blackwood intimated to
the Presbytery by letter that he had resolved to resign connection with the
Secession and join the Free Church. The representatives of the congrega
tion testified to his faithful work among them, and the connection was
126 HISTORY OF U.P. CONGREGATIONS
dissolved amidst sincere regrets. Mr Blackwood was admitted by the Free
Church Assembly in 1846, and became minister of Union Free Church,
Aberdeen. Resigned in bad health, 1856, and died, 2oth February 1858, in
the sixty-second year of his age and twenty-eighth of his ministry.
After a vacancy of a year Banff people called Mr John Buick, who
preferred Muirton. The stipend promised at this time was ^100, with £$
for sacramental expenses.
Third Minister. — WILLIAM INGLIS, from Fala, who was also under call
to Huntly. He at first declined both places, but at the earnest request of
Banff congregation he reconsidered their claims, and accepted. Ordained,
23rd December 1847. At a Presbyterial visitation in 1854 it was found that
there were only 33 male members, and that of these only 7 were independent
of manual labour. In the following year Mr Inglis resigned, giving as his
reasons the want of ministerial success, the inadequacy of his stipend to
meet prospective liabilities, and his conviction that the people could not
reasonably be called on to increase the amount. With much grief the
congregation acquiesced in his decision, and on 27th March 1855 the con
nection was dissolved. Mr Inglis now returned to the preachers' list, and
in the beginning of 1856 he was called to Shiels, but decided to leave for
Canada, where he was inducted soon after into a charge at Westminister
in that colony. He was for seven years pastor of Erskine Church,
Woodstock, and was afterwards prominent as a journalist, and has been
styled "one of the ablest writers in the Dominion." He died at Toronto,
1 4th September 1900, in his eightieth year.
Fourth Minister.— THOMAS H. BAXTER, from Alloa (Townhead).
Ordained, I4th August 1856. Had a divided call two years before from
Whitby, which was not prosecuted. A year later he was invited to
Houghton-le-Spring, but declined. In the course of his ministry at Banff
Mr Baxter gave himself largely to evangelistic work, but this did not
preclude discontent from showing itself among his people. On igth June
1866 his demission was accepted, the congregation having agreed to state
that, while regretting the severance, they could offer no objection to the step
which their minister had taken. Mr Baxter then acted as a probationer for
some time, and was also engaged as an evangelist. He died at Musselburgh,
nth February 1872, in the forty-eighth year of his age and sixteenth of his
ministry.
At this juncture the continued existence of the congregation was prob
lematic. They intimated, when the vacancy occurred, that they could
undertake no responsibility with regard to the maintaining of gospel
ordinances, and though they were perfectly willing to do their utmost they
would bind themselves to no particular sum. A committee of Presbytery
met with them, and reported a membership of 85 and an attendance of about
55. The Mission Board, however, were of opinion that the extinction of
Banff congregation would be injurious to the United Presbyterian cause in
the north. Steps were accordingly taken to secure another minister, though
a stipend of ^40 was all the people could undertake to raise. The first
preacher they called was Mr James Picken, who drew back from the
difficulties of the situation, and settled down in another line of life.* A
pause followed for about a year, and then a call to Banff was accepted by
Mr Thomas Kirk, but Brechin (Maisondieu Lane) supervened, and the
acceptance was withdrawn.
* Mr Picken was from Dr Lindsay's church, Glasgow, and before taking licence
he was for some time editor of the Fife Herald. After declining Banff he betook
himself to journalism in Liverpool.
PRESBYTERY OF BANFF 127
Fifth Minister. — JOHN N. RUSSELL, B.A., from Hamilton (now Avon
Street). Ordained, 22nd April 1868. There was a membership at this time
of 91. The old manse had been sold as unsuitable, soon after Mr Baxter
resigned, and in 1871 another was built at a cost of .£673, of which the
Board paid ^320. On Qth April 1874 Mr Russell resigned, with the view
of emigrating to New Zealand. After ministering to a congregation at
Caversham in that colony for five and a half years he returned home owing
to ill-health, and had his name placed on the probationer list in May 1881.
He is now minister of the West Free Church, Port-Glasgow. Towards the
end of 1874 the congregation issued an unsuccessful call to the Rev. J. M.
Cruickshank, formerly of Westray. The Synod in the following May agreed
to allow Banff a grant of ^90 for three years to smooth the way for them
obtaining a fixed pastor again.
Sixth Minister. — ADAM B. ROGERSON, from Burray in Orkney, where
he had been minister for ten years. Inducted, gth November 1875, the
stipend from the people to be ,£60, with the manse. In 1879 the old church
was sold for ^260, and on i6th May 1880 the present church, with 275
sittings, was opened free of debt by Dr Scott, the Home Mission Secretary.
The entire cost was ^1800, of which ,£325 was paid by the Board, while the
people and their friends, with the aid of a bazaar, made up the sum required.
The membership at the close of 1899 was 83, and the stipend from the
people £70, with the manse.
ABERCHIRDER (UNITED SECESSION)
THIS is a village in the parish of Marnock, so renowned in Intrusion times.
It lies nine miles south-west of Banff, and the parish church is distant three
and a half miles. We find from a minute of Grange session that on 23rd July
1792 they received a petition from certain residenters in Marnock for some
Sabbaths' sermon, and it was agreed to give them a day betwixt that and
next meeting. Dr Gordon states further that Mr Primrose preached there
six Sabbaths about that time, when the roof was off the parish church, and
that this was the beginning of the Secession in Marnock. An advance was
made in April 1826, when it was intimated to Stewartfield Presbytery that
a preacher had lately conducted services at Foggieloan, "a place of con
siderable extent in the parish of Marnock," where evangelical preaching was
much needed. From this time a station was kept up, but it was not till
February 1839 that the people had sermon every Sabbath. At one time the
preacher supplying at Foggieloan (another name for Aberchirder), preached
part of the day at Blackballs, a village four or five miles to the north-west,
where Mr Primrose had been accustomed to hold services. At last the cause
at Aberchirder took definite shape, and on 26th October 1841 Mr Black wood
of Banff reported that after examination certain parties had been formed into
a congregation, and elders chosen. The membership was given soon after
as 30 and the attendance 1 10, the population of the village being 800. Two
years before this the church was built, with sittings for 350 ; the cost was
^270, of which the people raised ,£100, and the Mission Board granted ,£120.
The ^50 of debt which remained was cancelled before 1845 by the aid of
,£30 from the Liquidation Fund.
First Mi?iister. — PETER LANDRETH, from Greenlaw, who, "after long
and painful indecision, resolved to accept." The call was signed by 38
members and 44 adherents, and the people were to give .£40 from their own
resources. The ordination took place, I3th August 1844, but Mr Landreth's
ministry was not of long duration. With remarkable gifts of a literary kind
i28 HISTORY OF U.P. CONGREGATIONS
he felt that his life work was to lie in another line of activity. In June 1847
he resigned his charge, and on 4th August his demission was accepted. He
then became editor of the Fife Herald, to which he gave a standing much
above the average of provincial newspapers. He at the same time enriched
Hogg's Instructor, M'PhaiPs Magazine, and other periodicals, with the
productions of his pen. Of these articles a selection was published in 1861,
entitled " Studies and Sketches in Modern Literature." This was followed
in 1869 by his "Life of Dr Adam Thomson," his father-in-law, a massive
volume, including graphic sketches of the Doctor's contemporaries and his time.
Of slighter build every way is his " Divinity Hall of the U.P. Church," which
appeared in 1876. Three of Mr Landreth's sons are or were in the ministry —
James, for a number of years in Maisondieu Lane, Brechin, and now in the
Established Church, Logie-Pert ; Adam Thomson, who was ordained in 1880
over the English Presbyterian Church, Wark, Northumberland, but had to
retire owing to broken health in 1885, and was admitted to the Established
Church by the Assembly in 1893 ; and Peter, minister of the West Parish
Church, Perth. Mr Landreth himself now resides with his son at Logie-Pert
in a far advanced age. (Mr Landreth died, 27th July 1901, in his eighty-first
year.)
In the end of 1847 Aberchirder called Mr W. F. Swan, but he accepted
Comrie instead. Then after waiting over a year they invited Mr Andrew
Morton, ultimately Dr Morton of St James' Place, Edinburgh, to settle down
among them, but he declined. The next call was addressed to Mr John
Brash, but he also declined. The Presbytery earnestly recommended him
to reconsider the matter, but without effect, though it is doubtful whether
Aberchirder was not a more promising field than Wamphray, which fell to
his lot.
Second Minister. — ROBERT PATERSON, formerly of Greenloaning,
Sunderland (Smyrna Chapel), and Midmar. Mr Paterson proceeded
circumspectly towards acceptance. He wished to know whether, in the
event of the congregation prospering, they would increase his stipend ;
whether any arrangement had been made to provide him with a house and
garden ; and whether they would drive his coals. A decision being at last
arrived at, he was inducted, loth September 1849. In course of time the
wheels dragged heavily, and in 1858 the Presbytery got intimation that,
in consequence of dissatisfaction, two elders and 18 members had left, though
on visiting the congregation " they were glad to learn that the attachment of
the people to their minister remained unchanged." Mr Paterson demitted
his charge, 25th May 1869: the membership at this time was 45, and the
stipend from the people ^45, which the supplement raised to £90. He
died at Duns, 27th August 1880, in the eighty-first year of his age and fifty-
second of his ministerial life.
There was now a vacancy of two and a half years, during which three un
successful calls were issued, though the outlook was brightening, there hav
ing been a considerable addition to the membership after Mr Paterson left.
The first preacher fixed on was Mr G. F. Steven,* who declined. Then they
also called, without effect, Mr R. A. Watson, now Dr Watson of Dundee, and
then Mr Charles M'Ewing, now of Tollcross, Glasgow.
Third Minister.— JOHN M'RAITH, from Head Street, Beith. Ordained,
* Mr Steven was from the Leckie Memorial Church, Peebles. After this he went
to Canada, where he ministered for a time to the congregation of St Anne's, Hamilton.
Having returned to this country he joined the Established Church, and in 1876 he
was appointed to the office, which he still holds, of chaplain to the Royal Forces
at Netley and Winchester.
PRESBYTERY OF BANFF 129
29th November 1871. On gth June 1893 the church was reopened, free of
debt, after undergoing changes at a cost of ,£500, which have almost made it
a new building. During the present ministry there has been a considerable
building up in another way, the membership being now close upon 100, and
the stipend contributed by the people ,£70.
GARDENSTOWN (UNITED SECESSION)
THIS church originated in 1829. On 6th June of that year it was reported to
the Presbytery of Stewartfield that a legacy had been left in favour of the
Secession Church by a person in Gamrie parish, to which Gardenstown
belongs. This was followed up on 3rd October by a petition for sermon
once a fortnight, to be kept up for a year, and expressing confidence that the
collections and subscriptions would go far to defray the expenses. It was
found, however, before the year was half out that without assistance it
would be impossible for them to support the gospel. But aid was obtained,
and matters went on in a feeble way year after year. In 1841 the Mission
Board reported that a small, neat church had been built, free of debt, and
that sermon was kept up on alternate Sabbaths. As for the legacy, it
turned out to be for behoof of a school, and did not admit of being applied
to Church purposes. In 1843, 26 persons in Pennan, a fishing village in
Aberdour parish, four miles to the east, applied to have sermon in connection
with Gardenstown and the services of a preacher between the two places.
In course of time a location was felt to be essential if there was to be
progress made.
First Minister. — JOHN MUNRO, from College Street, Edinburgh. The
first arrangement was that he should officiate as a missionary at Garden
stown for six months at least. To qualify him the better for work there he
obtained ordination, 3oth December 1847, the services being conducted at
Banff, and not at Gardenstown. He was now empowered to administer
baptism and examine applicants for admission to Church fellowship. In
this state matters continued till Wednesday, 8th July 1848, when a congrega
tion was formed with a communion roll of 40. In June 1850 a moderation
was applied for, with the promise of ,£40 from the congregation and a
dwelling-house. As a foregone conclusion, the call, signed by 54 members
and 70 adherents, came out for Mr Munro, and he was inducted, ist October
of that year. Prior to this 7 of their number had been ordained to the elder
ship, and a church seated for 200 was in course of erection, work in which
the people were aided by a grant of ^150 from the Home Mission Board, be
sides collections from sister congregations within the Presbytery. In October
1853 there was a membership of 85, and the attendance was about 200. On
1 4th January 1862 Mr Munro was loosed from his charge at his own request.
At the height of the revival movement, some time before, discontent had
arisen in the congregation, and estrangement from the minister, who on his
part had grievances to complain of, relating to stipend and other things.
After engaging in probationer work for three years he was inducted to
Creetown.
Before the close of the year Mr Andrew Alston was called to Garden
stown, but he declined the call, and was ordained three months afterwards at
Newmilns. Another moderation was obtained in July 1863, the sum named
being raised from ^50 to ^70, besides £10 for expenses. They were also to
avail themselves of the Manse Scheme as soon as practicable, a promise
which resulted in the building of a manse a few years later at a cost of ^600
— .£320 of which was raised by the people, and ,£280 came from the Board.
T3o HISTORY OF U.P. CONGREGATIONS
Second Minister. — JOHN GlLMOUR, from East Kilbride. The first call
seemed much divided, Mr Gilmour having 30 votes against 27 for Mr R. S.
Bruce, now of Wishaw, and it was declined. Another followed with entire
unanimity, and Mr Gilmour was ordained, 5th May 1864. Translated to
Burnbank, Hamilton, I3th April 1880. There was a membership now of
229, and the stipend from the congregational funds was .£114, ios., besides
the manse.
Third Minister. — JOHN F. BLAIR, son of Dr Blair, Galashiels (West).
Ordained, I2th October 1881. Translated to John Street, Glasgow, 7th June
1887. After a vacancy of a year and a half Gardenstown called Mr Adam
Shaw, who was ordained at Leven in the following month, and a year later they
called Mr J. Brand Scott, who was ordained over Saltcoats (West) half-a-
year afterwards.
Fourth Minister. — TIMOTHY W. STIRLING, from Bonhill, brother of the
Rev. John W. Stirling, Buchanan, Kaffraria, and the Rev. George Stirling,
Kilwinning. Ordained, 2gth January 1891. Translated to Overnewton,
Glasgow, 26th February 1895.
Fifth Minister. — ALEXANDER T. OGILVIE, from Leslie (Trinity). Ordained,
loth October 1895. The old church having outlived its usefulness, another
built on the same site was opened in June 1899 with accommodation for con
siderably over 400. The cost was ^1500, of which ^500 has still to be paid,
but it is hoped that the debt will be cleared off ere long by means of a
bazaar. The membership at the close of 1899 was 232, and the stipend from
the people ,£130, with the manse.
BUCKIE (UNITED PRESBYTERIAN)
ON 6th April 1858 a memorial from seven persons resident in Buckie was
laid before the Presbytery of Banff, setting forth the religious destitution of
the place from lack of real gospel preaching. The document was looked
on with favour, but there was little done meanwhile. It was otherwise when,
on 2ist June 1859, a petition for sermon was presented from 134 heads of
families. This was the outcome of a serious rent in the Free Church con
gregation, which neither Presbytery, Synod, nor Assembly had been able
to avert, and the result was scarcely to be regretted, Buckie having a popula
tion of over 2000, with at least an equal number within convenient reach.
On 20th September 47 persons, duly attested, were formed into a congrega
tion. In a few weeks three elders were ordained, and at the first communion
80 took part in the observance. But, prior to their full organisation, a hall,
formerly a Roman Catholic chapel, was purchased for ^450, and having been
fitted up as a place of worship, it was opened, 5th July 1859.
First Minister. — WILLIAM BARRAS, from London Road, Glasgow.
Ordained, loth May 1860. The stipend the people undertook was ^70,
which, it was calculated, would be raised to -£loo by the supplementing
fund. Buckie at this time experienced the effects of a great revival, by
which the new-formed congregation was largely benefited. Mr Barras
having entered deeply and successfully into the kind of work required, he
was invited by the Mission Board to undertake the superintendence of the
Tontine Mission Station, Glasgow, and with this view he was loosed from
his charge, i;th November 1863. The membership during these three and
a half years had risen from under 90 to 249, and the stipend from ^70 to
£100, with ^20 from the Augmentation Fund.
In October 1864 Mr Hugh Macfarlane, afterwards of Oban, was called to
PRESBYTERY OF BANFF 131
succeed Mr Barras, and in June 1865 Mr John Brown, now in Kinclaven,
but neither of the two chose to accept.
Second Minister. — GEORGE G. GREEN, M.A., from Craigdam. Ordained,
nth January 1866. Soon afterwards a manse was built at a cost of ^1033,
of which the congregation raised ,£683, and the Board granted .£350. This
was followed by the opening of a new church, with 50x3 sittings, on I4th
December 1870 by Dr George Johnstone, Nicolson Street, Edinburgh, the
Presbytery being present. It cost ,£1000, and the last of the debt was ex
tinguished in 1882, the Liquidation Board having allowed a grant of ,£275.
On 5th November 1878 Mr Green was translated to Cranstonhill, Glasgow.
Then came an unsuccessful call to Mr W. S. Dickie, now of Trinity Church,
Irvine.
Third Minister. — JOHN COOK, from Tayport. Ordained, 24th September
1879. There was a membership now of 280. On 26th November 1895 Mr
Cook accepted a call to Cumberland Street, Glasgow, the third minister who
had removed from Buckie congregation to the great city of the west. At
the moderation in June following the two candidates had 41 votes each, and
the election failed.
Fourth Minister. — WILLIAM MORTON, B.D., from Carluke. Ordained,
1 6th December 1896. The membership rose within the next three years
from 224 to 246, but it is still 100 lower than it was in 1875. The stipend
from the people is ^130, with the manse.
FINDOCHTY (UNITED PRESBYTERIAN)
THIS congregation was originally conjoined with Portknockie, both being
fishing villages on the Banffshire coast, distant from each other about one
and a half miles. On gth October 1860 it was reported to the Presbytery of
the bounds that sermon had been regularly kept up at both places for some
time. Revival influences were telling for good, and the people were in the
mood for hearing the gospel. On 5th March 1861 the adherents of the two
stations were formed into the united congregation of Portknockie and
Findochty, there being 13 members at Portknockie, with an attendance of 250,
and 3 members at Findochty, with an attendance of 1 50. Before the close
of the year a site was obtained for a church at Portknockie, the estimated
expense being ,£300. At this stage the members at Findochty declined to
meet in concert with their brethren in Portknockie for the conducting of
business. Both parties were told that there would have to be joint action
between them in all matters strictly congregational, and Findochty people
were to have a place of worship in their own village. When built it cost ^500,
and had 400 sittings. Another difficulty emerged when elders were to be
ordained. Of the five who came forward on the day appointed three refused
to answer the questions of the formula, so that only as many were admitted
to office as formed a quorum.
First Minister. — WILLIAM BIRRELL, from Leslie (West). Mr Birrell
had been located among the people for about a year. The ordination took
place at Findochty on 4th March 1862, and from first to last he seemed to
enter with much ardour into revival work. Unhappily, he had to be deposed
for confessed immorality, 4th September 1866. He afterwards studied
medicine, took his diploma, and practised for some time near the scene of
his former labours. He died at Knayton, Yorkshire, 7th February 1875,
aged thirty-seven.
Disaster to both branches of the congregation followed from the break
down on the part of their minister. Within two months of his deposition the
1 32 HISTORY OF U.P. CONGREGATIONS
people petitioned to have him restored to his former place, and the Presbytery
offered to transmit their paper to the Synod, but there the matter ended.
Supply was kept up at the two villages, and in 1868 a location was suggested,
bdt the people were hard to satisfy, their opinion of at least one probationer
being that "he was not in sympathy with the work." From inability to pay
/200 of debt, or even the interest on it, the property at Portknockie was
disposed of to the Free Church in March 1869 for about .£180. Findochty,
however, held on as before, and in 1877 Mr James M'Douall, an evangelist,
was located there. Next, there was an attempt to have him regularly ordained,
but this arrangement was not sanctioned by the Synod. The session at this
time took up a strong position. A member of Presbytery had been appointed
to observe the communion at Findochty on a particular Sabbath, but he was
kept back by a letter from the three elders, intimating that unless Mr
M'Douall was allowed to do that work himself some of them would withdraw
from connection with the church. The evangelist remained at his post till
the beginning of 1886, after which it was found desirable that Findochty
should have a fixed minister. This had been attempted in 1 868, when the
original congregation was still entire, Mr William Watson, afterwards of
Kirkcudbright, having been called, but without effect.
Second Minister. — JOHN WESLEY M'KEE, from Alloa (West). Ordained,
i gth December 1887. The present membership is not over 50, whereas that
of the Free church at Portknockie, where a minister was settled twenty-two
years ago, is 120. The people at Findochty contribute ,£65, ros. of stipend.
PORTSOY (UNITED PRESBYTERIAN)
ON 22nd January 1864, 82 persons residing in or about Portsoy petitioned
Banff Presbytery for supply of ordinances. It was moved and seconded to
decline the application, as the petitioners represented a dissatisfied minority
of the Free Church congregation, but it carried to grant sermon and recom
mend the case to the Mission Board. On 8th March a committee of Presby
tery reported, after visiting Portsoy, that the petitioners had drawn up a
declaration of their reasons for seceding from the Free Church ; that 40 new
names had been added, and it was believed more would accede as soon as it
was seen that a congregation would be formed. On igth April the station
was congregated with a membership of 142, and on ist August six elders were
ordained. Early in 1865 the congregation called Mr William James, who
declined the call, and was settled soon afterwards at Leeds.*
First Minister.— NATHANAfiL FORSYTH M'DOUGALL, from Buccleuch
Street, Dumfries, who was also called to Stornoway and Archieston. Ordained,
2 ist September 1865. A month after this the congregation set about the
erecting of a church, with sittings for 350. It was completed in the following
year at a cost of ^830. The people undertook from the first to raise ^105
of stipend from their own resources. Mr M'Dougall was translated to Eccle-
fechan on igth November 1867.
Second Minister. — WILLIAM SIMMERS, M.A., called from Lumsden, where
he had ministered four years, and inducted, nth March 1868. The stipend
from the people was ,£105, with ^15 of supplement, and ^10 for house rent.
* Mr James was from Campsie. When a preacher he was called to Smethwick,
as well as to Portsoy and Leeds. Ordained, 3 ist May 1865. Died, 2nd April 1867,
in the thirty-fourth year of his age and second of his ministry. The Presbytery of
Newcastle, to whom his death was announced that day by telegram, put on record
their esteem for their departed brother, "their great grief at his early and sudden
removal, and their deep sympathy with his widow and his congregation."
PRESBYTERY OF BANFF 133
A manse was built next year at a cost of ^600, of which the Board allowed
one-half. The membership at the close of 1899 was 165 and the stipend
from the people ,£120, with the manse.
So much for this young congregation ; but the Dissenting cause in Portsoy
had an earlier history. In the beginning of 1782 Mr Cowie of Huntly, as
already stated, was dealt with by his Presbytery for going to hear a Relief
minister one Sabbath afternoon. Light is cast on the circumstances from
the fact that a petition was brought before Glasgow Relief Presbytery in
August of that year from "the forming congregation of Huntly and Portsoy."
It had been going on before this, and they now asked for the continuance
among them of Mr Smillie, afterwards of Cupar. But ere long Portsoy
appears in a new connection. To the Antiburgher Synod it was reported, in
September 1784, that the Rev. Laurence Reid, who had left Pathstruie under
a cloud, was taking charge of " what is called the Relief congregation in Port
soy," and in the following April they deposed him for deserting his profession.
In or about 1792 he removed from Portsoy to Findhorn, where he preached
to a quasi-Relief congregation for a course of years. In 1793 he applied for
admission to the Relief Synod, but was rejected. He afterwards figures in
David Gellatly's hands as a member of the Old Relief Presbytery, which had
its centre at Colinsburgh, and it is found from the treasurer's books that he
assisted there in August 1797, but probably the connection, owing to distance,
was little more than nominal. His death is given in the Caledonian Mercury
for loth August 1808, where he is described as minister of the Relief con
gregation at Findhorn. The church was afterwards turned into a Chapel of
Ease, but it was built on a foundation of sand, and it fell in 1843. As for
Portsoy, some of the people there, about the time of Mr Reid's removal,
applied through Grange session to the Antiburgher Presbytery of Aberdeen
for supply of sermon, which was granted them, apparently, about once a
month. Then in 1793 ^r Primrose signified at one of their meetings that
an application had been made to his session from Portsoy to have a part of
his labours. Next year an arrangement was come to that he should preach
there every third Sabbath, and three commissioners, representing Seceders
and others in that place, engaged to pay one-third of his stipend, and they
also agreed that " he and his horse should be maintained when there," the
places being eight or nine miles apart. This system went on for eight years,
though not without difficulty, owing to the people of Portsoy falling into
arrears with their quota of the stipend, which was only ^40 in all. The
winding-up came in July 1802, when a complaint was brought before Grange
session that four members of the congregation residing at Portsoy had in a
clandestine way sold the place of worship there. It appears from the old
title-deeds that this transaction took place on i6th February 1802, and that
the property was disposed of for ^60. It passed at this time into the hands
of the Established Church, and, when superseded in 1815 by another, it was
turned by the minister into a barn. Such was the fate of the " Red " or " Reid
Kirk " at Portsoy in the last stage of its existence.
CULLEN (UNITED PRESBYTERIAN)
THE Congregational chapel at Cullen was offered to the Presbytery of Banff
in October 1881, and on their recommendation it was bought by the Mission
Board for ,£300, with the view of forming a U.P. congregation. The station
was opened on the last Sabbath of June 1882, and Mr Porteous, probationer,
was engaged to carry on the work required. After he had laboured with suc
cess six or seven months the adherents petitioned to be congregated, which
134 HISTORY OF U.P. CONGREGATIONS
was done on gth February 1883, with a membership of 26. The population
of Cullen was, and is, about 2000, and Banff Presbytery stepped into the
place vacated by the Independents.
First Minister.— ANDREW M. PORTEOUS, B.D., from Buccleuch Street,
Dalkeith. He was also called to Strathhaven (West), but decided to abide
at Cullen, where he was ordained on 27th June 1883. Though the con
gregational funds yielded only ,£50 of stipend, the call promised well, being
supported by members and their friends to the number of 205. A manse
was built in 1885, the estimated cost being ^680, of which the Board paid
.£230. Mr Porteous having laid the foundation left another to build thereon,
and on igth June 1889 demitted his charge, having devoted himself to
missionary labour at Old Calabar. He gave his reason as follows :— "Any
person here who likes can hear the gospel, but in Africa there are millions
who have not a chance." The station he occupied out there was Ikotana,
"sixty miles from a white man." Feeling fever on him he set out for Ikorofiong,
where he found himself among friendly hands ; but all was nearly over. He
died, 26th January 1892, in the thirty-fifth year of his age and ninth of his
ministry.
Second Minister.— WILLIAM H. STONEBRIDGE, M.A., from Claremont
Church, Glasgow. Ordained, I3th November 1889. In Cullen the young cause
has been overshadowed all along by a vigorous Free Church congregation,
with three times the strength both in numbers and in resources. At the
close of 1899 the U.P. church showed a membership of 80 and a stipend
from the people of .£63, with the manse.
TURRIFF (UNITED PRESBYTERIAN)
THIS congregation might be left out of account, as it never got beyond the
formative stage, and three years took in the compass of its existence. In
July 1862 there is reference in the Presbytery minutes to evangelistic
services having been begun at Turriff, and on 3rd September a special
meeting was called, to take into consideration a petition from 31 individuals
m that place for sermon. It was visited soon afterwards by the Home Sec
retary and was allowed a grant of ,£20 to assist in maintaining ordinances.
On 3rd November 1863 those adhering to the station petitioned to be
congregated, and the proposal was sent down to the neighbouring sessions
1 he returns bore that Aberchirder saw no necessity for starting a congrega
tion at I urrift, but Banff and Gardenstown were favourable to the erection
and on the i;th of that month 27 persons who had been found qualified for
membership were constituted into a congregation. Next year, in Tulv it
was arranged to have a single elder ordained. In July 1865 the cause at
iurntf was thought to be in a critical position, and requiring the interposition
of a committee. In March 1866 the minister who was in charge of the con
gregations interests reported that he had secured the services of a suitable
>reacner to be located m the place, but owing to the divided state of the
membership he did not feel warranted in going forward. On 24th Tulv the
committee on Turriff was discharged, and the name appears no more in the
records of Banff Presbytery. In the light of subsequent events this may not
je a matter of regret as there was a strong Free Church congregation in
the town, and the population only about 2000.
PRESBYTERY OF BUCHAN 135
PRESBYTERY OF BUCHAN
CLOLA (ANTIBURGHER)
THIS congregation in its origin links itself with Kinmundy and the pro
prietor there. The summer of 1741 may be taken as our starting-point,
the time when Mr and Mrs Ferguson entered into fellowship with the
Seceders when on a visit to Burntisland. This was followed by an accession
to the Associate Presbytery of 30 persons in Old Deer, the parish to which
Kinmundy belongs, accompanied by a petition " for some visits to that dark
corner." The Presbytery received them under their inspection, but there
was nothing further done till winter was over. On 6th April 1742 an appli
cation came from Buchan for an ordained minister to preach and baptise
children, and it was agreed to give the people more than they asked for. In
June there were preachers provided for Mr Moncrieffs pulpit, and in July
it was arranged that he and Mr Mair of Orwell " supply Kinmundy while they
continue in that country, being designed to go to Peterhead Well for their
health." This fixes the time when the first Seceder sermon was heard in
Buchan. Next summer one of their young men was appointed to preach at
Kinmundy on his way to Moray, and, as Mr Moncrieff was absent from his
own pulpit four successive Sabbaths that season, there is reason to surmise
that he was back to Peterhead and its neighbourhood again. Additional
accessions followed in February 1744, and preaching was kept up at intervals,
the cause evidently making progress. It was at Craigdam, however, sixteen
miles south-west of Kinmundy, that the Secession in Aberdeenshire was to
find its first habitation, though the reason can scarcely be that it was found
impracticable to obtain a site in the neighbourhood of Old Deer. The fact
that the laird of Kinmundy was a devoted supporter of the Secession
negatives that supposition.
In July 1769 the praying societies of Clola, Whitehill, and New Deer
gave in a petition to the session of Craigdam craving a disjunction. They
wished to be constituted into a separate congregation, and this was agreed
to in the following month. During the seventeen years they were under
Mr Brown's ministry they may have enjoyed week-day services in their own
locality ever and again, but to what extent they shared in his Sabbath labours
cannot be ascertained. We know that two years after his ordination he com
plained to the Presbytery that some of his people were insisting on him
preaching in more places on Sabbath than the Presbytery had agreed to before
his ordination. The result was that the original resolution was adhered to,
and the people received notice to that effect. But with sixteen miles inter
vening it was much to be desired that Clola should become a second centre.
First Minister. — WILLIAM MITCHELL, a native of Old Deer. Ordained,
I4th November 1770. The rival candidate on the election day was Mr George
Cowie, afterwards of Huntly. At this time the members numbered about
loo, with four elders constituting the session. The increase during the next
four years was as follows: — in 1771 there were 25 added; in 1772, 54; in
!773> 34 ; and m J774? 51- The tree had manifestly found root in prepared
soil. The old church, with sittings for 400, is said not to have been built till
1784, though one is tempted to surmise a much earlier date. It is found, at
least, that Perth session in 1772 granted £8 to Clola, a gift which naturally
suggests building operations. What the stipend was at first is not given,
but in 1812 it was ^80 and a house. The congregation also afforded the
minister a piece of waste land, which he enclosed, and which served him for
136 HISTORY OF U.P. CONGREGATIONS
a garden. Gradually the bounds of Clola congregation were circumscribed
by the uprise of congregations at Whitehall, Peterhead, and Auchmacoy (now
illon). In 1820 its strength was much further reduced by the refusal of
Mr Mitchell to take part in the Union between Burghers and Antiburghers.
Owing to age and distance he was absent from the meetings of Synod when
the Basis was agreed on ; but his objections to the Union were insuperable
and a disruption followed, which will be more fully dwelt on when we come
to StewartfieldT Mr Mitchell died, i6th April 1832, in the eighty-fifth year
of his age and sixty-second of his ministry. For some years before his death
he^ was entirely disqualified for ministerial work, and the Rev. Thomas
M'Crie became the acting minister, on whose removal to succeed his father
in Edinburgh, his brother, the Rev. George M'Crie, was ordained as his
successor. The present minister is the Rev. W. M. Sutherland, B D who
was ordained in 1879, and some time afterwards became son-in-law to
Dr William Reid of Lothian Road, Edinburgh.
WHITER ILL (ANTIBURGHER)
FROM the very first there was friction between Whitehill and Clola places
A1/ L- f S apart' thouSh for seven years they formed one united congregation
r Mitchell, when under call, had difficulties about agreeing to preach at
the two places on alternate Sabbaths, and the commissioners from Whitehill
were backward to consent to the ordination upon any other terms They
pleaded that "the greater number of acccders were with them," and the
;sbytery recommended them to study what would be most for the
advancement of the Lord's work in that corner." Before a year passed
the case came before the Presbytery in an acute form, some petitioning for
a disjunction, while 17 persons urged the Presbytery to deal with Mr Mitchell
to give them as much supply as he gives Clola, and, if he refuses, let them be
erected into a separate congregation. On 2oth August 1771 the Presbytery
dismissed the affair with two recommendations— the one to Mr Mitchell to
™Vif- Whitenill sermon as often as Clola, if it be in his power ; the other to
Whitehill people to endeavour to bury their prejudices, and to accommodate
Mr Mitchell with a proper house for public worship. It appears from this
vm b Dr M'KelviefirSt ChUrCh '^ ^ buiU S° Carly 77°' the date
In this state matters continued for other six years, Mr Mitchell preachin»
as a rule every third Sabbath at Whitehill. But one winter the people there
On TSrZA SUPPty thr0v£,h H16, Presbytery at the request of Clola session.
On 1 9th August 1777 Whitehill people were disjoined at their own request
M°mT Clola>and erected into a separate congregation. Within a year
of P^Sm ^' ° had ^en Previously ca"ed to the collegiate charge
of Perth (North), was invited to Whitehill, but the Synod, adhering to a
former decision, appointed him to Kirriemuir.
First Minister.— WILLIAM BARLAS, from the parish of Fowlis and the
congregation of Perth (North). Ordained, 26th August 1779. In April 1781
Mr Barlas was called to Belmont Street, Aberdeen, but the Pi-Lbvtery
nfhful J:0nSlderati0!1 °f the matter on account of Mr Barlas' bad state
of health, and ,n the end they dismissed the call. For other sixteen years
DonlT T^ pr°SPerousl>'. at Whitehill, the minister being exceptionally
popular. Then came a trial case, which ended in a sentence of deposition
KTvot^ MC 'lyn?d T 5th SePtember '797 "without oneTon ra
ctoiy \oice. Mr Barlas has sometimes been represented as a much-
injured man, but there was enough confessed by himself to justify all that
PRESBYTERY OF BUCHAN 137
followed. He now emigrated to New York, where for two years he occupied
himself teaching classics, then he commenced business as a bookseller. In
1804 a letter was read in the Synod from an American minister, who was
apprehensive that Mr Barlas might apply to be restored to office, and he
was answered by an extract of the minutes and the sentence. Mr Barlas
died of cancer, yth January 1817, an ailment which, it is said, was making
its appearance in his face before he left Scotland. A volume of his sermons,
with Memoir prefixed, including a voluminous correspondence he had with the
Rev. John Newton before the disaster came, was published after his death.
Second Minister. — JOHN BUNYAN, son of the Rev. Andrew Bunyan,
Howgate, and brother of the Rev. James Bunyan of Keith. He received
ordination on 7th December 1796, that he might dispense sealing ordinances
in remote places, such as Orkney. This was after he had itinerated as a
preacher for about a dozen years. Inducted to Whitehill, i8th December
1798, when he had reached the ripe age of forty-seven. The call was
unanimous, and the stipend was to be ^50 and a house. In 1812 it was ^10
higher, with a small farm, for which the congregation paid ^10. Mr Bunyan
by his prudent, dignified demeanour is understood to have been well adapted
for the place, though, so far as popular gifts were concerned, he was a con
trast to his predecessor. The large audiences which gathered round
Mr Barlas were gone, and the membership is said, though this is doubtful,
to have been reduced to less than half its former dimensions. At the Union
of 1820 there was also the loss of from 1 6 to 20 members, 2 of these being
elders. Dissatisfied with the Basis of Union, they withdrew, and joined the
' Protestors at Clola. Mr Bunyan died, 2Oth December 1821, in the seventieth
year of his age, having newly completed his twenty-third year at Whitehill.
After a vacancy of a few months the congregation called Mr James
Gilfillan, but the call was withdrawn, as they \vere unwilling, they explained,
"to engage in a competition with other congregations from whom he had
received, or was about to receive, calls."
Third Minister. — ADAM LlND, from Craigdam. A younger brother of
his, John Lind, died of consumption, 24th September 1819, in the first year
of his theological course, and the Rev. Adam Lind, D.D., of Elgin, was his
nephew. Ordained, 7th August 1823. Mr Lind was no mere youth when he
entered on his studies, and he was now in his fortieth year. The stipend
was ,£90, and on applying for a moderation it was intimated that they were
to build a new meeting-house in the place which might appear to their
minister and themselves most suitable. A manse would also be forthcoming".
When the site for the new erection came to be chosen the people decided
to remain where they were, much to the minister's regret, who believed that
sound policy dictated their removal to the thriving village of New Pitsligo,
two miles off. The church was built in 1826 ; cost about -£500 ; sittings 450.
On 4th March 1862 it was intimated to the Presbytery that Mr Lind was no
longer able for the whole of his official duties, and a supply of preachers was
needed. But the end was nearer than had been supposed, as he only sur
vived other two months. He died, 3rd May 1862, in the seventy-ninth year
of his age and thirty-ninth of his ministry. A Memoir of Mr Lind, consisting
chiefly of a very racy and interesting autobiography, was published by his
nephew, the Rev. Dr Lind, some time after his death.
The manse was now in a ruinous state, and the question whether to re
build it on the same site revived the question of removing to New Pitsligo,
as it was widely felt that, unless some change of centre were effected, the
congregation was bound to decline. While matters were in a state of un
certainty a call emerged to Mr John A. Murray, but he had a majority of
only two over Mr Charles C. Squair, who afterwards was ordained over the
138 HISTORY OF U.P. CONGREGATIONS
neighbouring congregation of New Deer. Mr Murray saw meet to decline
the call, and became minister at Burntisland. Later on, and while the locus
of the church was still an open question, they called Mr Alexander M'Donald,
now of Lochmaben, but with the same result. At last the Presbytery held a
meeting with the congregation, and after hearing both sides they decided in
favour of remaining at Whitehill.
Fourth Minister. — JOHN PATERSON, from Galston, who had previously
declined Kinkell. Ordained, 7th June 1864. During the ministry of thirty-
five years which succeeded, minister and people had to experience the effects
of the decision come to in the beginning of Mr Lind's time, to keep by their
old position. For the congregation there was steady decrease year by year,
owing to decline in the rural population and the gradual dropping away of
families from the extremities. Hence the membership, which amounted to
250 in 1837, was down to a third of that number in 1894, and union with the
Free church at New Pitsligo was becoming all but imperative. That con
gregation being vacant in 1897, the session on 23rd October wished Whitehill
session to consider the propriety of entering on negotiations for amalgama
tion, and the proposal was received in a friendly spirit. The congregations
then met under the sanction of their respective Presbyteries, and the elders
and managers on both sides were left to adjust the terms. On 7th December
the agreement come to was laid before Banff Presbytery. It was substanti
ally as follows : — The united congregation was to worship in New Pitsligo
Free church, and to be under the inspection of the Free Church Presbytery
of Deer, Mr Paterson to be senior minister, and a junior colleague to be
called when the union was completed. The two sets of elders were to form
the session, and the deacons and managers the deacons' court. Mr Paterson
was to continue in the manse at Whitehill, the united congregation to be
responsible for the ground-rent of ^5, and his retiring allowance was to
come from the Augmentation and Sustentation Funds, the amount in each
case to be left to the recommendation of the Advisory Committee. White-
hill people being averse to have their minister entirely set aside while some
measure of strength remained, wished the word " retiring " erased, and sug
gested that Mr Paterson should have such a share of the work as might be
agreed on between him and the young minister. These modifications were
accepted by all parties, with this addition, that the arrangement between the
two ministers should have the concurrence of the Presbytery.
The union was consummated in the Free church, New Pitsligo, on 25th
January 1898, when the two Presbyteries, after meeting separately, coalesced,
and public worship was conducted by Dr Hutchison of Bonnington, Moder
ator of the U.P. Synod. At the close the name of Whitehill congregation
was dropped from the roll of Banff Presbytery, and the minister was trans
ferred to the Free Presbytery of Deer. On the following Sabbath the
him the day was far spent. He died, I7th June 1899, in the sixty-seventh
year of his age and thirty-sixth of his ministry. The membership of New
Pitsligo had been a little over 100 before the union, but their income was
inferior to that of Whitehill. At the close of 1898 the united congregation
returned a membership of 165, and the contributions to the Sustentation
Fund were nearly doubled.
PRESBYTERY OF BUCHAN 139
PETERHEAD (ANTIBURGHER)
ON loth June 1788 a petition from Peterhead for a Sabbath's supply of
sermon from Mr Mitchell of Clola was brought before Aberdeen Presbytery
by a reference from the session of that congregation. The applicants were
within Clola bounds, though not in the Antiburgher communion, and it was
agreed to advise Mr Mitchell to preach a day at Peterhead, as was desired.
But now that a beginning was made petitions for sermon were brought
forward time after time from the same quarter, and partially granted. Then
on I4th June 1790 certain members of Clola congregation, residing in the
parishes of St Fergus and Peterhead, craved to be disjoined and erected
into a distinct congregation. Commissioners having been heard, and also
Mr Mitchell and his elder, it carried to grant the petition, the understanding
being that the place of worship was to be in the town of Peterhead, and that
Seceders in the two parishes just named, and in part of the parishes of
Cruden and Longside, were to be included. A fortnight afterwards a nomina
tion of elders was to be proceeded with in the two quarters of Peterhead and
St Fergus ; but, instead of going forward, the people in the latter parish
delayed, waiting for the concurrence of some members of Clola who resided
among them, and had taken no part in the disjunction. The Presbytery
clerk was instructed to intimate to these persons that they were to consider
themselves as belonging to Peterhead church. It is a specimen of the
hard and fast lines which used to be drawn between the territories of
neighbouring congregations. But if there was difficulty in connection with
the election of elders there were greater difficulties when a minister came to
be chosen. On 5th July 1792 they called Mr Thomas Smith, a preacher
from Urr, who had been appointed by the Synod to America some years
before, but remained at home. Illness now intervened, and the Presbytery,
with the congregation's concurrence, laid the call aside. On recovering he
resumed work as a probationer, but, not obtaining a settlement, he emigrated
to the United States in 1800, and in 1811 he was installed "as the first and
only pastor of the Associate congregation in the town of Huntingdon,
Pennsylvania/' The relation lasted till his death in 1825.
The second call, issued on 2nd April 1793, was equally unproductive, and
more tantalising. It was addressed to Mr James Clark, but he declared
positively he could not accept. There was now a twelvemonth's delay, and
then, with the fear of censure from the Synod before him, he told the
Presbytery that he had got over his difficulties, but they must allow him four
months to attend to some concerns of his own. Six months passed, and
when he appeared it was to inform them that he did not mean to give in his
trials, and was not to submit to ordination. He pleaded in his own defence
" incompetency of support," and the inability of the people to give even what
they promised, together with the aversion of some members towards himself.
The prospects at Peterhead, it must be owned, were not very encouraging,
the call being signed by only 19 male members, and the stipend to be ^50,
with a house. Further dealings there were, and much vacillation, but the
Synod wound up the case with a rebuke, and that same year Mr Clark was
ordained at Dalreoch.
first Minister. — THOMAS MlLNE, from Chalmers Street, Dunfermline.
Ordained, I4th July 1796; but hopes of success were blasted by disputes
which sprung up almost at once in the congregation, and the disruption to
which they led in 1799. There must surely have been some crossgrained
element at the centre, for things went from bad to worse. At last aversion
to the minister became so pronounced that, in October 1815, the Synod
recommended Mr Milne to resign. " It would neither," they said, "be for
1 40 HISTORY OF U.P. CONGREGATIONS
his comfort nor for the interests of religion that he should remain." The
connection was severed on I2th December of that year. Mr Milne took
appointments as a preacher for some time, and then lived privately in
Dunfermline. The last notice, save one, that we have of him is of date 4th
December 1832, when he acceded to the Original Burgher Synod. The
close is given in the register of Dunfermline parish : he died of palsy, 1 5th
January 1835, aged seventy-one; and another authority says, "after long
affliction."
Up till the Union of 1820 the congregation kept up separate existence,
and in May 1819 they even applied for a moderation. They were to raise
^50 of stipend, and they hoped the Synod would give them £20 for three or
four years, and in March 1820 the application was renewed ; but the
Presbytery, considering their embarrassed situation, and also that Mr Milne
was demanding immediate payment of arrears, with the threat that, unless
this was forthcoming, the kirk, over which he held a bond of security, would
be put up for sale, refused to grant the petition. Meanwhile, as is stated in
the Annals of Peterhead, "the interest arising from a legacy by John
Robertson kept the church in repair, and with the assistance of seat rents,
and collections made at the door, enabled them to pay an occasional preacher."
The rest will come in more fitly under the next heading.
PETERHEAD (BURGHER)
ON 30th December 1799 a petition for sermon was presented to the Burgher
Presbytery of Perth by 43 persons in Peterhead. This was the outcome of
disputes in the Antiburgher congregation, and the direction the application
took had been partly suggested by a visit of the Rev. Ebenezer Brown of
Inverkeithing to Peterhead, when on an evangelistic tour in the north the
previous summer. The petition was granted, and with this begins the history
of the Burgher church in Peterhead, which was finally to absorb the other.
Their place of worship, with 500 sittings, was built next year at a cost of
from ^600 to £700.
First Minister. — ROBERT CAMPBELL, from Tarbolton. Ordained, 27th
May 1802. Under his pastoral care, and by reason of his pulpit gifts, the con
gregation grew and prospered. In April 1821, the wall of partition between
Burghers and Antiburghers being now broken down, the little company of
Antiburghers meeting in Windmill Street requested the Presbytery to send
one of their number to preach at Peterhead, and hold a meeting of the con
gregation, as they proposed to merge themselves, upon certain conditions,
with the other Secession congregation in the place. They also wished the
Synod's advice as to what steps they should take in order to secure certain
mortified property from passing out of their hands when they ceased to main
tain a separate existence. So far as appears, the body of the people had
already placed themselves under Mr Campbell's ministry, though it required
other two years to get over formal difficulties. On 8th April 1823 the two
congregations of Peterhead laid before the Presbytery the measures they had
taken with a view to union, and prayed to have it accomplished. Directions
were given to have it carried into effect with all convenient speed, due
intimation to be made from the pulpit by Mr Campbell. The church in
Windmill Street was taken possession of by the Independents.
On 2nd March 1852 commissioners from Peterhead stated to the Presby
tery that they were taking steps to provide their aged minister with a
colleague, but Mr Campbell died, 28th May 1852, in the seventy-seventh year
of his age, having completed the fiftieth year of his ministry the day before.
PRESBYTERY OF BUCHAN 141
Pcterhead congregation during this vacancy called two preachers who
have since attained distinction — Mr R. S. Drummond, who was some time
afterwards ordained in Carlisle, and Mr Walter Morrison, who preferred
Ayr (Cathcart Street). In the latter case there was a peculiarity deserving
of notice. When the call to Mr Morrison was laid before the Presbytery it
was acknowledged that he had not preached two Sabbaths, as the rules
required, having been kept back by the storm which rendered travelling
impracticable. To make up for this shortcoming he had preached again on
the Monday evening, and had also conducted the prayer-meeting on
Wednesday. In the circumstances the Presbytery sustained the call, which,
however, was declined at next meeting.
Second Minister. — JAMES FRAME, from Crossford. Ordained, 4th January
1854, after declining Zion Chapel, Newcastle. The call was signed by 140
members, and the stipend was ,£125, with a manse. A new church, with
sittings for 750, and built at a cost of ^1400, was opened on i6th May 1858.
Mr Frame was translated to Perth (York Place) on 2nd July 1861.
Third Minister. — WILLIAM GALLETLY, from Perth (East). Ordained,
ist January 1862. There had been progress made during the preceding eight
years, as the stipend was up from ,£125 to ^140, and the signatures were 168
instead of 140. Mr Galletly was invited in 1868 to Charlotte Street,
Aberdeen, but he remained in Peterhead till 22nd December 1869, when he
was loosed from his charge, having accepted the superintendence of the
Edinburgh City Mission. In 1872 he was inducted into Tillicoultry.
Fourth Minister. — JOHN DlCKSON, from Dalkeith (East). Called also
to Colinsburgh. Ordained, gth November 1870. In 1875 Mr Dickson
received a divided call from Bridge Street, Musselburgh, which the Presby
tery of Edinburgh did not sustain. On 3rd July 1878 he accepted a call to
the East Free Church, Coatbridge, under the Mutual Eligibility Act. The
congregation had formerly belonged to the Reformed Presbyterian Synod.
In 1882 Mr Dickson was translated to St Ninians' Free Church, Leith, where
he is still minister. In 1894 he published a book of antiquarian research,
"The Ruined Castles of Mid-Lothian."
In the following year Mr W. S. Dickie was called to Peterhead, but he
accepted Sanquhar (South).
Fifth Minister. — JOHN KEMP BRUCE, from Glasgow (Parliamentary
Road), a nephew of Dr William Bruce, Edinburgh. Ordained, I5th January
1880. Membership 200, exactly what it was in 1837. Owing to delicate
health in his family Mr Bruce had to remove to a warmer climate, and his
resignation was accepted, 7th April 1891. On I4th October of that year he
was inducted into Shoalhaven, N.S. Wales. In 1900 he was minister of
Wahrounga, Presbytery of Sydney.
Sixth Minister. — JOHN WYLLIE, from Kilmarnock (King Street), a
brother of the Rev. Robert H. Wyllie, Hawkhill, Dundee. Ordained, loth
July 1891. By some fatality the history of the old Antiburgher congregation
of Peterhead was now to repeat itself. The call, though described as
harmonious, was in reality favoured by no very great majority, and it was
brought up against one of the leading men who acted in its prosecution
before the Presbytery that he spoke against having it sustained. Differences
soon after arose in the session, and it may be that the rectifying of abuses
was gone into in a wrong way. In June 1896 the affairs of Peterhead con
gregation were taken up by the Presbytery of Buchan, and while the
proceedings went on statements were made and papers read which were
only fitted to work mischief. The Synod in May 1897 appointed a commis
sion to visit Peterhead, but they found that the families who had left could
not be brought back, and as those who adhered to the congregation ex-
142 HISTORY OF U.P. CONGREGATIONS
pressed their attachment to Mr Wyllie as their minister the Synod was
recommended to take no further action in the matter. But meanwhile the
membership, which stood at 169 in 1892, was decreasing, and at the close of
1899 it numbered 114. But the property bequeathed to the Antiburgher
congregation a century before now carried great value. Mr Campbell spoke
of it in 1837 as "a small mortification," but in 1897 it was yielding ^170 a
year. Hence the stipend continued at .£210, with the manse.
NEW DEER (BURGHER)
THE minister of this parish in 1733, when the Secession began, was the Rev.
George Mair, a brother of the Rev. Thomas Mair of Orwell. Dr M'Kelvie
ascribes the uprise of Seceders among his parishioners to offence which he
gave them by not casting in his lot with the four brethren ; but in this, as in
other cases, the explanation is baseless. Mr Mair of New Deer died, I3th
April 1 736, and so slow was the rate at which letters travelled in those days
that his brother at Orwell entered in his diary on the 22nd : "Tidings of my
brother George's dangerous illness," and then : "Afflicting tidings of George's
death/' But at this time the case of the four brethren was still in mid-water,
and it was not till 1737 that even Ralph Erskine and Thomas Mair gave in
their accessions to the Associate Presbytery.
In New Deer parish Whitehill, as we have already seen, became an
Antiburgher centre at an early time, but owing partly to friction in that
church certain parties applied for sermon to the Burgher Presbytery of
Perth on I5th May 1805, and on the first Tuesday of May 1806 they were
constituted into a congregation. It appears, also, from the Presbytery
records that the church, with sittings for nearly 400, was opened by Mr
Glass of Aberdeen on gth November 1806. The Synod at its meeting two
months before had granted £20 to aid with the building, on condition that,
if the place of worship were turned to any other purpose, the money should
be repaid. The total cost was about ,£275, and the church was entered with
^120 of debt. In February 1807 a member of Presbytery reported that
three elders had been elected, and 26 additions made to the membership by
examination. The first preacher the congregation called was Mr Robert
M'Laurin, but the Synod preferred Coldin'gham, a far larger congregation.
They next called Mr Thomas Trotter, but New Deer was outvoted in favour
of Johnshaven.
First Minister.— FuLLARTON PATERSON, from Biggar (North). On
this occasion the Synod felt that the time to favour New Deer had come,
and they gave it the advantage over Queensferry. Mr Paterson was
ordained, 3Oth August 1809. The stipend was to be ,£50, with a house, and
the people were also to provide him with fuel for his family. The congrega
tion in those days, and till long afterwards, was better known by the name of
Artamford. In 1837 the minister reported a membership of 120, with nearly
200 sittings let, the rates being 45., 2s., and is. per annum, and the property
was free of debt. About two-fifths of the families came from the parishes of
Old Deer, Methlic, Montquhitter, and New Pitsligo. On 7th June 1853 the
congregation sent up to the Presbytery notice that their pastor had been
visited with severe affliction, and on the i8th of that month he died, in the
seventy-eighth year of his age and forty-fourth of his ministry.
A break of over three years followed, interspersed with unanswered calls.
The first was given to Mr James M. Erskine, but it was post horam, as his
ordination was already appointed to Burghead. In 1854 they called Mr
George M 'Queen, who was already on the point of accepting Milngavie, and
PRESBYTERY OF BUCHAN 143
then Mr James Harrower, who remained on the preachers' list, and after two
years obtained Eyemouth. In 1855 they fixed on Mr John M. Wilson, who
also declined, and was ordained at Hexham in 1857. The stipend arrange
ments at this time were ^65 from the people, with a supplement of ^25,
making altogether ^90, besides the manse. After so many declinatures the
Home Board wished to know the distances members would have to travel to
other United Presbyterian churches, supposing the congregation were to be
dissolved. The Presbytery at this very time received another petition for a
moderation, the stipend promised from their own funds being £,70. This in
crease was reported to the Mission Board, with the additional information that
the membership had decreased very little during the vacancy, that the people
were anxious to go on, and that the district was sufficiently populous to
give hopes of success to an acceptable pastor. It was next stated that if the
congregation ceased to exist 41 members would have to travel from five to
seven miles on Sabbath, and 32 from four to five, if they were to remain
connected with the denomination ; but with Whitehill within three and a half
miles it is hard to see how this could be. However, the Board now intimated
that they would take no further steps in the above direction.
Second Minister. — JOHN ALEXANDER, M.A., from Kilmarnock (Princes
Street). Ordained, 4th November 1856. Mr Alexander, who had been long
in a partially disabled state, resigned his charge, loth January 1865. He
then removed first to Dollar and then to Partick, where he died, nth
August 1871, in the forty-third year of his age.
Third Minister. — CHARLES G. SQUAIR, from Nairn, brother of the Rev.
John Squair, Wigtown. Had been called at intervals to Burray, Dubbieside,
and Boveedy. Ordained at New Deer, loth August 1865. At the close of
the year the members were returned at 134, and the stipend was ^75 from
the congregation and ^45 of supplement, with the manse. In 1867 a new
manse was built at a cost of ^585, of which the Board paid ^285. The
church was rebuilt in 1876 at a further cost of ,£1400. The membership at
the close of 1899 was 80, and the stipend from the people ^70, which
illustrates how hard it is for our thinly-planted congregations to hold their
own in Aberdeenshire.
FORGUE (BURGHER)
HERE the name Culsalmond takes us back to 1775, when, on the dividing of
Mr Cowie's charge into three, Huntly and Culsalmond were to remain under
his care as one united congregation. The two places were nine miles apart,
but Culsalmond obtained a slight share of his labours for a period of years.
The Seceders, however, in that and the neighbouring parish of Forgue are
represented in the Old Statistical History as few in number. But on 23rd
October 1798 the Burgher Presbytery of Perth received a petition from
Culsalmond for sermon, signed by 72 persons, and on I5th December 1801
32 of their number requested the Presbytery to take regular steps for their
admission to the membership of the Secession. This was followed in
October 1802 by the election of four elders. In 1805 a church was built at
Bogfounton, a spot of ground near the junction of the two parishes, but on
the Forgue side, so that this name came in to supplant that of Culsalmond.
The chapel, we learn, had galleries, accommodated about 400, and was
erected by voluntary subscription. Being about seven miles from the parish
church of Forgue, and two or three from that of Culsalmond, it had a large
stretch of territory to itself.
First and only Minister. — WALTER GRAHAME, from Lanark. Ordained,
i44 HISTORY OF U.P. CONGREGATIONS
loth April 1806. The call was signed by only 32 members, and, as it was a
Burgher church, we may assume that females were included. The stipend
was to be ,£65, with house and garden, but, though now fully organised,
prosperity was denied, and in September 1815 the Synod granted the
congregation ^10 to aid them in their difficulties. The membership at this
time numbered 20 men and 32 women. On 28th August 1816 Mr Grahame
resigned his charge, and soon afterwards removed within the bounds of
Dunfermline Presbytery, but was not regularly employed as a preacher.
About the year 1820 he opened a school at Forgue, and resumed pastoral
duties among his old people. In February 1825, in answer to the Synod's
request for information about the nature of his connection with the church
there, Mr Grahame explained to the Presbytery that the congregation being
unable to support preachers, and unwilling to be without the gospel, offered
to hand over to him the collections and seat rents if he would preach to
them on Sabbath, and dispense the Lord's Supper, while he remained as a
teacher in the place. This he had continued to do since then, no other situation
having opened up for him and his family, and though there was no pastoral
link between them such as once subsisted he considered himself bound to be
faithful to his trust. With this simple account the Synod was satisfied, and
at their meeting in September they granted Mr Grahame a donation of
^10. On ist June 1830 he intimated to the Presbytery that he had left
Forgue, and resigned the congregation into their hands. He died at
Aberdeen, I5th February 1836, and in April following his widow received a
grant of ,£ 10 from the Synod "owing to her peculiar circumstances." She
belonged to a family in Portmoak parish, and died, 28th December 1856,
aged seventy-nine. Mr Grahame, from all that appears, made the best of
his trying situation.
Forgue received partial supply of sermon for a dozen years after Mr
Grahame finally withdrew. In 1837 they had preachers on alternate
Sabbaths, who conducted service among them in the forenoon, and went in
the evening to preach in the parish of Insch, four miles distant. In 1842
the membership was only 1 5, though the attendance was frequently as high
as 200. In the mission report for the previous year it was stated that
Forgue had not been in so prosperous a condition for many years, that there
were between 300 and 400 people waiting on the means of grace, and about
1 20 young persons attending classes. The missionary, it was explained,
seemed peculiarly suited to the people ; but it is to be inferred that a change
of agent came, and in the course of two years the station was abandoned,
and the congregation passed out of existence. In the almanac list of
churches in Stewartfield Presbytery Forgue appeared for the last time in
1842.
SAVOCH OF DEER (UNITED SECESSION)
THIS congregation originated on 2ist June 1821 in a petition to the
Presbytery of Aberdeen for sermon, but supply had to be delayed owing to
want of preachers. All that was gained was the appointment of Mr
Robertson of Craigdam to preach at Savoch the first Sabbath he had it in
his power. Little more was done till September 1823, when supply was
granted for two Sabbaths, and afterwards ever and again. For a time
Savoch was treated as a station under the Itinerancy Fund, but on I5th
March 1824 the people wished to have sermon on alternate Sabbaths at
their own expense. In this state matters continued till April 1828, when it
was agreed at a public meeting to petition the Presbytery to have them
PRESBYTERY OF BUCHAN 145
congregated. On i7th June it was intimated that u persons had applied
to be received into Church fellowship, and a member of Presbytery was
appointed to give further opportunities for parties to come forward, and on
Tuesday after the fourth Sabbath of June he was to congregate them.
Within the next five months other 20 were admitted, and arrangements made
for having three elders ordained. It was needful before this to set about
providing themselves with a regular place of worship, and for their aid and
encouragement the Presbytery recommended collections to be made by the
congregations within their bounds. The building was finished that year at
a cost of ^350 ; sittings fully 300 ; and ,£210 was expended two years after
wards on a manse.
First Minister. — DAVID CAW, from Methven. Ordained, 28th December
1830. But before this stage was reached danger was threatened through
misunderstandings which had arisen in the congregation, and the Presbytery
was asked to intervene. The end appears to have been gained, though not
perhaps till injury was done to the young cause. When the moderation was
applied for ^70 was promised for stipend, ^5 for expenses, with one-fourth
of an acre of land gifted to the congregation by the Earl of Aberdeen. The
call was signed by 70 members and 34 adherents. On 29th May 1832 Mr
Caw resigned, stating that, though the congregation was prospering, he felt
it to be his duty to go and preach in America. On 26th June it was found
that he adhered inflexibly to his purpose, and the Presbytery, though highly
disapproving of the step he had taken, loosed him from his charge. Mr Caw
became minister at Broadalbin, Canada West, and removed in 1846 to Paris,
in the same province. On 4th October 1864, when driving out to visit some
members of his congregation, his horse having taken fright, he was thrown
from his gig, and died in a few hours. He was in the sixty-seventh year of
his age and thirty-fourth of his ministry.
Second Minister. — JOHN HUNTER, from Jedburgh (Blackfriars).
Ordained, nth July 1833. The stipend was, as from the first, ^75, with
house, garden, and a small glebe. The call was signed by 81 members.
At this time there was a debt of ,£170 on the property, but it was cleared
off in 1840, with the aid of £70 from the Liquidation Fund. In 1837 there
were 140 on the communion roll, of whom about two-thirds were from the
parishes of Old Deer, Ellon, Tarves, Methlic, and Fyvie, and only one-third
from New Deer, towards the southern boundary of which parish Savoch is
situated. At the time the congregation was formed there was no Established
church nearer than six miles, but in 1834 a Chapel of Ease was built in the
village. Mr Hunter died, 3rd June 1865, in the sixty-second year of his age
and thirty-second of his ministry. Mrs Hunter was a daughter of the Rev.
John Clapperton of;Johnstone, and a niece of the Rev. Dr Nicol of Jedburgh —
Mr Hunter's minister in his student days. Their son, the Rev. James Pi. S.
Hunter, was ordained over Strathaven (West) two years after his father's
death, and is now minister at Stornoway.
Third Minister. — GEORGE BLAIR, from Leslie (West). Ordained, 4th
April 1866. Accepted a call to Oatlands, Glasgow, iith June 1878. Three
months after this the congregation called Mr George Smart, who declined,
and was soon afterwards settled in Denny.
Fourth Minister.— ROBERT PATERSON, M.A., from Galston. Ordained,
3rd September 1879. The present membership, though the population has
been steadily declining, is little under 150, and the stipend from the people
is ^no, with the manse.
:46 HISTORY OF U.P. CONGREGATIONS
STEWARTFIELD (UNITED SECESSION)
THIS congregation originated in the refusal of Mr Mitchell of Clola to enter
into the Union between the Burghers and Antiburghers in 1820. On nth
September 1821 a majority of the session and a considerable number of
members applied to Aberdeen Presbytery for advice as to securing the
property, and also asked supply of sermon. Before proceeding further the
Presbytery appointed two of their number to converse with Mr Mitchell,
but they found that after a calm discussion with him on the subject his
scruples were unremoved, and his objections to joining with the United
Presbytery insuperable. Sermon was then granted to the petitioners, but
only once in two or three weeks, as they had no suitable place of worship.
In March 1822 they reported to the Presbytery that they would have to hold
their services in the fields during summer, as their attempts to procure the
use of the church on alternate Sabbaths had failed. The relative strength
of the two parties in the congregation had been tested, the result being that
1 10 members, including two elders, signed a document formally adhering
to the minister, while 72, including six elders, gave in a written declaration
of their separation from the congregation as constituted in opposition to
the Union. Thoughts of securing Clola church being abandoned, the
minority determined to make the village of Crichie, otherwise Stewartfield,
their centre, and there they proceeded to build a church, which, along with
the manse, cost between ^600 and £700.
First Minister. — DAVID ALLISON, from Paisley (Abbey Close). Ordained,
8th July 1823. Mr Allison had been previously called to Grimsby Street,
Arbroath (now Princes Street), and was about to be ordained when the call
to Stewartfield was brought out, and also another to Anstruther. The three
were referred to the Synod, and, though Arbroath had the best claim,
Stewartfield carried by an absolute majority, and contrary to the wishes of
the preacher. The stipend promised was ^80, with a free house and garden.
Some difficulty arose on Mr Allison's part in connection with the rent of the
glebe, and he held back for a little, but the matter was "most amicably
settled." Of him and his people Mr Lind of Whitehill wrote in his journal after
Mr Allison's death : " He was a pious, devoted, Christian minister, faithful
to the talents given him ; of a poor, nervous constitution, but a respectable
preacher. The congregation of Stewartfield prospered under his ministry,
and increased from 90 to 230. He got a fine nucleus of old Seceders who
came off from Clola. His preaching was chiefly of the consolatory kind. It
edified the godly, and the godly grew under it." The congregation prospered
in numbers beyond what Mr Lind has given. In 1837 the communicants
amounted to 285 ; whereas Clola, which had been much in the majority when
the severance took place, had under 140.
In October 1857 Mr Allison intimated to the Presbytery that in con
sequence of continued affliction he was unable to discharge the duties of
the pastorate, and wished to retire. On ist December the congregation,
with expressions of deep sympathy, brought up a proposal of ,£30 as a
retiring allowance, and Mr Allison stated that he was to give up the manse
and the small croft as soon as a colleague was obtained. He cheerfully
acquiesced in the proposed arrangement, which was forthwith sanctioned
by the Presbytery. He died, 7th July 1858, in the fifty-ninth year of his
age and thirty-fifth of his ministry.
Second Minister. — JAMES HENRY, from Whitehill. Ordained, i6th
December 1858. Resigned, loth October 1876, being constrained to
emigrate to a warmer climate owing to the state of his wife's health. Soon
afterwards Mr James W. Hay, now of John Street, Montrose, was called
PRESBYTERY OF BUCHAN 147
to Stevvartfield, but declined. Mr Henry had meanwhile set out for the
other side of the world. In due time he was inducted to Albury, N.S. Wales,
where he has since been, but his name now appears on the list of aged and
infirm ministers.
Third Minister. — HUGH GLEN, from Duke Street, Glasgow (now
Cathedral Square). Ordained, I3th February 1878. The call in this case
was perfectly unanimous, and was signed by 143 members, and it was
accepted in preference to two others from Ardersier and Sunderland
(Smyrna). The people offered a stipend of .£140, besides incidental
expenses. However, in common with other congregations, Stewartfield
came under the depressing influences so widely felt in Buchan Presbytery,
arising from the decline of population and the existence of other churches
comparatively near. In this way the membership was gradually lessened,
till at the close of 1896 it was returned at 112, and the stipend from the
people had been reduced by degrees from .£140 to ^90. In April of the
ensuing year Mr Glen tendered his resignation to the Presbytery, with
the view of being entered minister-emeritus. He had found it necessary
two years before to withdraw almost entirely from pulpit work, and the
assistance of a preacher was required, for whose salary he contributed
,£34, the Board allowing ,£50 ; but now he deemed it better to stand aside
altogether, medical opinion being clear as to pain and injury to his eyesight
from the nervous strain of preaching. When the matter was brought
before the congregation they were not of one mind as to the shape which
a retiring allowance should take, but at a subsequent meeting the dis
cussion took a new form entirely. The Free Church congregation of Old
Deer was really in the village of Stewartfield, and though it had a
membership a third larger than their own it also had suffered in the
general decline. It was accordingly agreed to suggest to the Presbytery
that a union might be effected between the two congregations. With this
design communication should be opened with the Free Presbytery of Old
Deer, and meanwhile the acceptance of Mr Glen's resignation should be
delayed. The whole proposal met with the Presbytery's approval, on the
understanding that all the interests involved would be duly conserved,
and a committee was appointed to confer with any similar committee that
might be appointed by the Free Church Presbytery of the bounds.
On 3rd August 1897 certain articles drafted by the joint committee as a
basis of union were laid before the Presbytery for consideration. These
were that the united congregation should meet in the Free church, and
should be United Presbyterian, with Mr Glen as senior colleague, and the
Rev. J. M. Skinner of the Free Church to be the acting minister, the
elders from both sides to form the united session, and the U.P. managers
and F.C. deacons the court of management. The Presbytery stipulated
that Mr Glen's allowance be not less than ^50, and it was to be obtained
from the central funds of the U.P. Church, instead of being a charge on
the united congregation. On 6th September it was reported that the
basis of union had been unanimously approved of at a joint meeting,
first of the office-bearers and then of the congregations, that the Advisory
Committee, the Sustentation Fund Committee, and the Augmentation Board
were all satisfied. On Thursday, I4th October, the Presbytery of Buchan
met in the U.P. Church, Stewartfield. The Free Church Presbytery
was associated, and the minute they had previously framed was read,
bearing that the Presbyterial connection of the congregation and minister of
Old Deer with their court now ceased, that the severance was not altogether
without pain, but they trusted the time was not distant when the two
churches would become one. Principal Rainy then preached from Romans
148 HISTORY OF U.P. CONGREGATIONS
xii. 4, and the Rev. John Young, M.A., the Home Mission Secretary
of the U.P. Church, took part in the devotional exercises. The right hand
of fellowship was given to Mr Skinner, and his name was entered on the
roll of the U.P. Presbytery of Buchan. As representing the two denomina
tions, Dr George Smith of the Free Church was also present, and Dr
William Blair of the U.P. Church, Dunblane, who was to conduct special
services on the following Sabbath. At the close of 1899 the united
congregation had a membership of 240, and contributed ,£137, ics. of
stipend.
ROSEHEARTY (UNITED SECESSION)
THE first mention of Rosehearty in the Antiburgher records is on 23rd
October 1776, when in answer to a petition for sermon a preacher was ap
pointed to supply in that fishing village on the fourth Sabbath of November.
But the tradition of a much earlier connection with Craigdam, thirty miles off,
with the Sabbath journeys, and the " Praying Knowe " at Artamford, midway
between, is too firmly rooted to be set aside. When Clola congregation
was formed in 1766 it brought the place of worship eight miles nearer, and
in 1770, when Whitehill was organised, the distance was reduced to twelve
miles. About the year 1787 we find from the old Presbytery records that
sermon for Rosehearty began to be ever and again applied for, and in the
Old Statistical History it is stated a few years later that there were twenty
Seceders in Pitsligo, the parish to which Rosehearty belongs. Their little
place of worship was erected in 1787-8, though it was not fully fitted up till
1791. The Rev. W. P. Ogilvie, the present minister, in his historical sketch
of the congregation has stated, amidst much valuable information, that the
joiner's account amounted to ,£60, and the entire expense to considerably
more than ^100. Though services may have now been kept up more
frequently there was no regular congregation formed for other thirty years.
But on 1 3th September 1821 sermon was granted to Rosehearty about once
a month, except during the fishing season, when there was usually supply
every Sabbath. In August 1826 the people petitioned for preachers once a
fortnight, and they wished to have them as often after October as they might
find themselves able to pay for them. Thus the cause advanced step by
step, till it developed into fully organised existence.
First Minister.— ROBERT JOHNSTON, from Dunfermline (Chalmers
Street). Ordained, 22nd April 1828, on a call signed by 26 members and
44 adherents. The stipend was to be ,£80 in all — ^65 from the people and
^15 from the Synod — and, ,".s a representative elder was appointed on the
ordination day, a session must have been already constituted. The people
seem to have thought there was to be progress now, as they resolved before
the end of the year to execute repairs on the building and put in galleries.
The Presbytery promised their aid if they were furnished with evidence that
the outlay was necessary, what the expense would be, and how much was
subscribed among themselves. The cost was put in reply at ,£145, and the
case was recommended to the liberality of friends, and specially to the
liberality of the congregation itself. When the work was completed there
were sittings for 350, but trying times were already drawing on In
February 1830 a committee of Presbytery was sent by request to Rose-
hearty for the purpose of restoring peace, and though they succeeded in
a way we have here the beginning of the end. Affairs got altogether out
of joint, and on I3th March 1832 Mr Johnston, who had held on too long,
was loosed from his charge. It was his intention when he demitted to go
to America, but he lingered on in this country, though his name was never
PRESBYTERY OF BUCHAN 149
allowed a place on the probationer list. He died in Jamaica in January
1853, in the sixty-fifth year of his age. His eldest daughter was the wife
of the Rev. Hugh Goldie, missionary there at that time, and afterwards in
Old Calabar. His son, the Rev. A. R. Johnston, was minister first in Dun-
tocher and then in Letham.
Second Minister. — WILLIAM BALFOUR, from Castle Street, Jedburgh
(now extinct). Ordained, i6th April 1835. The call was signed by 50
members, but under Mr Balfour's ministry there was to be gradual im
provement. In 1840, though the membership was composed exclusively of
working people — 72 in number — most of them engaged in fishing, they set
about having their debt of ,£160 cleared off. This was a burden that had
come down from 1829, when the church was renovated, and now they had
the promise of ^60 from the Board if they could raise the other ^ico. The
terms were accepted, and the end was gained in 1845. Four years after this
there were 108 communicants, and the stipend was ^75, which supplement
raised to ,£90. A manse had also been built several years before at the
slight cost of ,£260, of which the debt was cleared in 1853, with the assistance
of ^100 from the Synod. On I7th September 1878 Mr Balfour retired,
severe illness having wholly unfitted him for ministerial duty. In addi
tion to his annuity from the Aged and Infirm Ministers' Fund he was to
have ^10 from the people, with the occupancy of the manse, and was to
retain the status of senior minister. The congregation was prepared to
proceed with an election, the stipend promised to the colleague being ^80.
Third Minister.— WILLIAM DICKIE, M.A., from Paisley (St James'
Church). Ordained, I4th November 1878, and loosed from Rosehearty,
1 4th December 1880, on accepting a call to Wilson Church, Perth. During
the brief vacancy which followed the congregation called Mr William Muil,
who preferred Auchterarder (North). The senior minister who had vacated
the manse in 1879, and removed to Paisley, died, 4th February 1881, in the
seventy-fifth year of his age and forty-sixth of his ministry. Mr Balfour
was a brother-in-law of Dr Paterson of Kirkwall and the Rev. John Paterson
of Rattray.
Fourth Minister. — WILLIAM P. OGILVIE, M.A., son of the Rev. Duncan
Ogilvie, D.D., Falkirk. Ordained, 6th July 1881, and before the year was
out the people were exerting themselves to provide funds for a new church.
Though the membership was only 120 they had already raised ^400. The
foundation stone was laid on 6th July 1882 by John Gilmour, Esq., Helens-
burgh, a generous contributor, and the church, with 415 sittings, was opened
on loth October 1883 by Dr James Brown of Paisley. The collections that
day and on the following Sabbath came close on ,£140. The building cost
,£1550, and it was entered with a debt of only ^310, which a grant of ^100
from the Board enabled the congregation to extinguish in 1885. A new
manse was completed in 1897 free of debt, the estimated cost having been
not over ^800, and the Board having allowed a grant of ^250. The
membership at the close of 1899 was 124, the stipend from the people ^100,
with the manse.
NEW LEEDS (UNITED SECESSION)
IN connection with Home Mission operations in the Presbytery of Stewart-
field a station was opened in this "poor, straggling village" in June 1831. A
month later it was announced that a preacher had been sent to New Leeds,
in connection with a place in the parish of Lonmay, where he officiated on
Sabbath evenings. The first request of the people was for sermon once a
150 HISTORY OF U.P. CONGREGATIONS
fortnight, and for a time all was in a shapeless state, there being no collec
tions even. However, a church, with sittings for 200, was opened in 1832,
" extremely low-roofed, and thatched with heather." The place continued to
be wrought as a station from year to year, but on i6th April 1843 a congrega
tion was formed, with a membership of 38. The attendance had suffered
much from the erection of an extension church in the district five years
before.
First Minister.— WILLIAM FISHER, from Perth (North). A location
being deemed desirable, Mr Fisher was applied for in January 1844, the
people having previously had a trial of his gifts. On i8th May he accepted
the invitation, and on 2ist November of that year he was ordained as a mis
sionary, with authority to preside in the session and perform other ministerial
functions. On 27th May 1845 he received a regular call to be minister of
New Leeds, and his induction took place on i8th June. The stipend had of
necessity to be largely supplemented, as the members were few, and they
could promise only ,£40 and a cottage. Mr Fisher, however, was able to
report in 1851 that they had increased during these six years from 40 to 90.
Steps were taken two years after this to provide a larger church, and also a
manse superior to the comfortless, three-roomed dwelling in which Mr Fisher
had hitherto been domiciled. This was accomplished at a cost of ^750, most
of which was raised by the minister, aided by a graphic narrative of his work
and its drawbacks which he contributed to the Missionary Record. But
untoward fortunes followed, and in 1867 the membership was down to 59,
and the stipend from the people was only ,£35. At this stage Mr Fisher,
owing to disabling illness and the discouragements of the situation, demitted
his charge, and the demission was accepted, 24th March 1868. He was now
entered as an annuitant on the Aged and Infirm Ministers' Fund, and re
moved to Perth, where he died, i4th January 1870, in the seventieth year of
his age and twenty-sixth of his ministry. The Rev. Robert Fisher of Dubbie-
side was a brother of Mr Fisher's. New Leeds was now wrought for some
years as a preaching station, though sealing ordinances were regularly ad
ministered.
Second Minister.— THOMAS F. WHILLAS, B.D., from Edinburgh (now
Gilmore Place). Ordained, 26th June 1873. Mr Whillas had been engaged
two successive seasons at New Leeds when a student, and now the people
invited him to settle permanently among them, the call being signed by
54 members. The closer relation lasted for nearly six years, and then on
1 8th March 1879 he accepted a call to a new church at Motherwell (now
Ualziel).
The congregation then made three abortive attempts to obtain a minister.
They first called Mr John Cooper, afterwards of Townhead, Dumfries, but
owing to want of harmony in this little society the call was dropped. They
were now in the mood for dividing, and at next moderation 10 voted for Mr
David Gray, afterwards of Burra Isles, and 14 for Mr Adam Baillie, now of
Errol, and again the call came to nothing. They next went in cordially for
the Rev. James Jack, formerly of Grimsby, but he accepted Duns (West).
Third Minister.— JAMES H. BEATT, from St James' Place, Edinburgh.
Ordained, 27th October 1880. Demitted, ist May 1883, and emigrated to
Canada. He is now minister of Rockburn and Gore, Presbytery of Montreal.
Fourth Minister— JAMES S. BUTCHART, translated from Burra Isles,
Shetland, where he had been minister for six years, and inducted, 9th January
1884. The membership at the close of 1899 was 95, and the stipend from
the people ^60, with the manse.
PRESBYTERY OF BUCHAN 151
FRASERBURGH (UNITED PRESBYTERIAN)
IN August 1862 evangelistic services were conducted at Fraserburgh, that
being the season of the herring fishing, and in November a petition from 12
persons craved a continuance of preaching, with the view of having a con
gregation formed. On 7th July 1863 Mr Balfour of Rosehearty stated that
his session had granted disjunctions to the members of his congregation from
about Fraserburgh, and would offer no opposition to the proposed formation.
They seem to have been 1 1 in number, one of them being Mr David Hay,
an elder of Mr Balfour's, who took the lead in the movement from the first.
These, along with other 8 persons, were formed into a congregation on 28th
July. For long it was a question whether the work should be continued, the
Mission Board often, and the Presbytery sometimes, being doubtful of ultimate
success. Locations were attempted, but they seldom came to much, and the
increase was so very slow that in February 1870, when the first elders, two in
number, were chosen, one of them being Mr David Hay, the members only
amounted to 36. But in October of that year Mr John Smith, now Dr Smith
of Broughton Place, Edinburgh, then a fourth-year student, accepted an en
gagement as missionary at Fraserburgh, and in April following the people
began to move for the erection of a permanent place of worship. Up till
then they had met first in a hall, and afterwards in an old academy. After
considerable delay the end was gained, and the church was opened, 23rd June
1875, the cost being from ^800 to ,£900, of which ,£150 came from the Build
ing Fund, and ,£320 was raised by subscription. They were in readiness
now for something decisive. Already a call, brought out with much cordiality
to Mr William Steedman, had been declined in competition with Eaglesham.
First Minister. — JOHN SMITH, M.A., who had already done good work
at Fraserburgh, and for the last two years had been settled at Burghead.
Inducted, I3th October 1875. The stipend from the people was ^70, which
it was calculated would be raised by supplement and surplus to ,£170. The
communion roll had not as yet much to show, and the call was signed by
only 33 members ; but the field was large, and there were special opportunities
for good-doing at the fishing season. Mr Smith remained at Fraserburgh
nearly three years, and then on 4th June 1878 he accepted a call to Wallace
Green, Berwick. A manse had been completed the year before at a cost of
^980, the Board allowing ^300. There was now a membership of 88.
On proceeding to have the vacancy filled up the congregation was in a
position to offer ^80 and a manse, instead of £,70 in all, as before. They
first called Mr John Scott, who declined, and is now in Biggar (Gillespie
Church). The second call was given by a majority of only one, 17 having
voted for the Rev. W. B. Melville of Burray, and 16 for the Rev. James
Milligan of Houghton-le-Spring. The Presbytery was saved discussion on
the question of sustaining, as the congregation on the preceding Sabbath
unanimously agreed, owing to the state of feeling among them, to allow the
call to drop, an example worthy of imitation. This procedure prepared the
way for perfect unanimity and a speedy settlement.
Second Minister. — JAMES K. SCOTT, B.D., from Cumnock. Ordained,
24th September 1879. The membership at the close of 1899 was 166, the
stipend from the people ^i 10, with the manse, and the contributions for
missionary and benevolent purposes for the year were the highest in Buchan
Presbytery.
152 HISTORY OF U.P. CONGREGATIONS
FETTERANGUS (UNITED PRESBYTERIAN;
THIS is a village of 300 or 400 inhabitants in the parish of Old Deer, with no
church nearer at that time than two miles. The station originated in 1880,
in the Students' Recess Scheme, Fetterangus being the only place available
for that kind of work within the bounds of Buchan Presbytery. After
arrangements were made for a beginning it came to be understood that the
Free Church intended appointing a missionary to labour in the same district,
but at next meeting it was ascertained that the above intention was departed
from. The appointment of Mr Joseph Rorke, a first-year student, followed
in April 1880, and he commenced work forthwith, and on petition from the
people he returned the following summer. On gth November 1882 a new
church was opened free of debt, and at this time there was a membership of
about 50. Mr John Lennox, now of Head Street, Beith, a licentiate of the
Church, followed, and when he left towards the close of 1884 there were 75
names on the communion roll. The station was congregated, 22nd April 1 883.
First Minister. — DAVID CONOCHIE, from Airth. Ordained, 24th August
1893, after having laboured at Fetterangus nearly two years. Between 1884
and 1891 the congregation under successive locations had rather lost ground,
there having been within that period 33 removals and only 19 accessions.
But under Mr Conochie there was progress, and at his ordination the
members numbered 78. Since then, though the population has been on the
decrease, and though the Established Church has opened a station in the
village, the membership has come up to 100, and the stipend, exclusive of
,£20 in lieu of a manse, is ,£162 —£jo of this being contributed by the people.
PRESBYTERY OF CUPAR
CERES, WEST (ANTIBURGHER)
IN August 1737 the parish of Ceres fell vacant, and in due time a numerously-
signed call was addressed to a probationer named John Loudon. He had,
however, preached once for Mr Wilson of Perth and once for Mr Mair of
Orwell, from which the Assembly of 1 740 inferred that " he had a squint eye
to the Seceder brethren," and they ordered the Presbytery to ordain the
minority's man, Mr Thomas Scott, which was done on nth September 1740.
But a number of the parishioners had already given in their accession to the
Associate Presbytery, and on Sabbath, igth August, Mr William Hutton
preached to them, and next day he and Mr Moncrieff of Abernethy observed
a fast among them. Thus was the standard of the Secession planted at
Ceres, and to that village the gathering of the people throughout the east
of Fife was to be.
First Minister. — WILLIAM CAMPBELL, of whose family connections
nothing is known. He comes into view for the first time in 1739 as a student
of divinity under Mr Wilson, when he was allowed ^6 from the fund raised
to assist young men who were preparing for the ministry. On I3th January
1742 the congregation of the "East of Fife" met at Ceres for a moderation.
Before the proceedings began voters were asked to come in front of the tent.
The roll of those in accession was read, and those who were present answered
to their names. For Mr Campbell all the elders voted, and most of the con
gregation. Mr Nairn, who presided, now intimated that he would repair to
a certain house in the village to inspect the subscribing. All signed, it is
PRESBYTERY OF CUPAR 153
added, except such as were obliged to go home. Mr Campbell was ordained,
ist September 1742. The services must have been conducted in the open
air, as a place of worship was not yet erected. A stone in the old building
bore the date 1744, and in November of that year the session lent the
managers £10 "to help to carry on the erection of a place of worship."
How ways and means were found there is little to indicate beyond the
mention of public collections once a month. The church had accommoda
tion for nearly 1000 persons, and the congregation is said to have drawn its
membership from thirty-two parishes. From their own records I am able to
count up within one or two of that number.
Ceres was one of the first Secession congregations which took up the
work of covenanting. In arranging for this observance the session found
that several of their members residing in St Andrews and Cupar had sworn
the Burgess Oath, and it was agreed that they should not be allowed to enter
the bond. Ten days afterwards Mr Moncrieff, with whom Mr Campbell was
in close alliance, represented to the Synod that this oath demanded consider-
tion. Such was the origin of the controversy which after two and a half
years of heated discussion rent the Secession asunder. But, apart from this,
the work of covenanting did not conduce to the peace of Ceres congregation.
Four of the elders held back, and had to be dealt with for dereliction of duty.
Two of them got over their difficulties, but the other two were doubtful about
a paragraph in the Acknowledgment of Sins in which the Cambuslang Re
vival was lamented as "an awful work upon the bodies and the souls of men."
Mr Moncrieff, who happened to be on the ground, was called in to give the
session his assistance, and, after he had spoken at some length, one of the
two professed himself very much satisfied, but the other said his doubts and
scruples were not removed, and it carried to lay him aside from the exercise
of his office.
But it was not till the rupture of the Synod in April 1 747 that the bond of
peace was completely broken. Seven elders ultimately withdrew, and there
must have been a marked thinning out by members leaving, some to form
the Burgher congregation of St Andrews, and others to strengthen that of
Auchtermuchty. But even after this exodus was over the controversy entailed
confusion and trouble. For example, the elder who was their representative
at the Synod when the breach took place, and went with the Antiburghers,
ceased after a time to attend meetings of session, and absented himself from
public ordinances. The case was referred to the Presbytery, and they
deposed the offender from office and suspended him from Church privileges.
It had a painful ending. " Caught in the thicket of affliction," he sent up a
paper to the Presbytery confessing his faults, and promising to cleave to the
good cause should he be restored to his wonted health. The sentence of
suspension was removed, and on Sabbath his paper to the Presbytery and
their decision thereanent were read from Ceres pulpit. Next day David
Donaldson died. About the same time other two elders were laid aside
from office for similar reasons, and lost to the congregation. If it was in
Ceres that the germs of the Burgess Oath Controversy were nurtured, Ceres
had to reap the fruits in a harvest of bitterness.
Mr Campbell died on i8th October 1752, in the forty-ninth year of his
age and eleventh of his ministry. This shows that like others of the first
Secession preachers he had reached middle age before he was ordained.
His last illness must have been brief, for he was present at a meeting of
Presbytery only fifteen days before his death. Two publications bear his
name, the one a pamphlet, entitled " Vindication of the Judicial Act and
Testimony"; the other headed "Seven Sermons by that Eminent, Painful,
and Laborious Servant of Jesus Christ, the late Rev. William Campbell,
154 HISTORY OF U.P. CONGREGATIONS
preached before, at, and after the Celebration of the Lord's Supper, 2ist
August 1743." They are all on the text: "Christ also hath suffered for
sins," etc., and were published from "his own manuscript" the year after
his death.
Second Minister. — ADAM FOOTE, from Muckart. Ordained, 25th October
1756, after a vacancy of four years. One of these summers they had only two
Sabbaths supplied out of twelve. The stipend is nowhere given, but when
about to obtain another minister the session lent the managers £4 or ,£5 to
aid in building a manse. Mr Foote presided at a meeting of session on
29th November 1761, and the pulpit was vacant the next two Sabbaths. On
Saturday, igth December, he died, in the twenty-ninth year of his age and
sixth of his ministry. The Scots Magazine gives fever as the fatal ailment.
Next day there was another silent Sabbath, but in the silence they must
have heard a voice. On Sabbath week Mr Dempster of Leslie preached to
them, and improved the event.
Third Minister.— THOMAS BENNET, from Milnathort. The session
having given in Mr Bennet's name, some of the members proposed the
Rev. Richard Jerment of Peebles, but he only received 14 votes. Mr Bennet's
call was signed by 180 (male) members, and the Synod by an absolute
majority preferred it to two others from Dumbarrow and Pathstruie, and on
22nd December 1762 he was ordained. The congregation of Ceres, though
still large, was now getting narrowed in. When Mr Campbell died the
praying societies in Anstruther and St Monans applied for, and obtained,
sermon for themselves, and this cut off the parishes in the east of Fife. In
1771 the families from Leven and other parishes to the south were disjoined,
and ultimately formed the congregation of Dubbieside.
Some gleanings from the session records of this period and earlier may
be introduced here. Prominence might be given to the firmness with which
members were dealt with for the offence of "promiscuous hearing," but there
is greater pleasure in noting how the elders stimulated each other to sacred
duty by questions like this : " Do you keep up the worship of God in your
families, morning and evening, by singing His praise, reading a portion of
His word, and calling upon His name ?" This belongs to an order of things
that has passed away. Even the rigid supervision which the session kept
over the walk and conversation of the members fitted the social life of the
times, and wrought for good. Take a case which occurred in the early years
of Mr Bennet's ministry. When the roll was gone over in view of the
communion it was reported that two of the members were at variance with
each other. Having been forewarned, they were called in and heard at some
length, and then told to withdraw. When readmitted they were admonished
to forgive each other, seeing they had both been faulty, and after much deal
ing with them they joined hands, and engaged to bury their mutual animosi
ties. They were then exhorted by the moderator to live henceforth as
became brothers in Christ, and dismissed. " Blessed are the peacemakers,
for they shall be called the children of God."
A curious case may now be adduced to show how the session set itself to
stamp out the embers of superstition from among the people under their
charge. A member of apparently good social standing had money taken out
of his chest, and suspected one of his servants. Hearing of a woman in
Dundee who professed insight into such matters he consulted her as to the
culprit. The oracle did not commit herself, but told him that if she saw the
suspected person she might be able to divulge the secret. Following up
the clue, he sent two of his servants across to Dundee, one of them the sup
posed thief, but nothing satisfactory emerged. He then betook himself
to St Andrews, where "a seventh son" was said to have the discernment
PRESBYTERY OF CUPAR 155
needed, but here also the result was nil. The party when brought before
the session expressed sorrow for the double attempt at divination, and the
offence was " to be purged by a rebuke before the congregation next Sabbath
evening." Taking society as it was in those days, we are safe to say that
discipline of this kind was fitted to have a salutary effect.
Mr Bennet died, 3rd October 1793, m the sixty-first year of his age and
thirty-first of his ministry. He had a daughter married to the Rev. Frederick
M'Farlane of Montrose, and his younger brother, the Rev. William Bennet,
was long Antiburgher minister at Forres. In 1781 Mr Bennet published a
volume of discourses on the forty-fifth Psalm, which may still be read with
advantage. But five years prior to this he was the author of an anonymous
pamphlet, entitled " Terms of Communion agreed upon by the Scots
Methodists," meaning the Presbytery of Relief. This proved the beginning
of a paper war, keen and not very dignified, between the champions of the
two denominations which in the course of seventy years were to form the
United Presbyterian Church. Mr Bennet having set the ball a-rolling left
the battle-ground to others, and mingled in the strife no more. We have a
remarkable commentary on Mr Bennet's pamphlet in the fact that after his
death nearly one-half of his congregation went over to the " Scots Methodists,"
as he called them.
When Mr Bennet died Ceres congregation sustained the most serious
encroachment on its boundaries it had yet met with. Cupar, two and a half
miles off, was now with the sanction of the Presbytery to become the seat of
an Antiburgher congregation, cutting off supplies not only from the county
town but from Monimail and other parishes farther west. This successive
hemming in on every side was a serious matter for a congregation which had
all along required to draw its membership from wide distances. At this very
time the Old Statistical History put down the Antiburgher families in
Ceres parish at 86, and those of the Established church at six times that
number. To fit the old building for the altered state of things, it was now
much reduced in size, and also entirely renovated, so that in a session minute
of 1797 it is designated "the new church." But worse than losses by dis
junction was the disruption which supervened during this vacancy, and led
to the formation of a Relief church in Ceres. Enough to state for the present
that a preacher named Moses Robertson was the choice of the majority, and
the Presbytery of Kirkcaldy was to meet at Ceres for his ordination on 2oth
May 1795, "which meeting," as we read in the old session book, "never took
place, because Mr Robertson's ordination was stopped." This was by direc
tions of Synod, a report affecting his character for sobriety requiring to be
investigated. He then renounced the Synod's authority, and took a large
following with him, but the full particulars belong to the history of Ceres,
East.
In its weakened state the congregation went in unanimously for Mr John
Jameson, and the Synod in May 1797 preferred their call to another from
Methven with more than double the signatures. Mr Jameson delivered
part of his trials ; but after this, being fixed on becoming colleague to
his uncle at Methven, he wrote Kirkcaldy Presbytery that he was resolved
not to implement the Synod's decision. At next Synod the petition
from Ceres bore that they were wishful to have Mr Jameson settled
among them, provided he came willingly and cheerfully. After further
dealing with him the call was laid aside, and the honoured name of John
Jameson came to be linked with Methven, and not with Ceres. The next
call addressed to Mr Andrew Aedie came in at the eleventh hour, and
Forfar was preferred.
Fourth Minister. — PETER TAYLOR, from Cairneyhill. The signatures
156 HISTORY OF U.P. CONGREGATIONS
were higher than before, but even 112 contrasted sadly with the 180 in
Mr Bennet's case. Mr Taylor was ordained, 2Oth March 1799. In the
early part of his ministry the congregation kept faithful to the spirit of
former days. The Christian Magazine tells of a large gathering at Ceres on
ist August 1 8 10, when 98 entered into the bond. This was the thirteenth
time the duty had been gone about in that place, and the total number
amounted to 1280. In this work Ceres was in the van at the first, and in
1749 the session intimated from the pulpit that such as neglected so neces
sary a duty might find themselves excluded from sealing ordinances. How
ever, neither Synod nor Presbytery nor session ever succeeded in making
covenanting a term of communion. On this and other matters, such as the
use of Paraphrases, Mr Taylor was conservative, though he became less so
as life advanced. Of his characteristics George Brunton wrote as follows : —
" He not only succeeded in strengthening an originally defective memory,
and in storing it with a rich selection from the old authors, but he continued
to add to it all that was valuable in the current literature of the day, till it
became a treasury of things new and old." It was in lecturing that his gifts
and acquirements had fullest scope. It is matter of regret that we cannot
speak of Mr Taylor's ministry having ended in peace. On i8th July 1843 ne
came forward to the Presbytery with the resignation of his charge. Dis
affection and dissension, he said, had got in among his people, and a few
of them had gone into Cupar on the previous Sabbath, thereby deserting his
ministry. The congregation expressed by petition their strong attachment
to their minister, and their confidence that he would continue among them,
but Mr Taylor was fixed in his determination, and on the 25th his demission
was accepted. Had he not been possessed of independent means by his
wife, he might not have retired so early or so abruptly. He now removed
to Edinburgh, where he joined Dean Street Church, under Dr Davidson.
He died, 3oth March 1846, aged seventy-two, and a tombstone in Warriston
Cemetery marks where he is buried.
Fifth Minister. — WILLIAM BARLAS YOUNG, a son of the Rev. Alexander
Young of Logiealmond, and a grand-nephew of the Rev. William Barlas,
once of Whitehill. Ordained, igth February 1845, the young minister's
father addressing him on his duties, and presiding at the soiree in the
evening. The stipend was to be ^90, with manse and garden, and the
call was signed by 184 members. On 4th November 1856 Mr Young
demitted his charge owing to ill-health, after being partially laid aside for
nearly two years. The step was taken under medical advice, and, with
earnest prayer that the Comforter might be with him in the hour of trial,
the bond between him and his " warmly-attached people " was dissolved.
He died in his father's manse at Logiealmond, 2gth September 1857, in the
thirty-sixth year of his age and the thirteenth after his ordination. A minute
of session testifies to his excellences in an artless way : " His discourses
bore the marks of careful preparation, and were always evangelical, and he
was particularly clear and correct in his language and pronunciation. He
was gentlemanly in his deportment and affectionate in his disposition. He
was beloved by his people, and the congregation enjoyed peace and pros
perity under his ministry."
Taught a lesson by Mr Taylor's resignation the congregation had at that
time resolved solemnly and publicly to lay aside all differences that existed
among them, and during Mr Young's ministry harmony prevailed. But in
choosing a successor peace was for a time disturbed. 'Some were strongly
bent on having Mr William R. Barrie, and their eagerness may have gone to
defeat its purpose. It was carried by a small majority to apply for a modera
tion, which in their divided state the Presbytery refused to grant. After a
PRESBYTERY OF CUPAR 157
delay of five months Mr Alexander Doctor* was put forward as the rival
candidate, and had the cast of the balance in his favour. The membership
was 210, but only 84 signed the call. The parties came to terms, the
agreement being to let the call drop, lay both candidates aside, and begin
anew. Within three months they cordially united on Mr Henry Miller, from
Glasgow (John Street), no fewer than 181 members signing his call, but it
was declined. Mr Miller comes up again under Wigtown.
Sixth Minister. — ROBERT ANDERSON, from Kilbarchan. Harmoniously
chosen, he was ordained, 28th July 1858. In the seventh year of his
ministry the old manse was replaced by a modern erection, of which the cost
was to be ^700, but it came up to ^1000. The Board kept by the original
offer of ,£350, and the people with the aid of friends had to face a like sum
and the additional ,£300 besides. The population was now declining rapidly,
and the place becoming much too strait for the two congregations, and on
nth February 1873 Mr Anderson accepted a call to Milnathort. Some
attempts at union with the East church having failed, the people were given
to understand that they must not look for aid to the Augmentation Fund,
and to furnish the minimum stipend of ^157, ios. from their own resources
was a bold undertaking, with prosperity upon the ebb all round. Still, on
this footing they called Mr John W. Pringle, who declined, and a year
afterwards accepted the collegiate charge of Jeclburgh (High Street).
Seventh Minister. — GILBERT M. HAIR, from Longridge. Called previ
ously to Lumsden, Aberdeenshire. Ordained, 8th July 1874. On I4th
June 1877 the new church in St Andrew's Road, seated for 300, was opened
by Professor Cairns. The cost, besides free cartage from neighbouring
farmers, and aid in similar ways, was about ^1500. By the contributions
of the people themselves, the exertions of the minister, and the proceeds of a
bazaar, all in nearly equal proportions, along with ^200 collected on the
opening day, and a grant of ^150 from the Ferguson Bequest Fund, the
congregation was privileged to enter the new building free of debt. What
remains of its further history will come in under the heading of " The
United Church."
CERES, EAST (RELIEF)
THIS congregation sprung from the attachment of a large party in the old
Antiburgher church at Ceres to Mr Moses Robertson, a preacher belonging
to Buchlyvie. When the provincial Synod of Glasgow was entering Mr
Robertson on trials for licence, it was found that he was not enjoying Church
privileges on account of reports prejudicial to his character. After inquiries
by Stirling Presbytery Mr Robertson admitted that he had a strong social
propensity, and this had sometimes led him to sit too long in drinking
companies. Furthermore, though he had not a custom of drinking drams in
the morning, as was alleged, he sometimes asked one at that time of day
"for his stomach's sake." Neither was he in the habit of saying God bless
you, though it would seem that this or kindred expressions had sometimes
escaped his lips on great occasions. But here was a more specific admission :
" He had received a challenge from a gentleman with whom he had travelled
from Edinburgh to Whitburn ; they alighted, got each a sword, and thrust at
each other for some time." The Presbytery's report was brought up at the
* Mr Doctor was from Lochee. After years of energetic mission work in con
nection with Union Street Church he was licensed by Greenock Presbytery on 7th
March 1876 for Tasmania. lie has long ministered to the congregation of Bothwell
and Greenfronds, in the Presbytery of Hobart.
158 HISTORY OF U.P. CONGREGATIONS
Synod in May 1791, and the case was sent back to Stirling Presbytery, before
whom Mr Robertson promised to be more on his guard for the future, and
the whole affair was wound up with a rebuke, and an exhortation to " soul
exercise." At their meeting next year the Synod recommended the Presbytery
of Glasgow to take this gentleman on trials, but also instructed them to
proceed leisurely, "and to watch over his conduct in the meantime." In
November 1792 Mr Moses Robertson got licence to preach the everlasting
gospel, and was sent forth as a candidate for an Antiburgher pulpit. Two
years afterwards he carried Ceres by a great majority.
His trials being sustained, his ordination was fixed for 2oth May 1795 >
but proceedings were arrested by a fama " of Mr Robertson having been so
much the worse of drink on Friday, 26th April last, as repeatedly to fall from
his horse, particularly in the street of Cupar, Fife." A meeting of Synod
intervening, their advice was asked by the Presbytery, and Mr Robertson
having denied the charge, investigation was enjoined, and orders given not
to proceed with the ordination meanwhile. The Presbytery along with some
correspondents met at Cupar on I3th May, and adjourned for three months,
an enormous time to leave the matter hanging in mid-air. The next meeting
was at Ceres on igth August, when witnesses for the prosecution and defence
were examined upon oath, and the whole case referred to the provincial
Synod of Fife. The finding they arrived at on ist September was that
intoxication had not been proved, but, as Mr Robertson had been too
frequently engaged in drinking spirituous liquors that day, they should
proceed to deal with him. Against this sentence Mr Robertson protested
to the General Synod, and the case was hung up for eight months. The
General Synod dismissed the protest as groundless, whereupon Mr Robertson
pronounced their conduct tyrannical, and declined their authority. He was
then deprived of his licence, and excluded from the fellowship of the Church.
Meanwhile his friends in Ceres kept by him, and the congregation was rent
in twain.
B5ly°nd this we have only some hints in the old session records to guide
us. Within a year or two several who had gone off at this time sought
readmission to the Antiburgher Church. One woman is described as having
given encouragement to Mr Robertson's ministrations, and of two elders who
returned one had attempted to deprive them of the place of worship for
behoof of Mr Robertson, which implies that his party reckoned themselves
he majority. How long he remained at Ceres, or why he left, is nowhere
Heated but by-and-by sermon was obtained from the Relief Presbytery of
Uysart. Mr Moses Robertson now passes out of sight, and neither tradition
nor written record has enabled us to lift the curtain from his after history
First Minister.— FORREST FREW. Ordained, 8th December 1798. The
lurch, with sittings for 560, appears to have been finished before this Mr
rew was from Burntisland, and got licence from the Established Church,
but in the beginning of 1798 he applied to the Relief Presbytery of Dysart
for admission as a probationer. This step is stated in the Christian Journal
n i f ,1 aV£ been,PromPted bY aversion to the law of patronage. In the
Journal of the Rev. Alexander Paterson of Dundee we have a reference to
communion work at Ceres in the summer of 1805. Assisting his friend, Mr
,e preached twice on Thursday, twice on Saturday, exhorted at five
* on Sabbath, took the evening service, and preached twice on Monday.
It would seem from this that Mr Paterson had been the only assistant. If
: system differed widely from what prevailed in the Antiburgher con-
P?r?h ™H SUf 'T/' °2 7th July I8°7 Mr Frew accepted \ call to
rth, and was loosed from Ceres, after labouring there eight and a half
years. It would not be all comfort for him, where altar was set up against
PRESBYTERY OF CUPAR 159
altar, and where in village life there was embittered feeling through memories
of recent strife and disruption.
Second Minister. — ARCHIBALD GUMMING, translated from Newlands,
Peeblesshire. Mr Gumming is said to have been the minority's candidate
when Mr Frew was called, and he was now unanimously chosen as his
successor. The stipend was ^100, with taxes paid, but no manse. Mr
Gumming was inducted, 2oth January 1808. The circumstances in which
he was called were of hopeful import, but his " exceedingly reserved dis
position " may have kept him from gaining the affections of his people, and
after he had gone on for twenty years disputes arose, the stipend fell behind,
and in 1829 the Synod recommended the Presbytery to make an earnest
effort to effect an adjustment, as without this the very existence of the con
gregation was imperilled. Mr Gumming offered to accept ,£50 a year instead
of the ,£100 originally promised. He was also willing to cancel the bond
for stipend, and let a large part of the arrears go, but compromise proved
impossible. The Synod in 1830 found that Mr Gumming was at one with
the commissioners in this, that his usefulness in Ceres was at an end. They
decided that he should receive ^95 in lieu of all claims, the people to give
^75, and ,£20 to be paid from the Synod Fund, while the congregations in
the Presbytery made up other ^12, ios., which came altogether to within
,£17, ios. of his own figure. On ist June 1830 Mr Cumming's demission
was accepted. He was now midway between sixty and seventy, and yet
after three years of probationership he was inducted into Golinsburgh. The
difference between him and his people in Ceres arose from what they con
sidered an ill-advised marriage in advanced life, but the fact that another
door of usefulness opened for him so near as Colinsburgh at this late hour
shows that he had not lost his standing either as a minister or as a man.
Third Minister. — DANIEL KERR, M.A., from Kilbarchan. Ordained,
1 7th April 1833, on a second call. When the first came out he appeared
before the Presbytery, and " in a modest and Christian spirit declined
accepting." In a few weeks Mr Kerr was again their unanimous choice.
The stipend was to be ,£70, which compared ill with the ,£100 they under
took two dozen years before, but there was now a house and garden.
There were only 60 names appended to the call, but in four years the
New Statistical History put the Relief families in Ceres at eighty or ninety,
making them equal to those of the Secession. During Mr Kerr's ministry
trade was prosperous, and the congregation was much improved, but on 3rd
March 1840 he accepted a call to Duns (South).
Fourth Minister. — DAVID ANDERSON, son of the Rev. John Anderson,
Kilsyth, and step-brother to Dr William Anderson of Glasgow. Ordained,
1 2th August 1840. The stipend was now ,£90, with manse and garden, and
the call had 238 signatures. At the union of 1847 Mr Anderson held back
for a time, and his people kept unitedly by him. He had the feeling that
the Relief principle of free communion got scanty justice in the Basis of
Union, but his hesitancy was got over, and much to the gratification of his
brethren, one of whom had assisted at his communion shortly before as
though nothing intervened, he appeared at a meeting of Cupar Presbytery
on 23rd November following, and intimated that he and his congregation
were now prepared to give in their cordial adherence to the United Church,
The rising tide of liberality was to do more for the principle of free
communion than any tinkering of an article in the Basis of Union could
have done. " Conscientious convictions " are all on the one side now, and
what remains is only a question of practical administration.
From this time there is nothing special to record till attempts were made
to effect a union between the two congregations. These will form a fit
introduction to the history of the United Church, Ceres.
160 HISTORY OF U.P. CONGREGATIONS
CERES (UNITED CHURCH)
THE first movement towards union began among the people themselves.
On loth September 1872 the elder from the East church informed the
Presbytery that a committee had been appointed on each side to confer
together, and that appearances were hopeful. The population of the parish
had come down between 300 and 400 within ten years, and this of itself
dictated amalgamation. While negotiations were going on the West church
fell vacant through the Rev. Robert Anderson accepting a call to Milnathort.
The Home Board now, along with deputies from the Presbytery, took the
matter in hand, but they reported in December that they found themselves
baffled, " though they did not seek to define the causes of failure or dis
tribute the blame." Had the vacant congregation been prepared to unite
with the other under the sole pastorate of the Rev. David Anderson all else
would have been of easy adjustment, but in Ceres, with its deep-seated
aversions, this was not to be looked for. It is too much, on the other hand,
to expect a minister whose vigour is unimpaired to withdraw from his life-work,
even for the sake of union. It may be no fault of his that there are rival
congregations in the place, and it is wrong that he should be sacrificed, even
in the interests of the Augmentation Fund.
Since 1868 the Ceres churches had both been supplemented, the West
by £20 and the East by ^30, but now to make good their claim to have a
minister of their own the West church undertook to give the minimum
stipend of ^157, IDS. from their own funds. The sum they had been paying
before was ,£130, and the membership had decreased in five years from 242
to 214. But on this new footing a call was issued and a settlement effected.
We go forward other ten years now, and gauge the situation anew. At the
close of 1883 the membership of St Andrew's Road (formerly the West) was
144, and instead of the old minimum they could not promise more than ^120.
Meanwhile the East church, which was cast on its own resources by a
decision of Synod in 1874, had suffered in the same way, though not to the
same extent, and in 1881 they had been obliged to reduce the stipend from
,£13010 £110. The Presbytery thought the present a fit time to ascertain
the feelings of the respective congregations as to union, but Mr Anderson
looked with disfavour on the raising of the question anew, and there was
nothing further done ; only, the matter was handed over indirectly to the
Augmentation Committee by a request for supplement to St Andrew's Road
Church.
On 6th April 1885 -a. pro re nata meeting of Cupar Presbytery was held,
at which Dr Scott, the Home Mission Secretary, intimated that the way for
union at Ceres had been all but cleared. There was rapid progress now,
and details having been arranged, the Presbytery on igth May declared the
two congregations to be henceforth one. Next Sabbath they met in the
East church, when the services were conducted by Professor Calderwood
and the Rev. David Anderson, the senior colleague, and on Sabbath week
they met in St Andrew's Road Church, when Dr Scott and the junior
colleague, the Rev. Gilbert M. Hair, preached. There had been some
difficulty as to the place of worship, and for the first three months the united
congregation met in the East church, which was nearly a century old, but
had been recently remodelled and renovated. The other was comparatively
new, and after it had been tested for a like period it was agreed unanimously
to settle down there. But whatever may have been the reason, whether
heavy removals from the district or leakage through defective coalescence,
the membership came down 40 next year. Each minister was to receive
^100 from the people, but now ,£92 had to be named instead. On nth
PRESBYTERY OF CUPAR 161
August 1890 Mr Anderson completed the fiftieth year of his ministry, and
the event was marked by a jubilee gathering in the hall, formerly the Relief
church, in which he ministered forty-five years. In the vigour of a scarcely
worn old age he went back to the time when Ceres was in prosperity, " the
sound of the shuttle being heard from every door, and the population fully
double what it is now."
On 5th July 1892 Mr Anderson sent in to the Presbytery the resignation
of his charge, and on the 25th it was accepted, and his name placed on the
emeritus list. Since the union the decline in numbers had continued, and
that year it reached its maximum, the numbers being reduced from 194 to
135. Misunderstandings had arisen, and a large number of the East congre
gation had left, many of them going over to the Established Church. The
thinning out by one family after another leaving the place is still going on,
and the congregation, which had a membership of 130 six years ago, is now
under 100, and the people pay a stipend of ,£85.
AUCHTERMUCHTY (BURGHER)
WHEN the Burgher Synod met in April 1748, a year after the Breach, a
paper was laid before them signed by 64 persons who had been members of
Mr Moncrieffs congregation at Abernethy, or of Mr Mair's at Orwell,
praying to be taken under their inspection. The design was to make
Auchtermuchty the meeting point for the families who had drawn away from
their own ministers at Leslie and Ceres, as well as at Abernethy and Orwell.
Sermon was obtained on 23rd June 1748, and this dates the origin of the
Burgher congregation of Auchtermuchty. Their first church was built in
1750, and they next proceeded to call a minister. The first they fixed on
was the Rev. David Telfer, Bridge-of-Teith, but the Synod in April 1751
refused to translate. They succeeded in their next attempt, though this was
scarcely matter for congratulation. But to get at the rise of the Secession in
Auchtermuchty we have to go back other ten years. On i6th May 1738 a
praying society in that parish acceded to the Associate Presbytery, and three
elders followed in October 1739. There was much dissatisfaction with the
minister of the Established church at this time. In a representation to the
General Assembly in 1740 he stated that all his elders, to the number of
eleven, "had deserted his session on an event that happened in September
1737." The reference was to the reading of the Porteous Act, which the
clergy of the Established Church were ordered under heavy penalties to do
before sermon on the first Sabbath of every month for a whole year. Many
refused, but Mr Maxton of Auchtermuchty yielded compliance, which was
deemed Sabbath profanation, and also a surrender of the Church's independ
ence. The minister afterwards tried to make peace with his session by
owning he did wrong, but the evil was too far gone to be repaired. From
this time forth the Secession had strong footing, not only in Auchtermuchty,
but in the neighbouring parishes of Strathmiglo and Collessie. Its adherents
attended at Abernethy till the Breach, and then a large proportion took the
Burgher side, and got a church of their own nearer home.
First Minister. — PATRICK MATTHEW, who had been ordained at
Midholm ten years before, but, as narrated elsewhere, a change had become
imperative. Accordingly, in the early part of 1751 the Presbytery of Perth
and Dunfermline wrote him to supply some Sabbaths \vithin their bounds.
This brought him a call to Auchtermuchty, and the Synod as a matter of
course pronounced for the translation. His induction took place, 5th May
1752. There was a regular session before this, and it is interesting to trace
162 HISTORY OF U.P. CONGREGATIONS
from their own records the districts from which members were drawn. Be
sides three elders who had left Mr Moncrieff s ministry there were two from
Creich, who had been members of 'Ceres session. There was another from
Kettle, and a fourth was Henry Shoolbred, from Falkland, who had held
office under John Erskine of Leslie. He was the ancestor of our well-known
missionary in India, the late Dr Williamson Shoolbred. About a year after
Mr Matthew's induction an election of additional elders was proceeded with,
and when this was over they numbered seventeen in all.
In the session minutes there are some stray entries which bring out the
manners of the time. Thus, in view of the Synod's meeting in May 1755, the
session took into account that it was dangerous for a young man to cross the
Firth of Forth owing to the press for sailors, and instead of David Smith,
Junr., they appointed his father to be their representative elder. The
following may be taken as a curiosity : — On a certain Sabbath morning a
weaver with his wife and apprentice were going on with their ordinary
avocations, " till some people passing by on their way to church heard them
at their work, and went in and stopped them." The man and his apprentice
appeared before the Session, and explained that they set to work under the
impression that it was Saturday. They were rebuked on the spot, and
exhorted to be watchful in time coming, the rebuke to be intimated to the
congregation. In Thomas Mair's Diary there is a similar case recorded.
Of Mr Matthew's gifts as a preacher there is no memorial left. On 6th
April 1767 he met with his session for the last time. Whether there were
foul whisperings abroad already we know not, but within a fortnight he was
before his Presbytery for a track of immorality. All was so clear that much
of the evidence might have been spared. Mr Matthew was deposed, 5th
May of that year. It is said that he went to America, but, as is usual in
such cases, there is nothing known of his subsequent life. Had the calamity
come a dozen years earlier, it might have done the congregation irreparable
damage. It was well for their interests that they were now to have a man of
high Christian character and blameless life set over them.
Second Minister. — JOHN FRASER, M.A., a native of Inverness, who seceded
from the Established Church when a divinity student. Having got licence on
6th October 1767, he was appointed to supply at Auchtermuchty on the third
and fourth Sabbaths of that month. Though Gaelic was his native tongue
this does not seem to have impaired his acceptability, as the call he forth
with received was quite harmonious, and he was ordained on 7th July 1768.
The session consisted at this time of eleven members, and their districts took
in a wide range. There was one for Edenshead, another for the west hills of
Abernethy, another for Kettle and the south side of Collessie, a fourth for
Freuchie, and a fifth for Newburgh. Mr Eraser's stipend, so late as 1784,
was only ^44 a year, and the Presbytery found it needful to stir the people
up to greater liberality.
Mr Fraser was the author of the representation which occasioned the
outbreak of the Old and New Light Controversy in the Burgher Synod.
He believed there was urgent need to relax the terms of the formula with
regard to the magistrate's power in religion, and the binding obligation of
the covenants, though for himself he had no difficulty on these matters.
What he specially wished to guard against was the want of entire harmony
between profession and principle. Hence he pleaded to have the standards
modified into consistency on these points with the sentiments of ministers,
elders, probationers, and students. That Mr Fraser should be unsparingly
blamed in the bitter pamphlets which followed on the Old Light side was to
be expected, but he suffered from a quarter nearer home. In 1797, when the
strife was becoming fierce, a paper was given in to the session from 17
PRESBYTERY OF CUPAR 163
members of his own congregation, in which they declared their strict
adherence to every article in the Confession of Faith. The matter was more
offensively put in a subsequent paper from other 10 members, who declared
against the slightest deviation from the principles of the Church of Scotland,
and added that "in case there be any alteration, they count themselves not
bound to support any that adopt any other principles." But Mr Fraser was
not the man to retaliate, and the storm appears to have blown past without
doing further harm.
On 20th April 1814 Mr Fraser's resignation was accepted, the congrega
tion engaging to give him a retiring allowance of ,£44 a year. He seems
also to have retained possession of the manse, and the Synod granted him
an annuity of £20 from its own funds. He died, i8th December 1818, in
the seventy-fourth year of his age and the fifty-first of his ministry. Mr
Fraser married Magdalene Erskine, the eldest daughter of the Rev. Henry
Erskine, Falkirk. Three of their sons studied for the ministry — Henry, who
was ordained at Saltcoats ; Donald, best known as Dr Fraser of Kennoway ;
and William, who was first in Crail and then in Alloa (West). Of their
daughters, one was the wife of the Rev. James Gardiner, Newtonards,
Ireland, and the mother of the Rev. John Henry Gardiner of Whithorn ;
and another was the mother of the Rev. John Skinner of Partick.
In the end of 1814 the congregation called Mr George Donaldson, a
preacher in large request at the time, but Dundee (School Wynd) carried.
They next called Mr Andrew Scott, but he was appointed to Cambusnethan.
Third Minister. — ARCHIBALD BAIRD, from Greyfriars, Glasgow. Ap
pointed to Auchtermuchty in preference to Dunbar and Dunblane, and
ordained, igth August 1817. The services were conducted "in a com
modious and pleasant spot to the north-west of the town, long used on sacra
mental occasions, and where Mr Fraser was ordained (on a midsummer
day forty-nine years before). The audience was supposed to exceed 2000."
The Rev. George Donaldson, the object of their former choice, preached,
and this would heighten the interest. The stipend, which was ^100, with
the manse, seems to have been raised to ,£150 after Mr Fraser's death, but
the gearing was out of order, and had been so for a lengthened period. In
1820 the managers complained to the session that nearly one-fourth of the
congregation habitually neglected to do anything for the support of the
gospel. The same evil cropped up eighteen years before, and had been
dealt with as failure to perform "a plain and necessary duty." About this
time there was also much irritation to minister and session in connection
with a prominent elder and his family. But a call to Mr Baird from the
recently-organised congregation of St James' Street, Paisley, now intervened,
with larger promise every way, and on I4th September 1825 the Synod
decided by a majority in favour of translation.
Fourth Minister. — JOHN TAYLOR, M.D., from Stow. He was not the
first Secession preacher who passed through a medical training, but never
till now had these letters of weighty import adorned the outfit of a candidate
for a vacant Secession pulpit. The Synod having appointed " Dr Taylor"
to Auchtermuchty in preference to Lockerbie, he was ordained, I5th August
1827. His discourses in those days were remarkable for the amount of
material they contained, clearly arranged and vigorously reasoned out.
" Without any oratory," wrote one, " save a manner which in any other man
would have been only tolerable, but with him it was agreeable because it was
natural — without any eloquence save an earnestness which was sufficient to
awaken and sustain the sympathy of his audience — and without any art
save the judgment to select an important subject, and the tact of leading
his hearers to see and feel his own interest in it — he became one of the most
1 64 HISTORY OF U.P. CONGREGATIONS
interesting" preachers of the day." Dr Taylor dealt too exclusively with the
intellect to be broadly popular, but the congregation prospered under his
ministry, the membership at one period approximating to 500. A new
church, with sittings for 600, was opened on Sabbath, 4th January 1846, and
through the exertions of the people and their friends only a slight debt
remained.
But the time for Dr Taylor's transference to another sphere was now
approaching. In 1851 the Rev. William Proudfoot, who had acted as
theological tutor for the Church in Canada, died, and the Home Synod
was asked to recommend some outstanding minister to be their Professor
of Theology. In 1852 the Mission Board reported to the Synod that they
had nominated the Rev. Dr Taylor of Auchtermuchty to the above office, and
that the nomination had been cordially approved of by the Canadian Synod.
Accordingly, on Tuesday, i8th May, the relation between him and his con
gregation was dissolved, and on the following Sabbath he preached to them
from the text : " Finally, brethren, farewell." In Canada the duties of the
Chair were uncomfortably light for some years. Thus, in Session 1855 there
was only one student of the fourth year in attendance, two of the third, three
of the second, and four of the first. When the appointment was made
Dr Taylor was directed to reside in Toronto, and the holding of a pastoral
charge was left to be directed by circumstances. Owing to differences in
the church at Toronto the way was opened up for the originating of a
second congregation, of which Dr Taylor became the minister before a single
year had passed. The salary guaranteed by the Synod was ,£250, but from
this sum the stipend received from the congregation was faithfully deducted
year by year. At the Union with the Free Church in 1861 Dr Taylor re
signed both the professorship and the pastorate and returned to Scotland.
In 1863 he was inducted to Busby.
Fourth Minister. — GEORGE BARLAS, from Perth (North). On the
father's side Mr Barlas was a nephew of the Rev. George Barlas, Maygate
Church, Dunfermline, and on the mother's side he was the grandson of Dr
George Jerment of London, and a descendant of Moncrieff of Culfargie, one of
the Fathers of the Secession. When a preacher, Mr Barlas was the object
of a contested call from Stranraer (Bridge Street) which came before the
Synod in May 1853, and was sustained. Kettle was also going forward in
his favour, but amidst much hostility. All was put right by a harmonious
call from Auchtermuchty (East), where he was ordained, I2th October 1853.
At first there was warm attachment to the young minister, but in a few
years a counter current set in. Discontent was brought to a point in March
1858 by the entire session of seven members relinquishing office, and by the
case being plunged into the Presbytery. In the church there were two
parties of nearly equal strength, but, though complications ensued which
taxed the wisdom of Cupar Presbytery, the result from the first was scarcely
doubtful. The party opposed to the minister held the purse strings, and on
1 4th September Mr Barlas resigned. When the question of acquiescence
was brought before a congregational meeting his friends moved for non-
acceptance, and found themselves slightly in the majority. At the next
meeting of Presbytery, on 28th September 1858, though commissioners pled
for his continuance, Mr Barlas adhered to his purpose, and the resignation
was accepted, and care taken to see that his pecuniary claims were fully
met. Nearly three years after he was inducted into Millhill, Musselburgh.
At the first meeting of the interim session at Auchtermuchty there was
a general rush for disjunction certificates, of which a considerable number
were given in to the North church, but many were lost to the denomination,
and some, it is to be feared, were lost in a worse sense. Clearly, the best
PRESBYTERY OF CUPAR 165
thing for the congregation was to get the pulpit efficiently filled with as little
loss of time as possible. In May 1859 they called Mr James H. Scott,
whose father had been called to the same congregation forty-two years
before, but both father and son preferred Cambusnethan.
Fifth Minister. — JOHN F. M'SWAINE, from Bridge-of-Allan. Ordained,
4th July 1860, having previously declined Killaig in Ireland. The money
arrangements were much as before. The stipend was to be ^130, with manse
and garden, so that there was no coming down from the platform of self-
support, or from what his predecessor had. It was in numbers that the
shortcoming lay, for while the call to Mr Barlas was signed by 234 members
that to Mr M'Swaine carried only 138 names, and the circumstances of the
town were such that instead of increase there was bound to be decline.
Hand-loom weaving, which had been the staple trade of the place, was
ruined, and the population was rapidly going back. The three congregations
in Auchtermuchty all experienced the process of thinning out year by year, but
it was the West church under Mr Wise on which the pressure told most
severely, and it was from it as a centre that negotiations for union with the
East church were carried on. The narrative will be resumed under the
heading, " The South Church."
AUCHTERMUCHTY, WEST (RELIEF)
THE Secession got gradual footing in Auchtermuchty at an early period,
but the Relief began in a large exodus from the Establishment later on. In
1734 the parish had been favourably dealt with, when the General Assembly,
in a reforming mood, rescinded the ordination of an obnoxious presentee,
and turned him adrift, so that he had to content himself with a settlement in
Shetland. But now the pendulum swung to the other side. One of the
principal heritors, Moncrieff of Readie, presented the Rev. Thomas Mutter,
Leswalt, to the charge, but his right to the patronage was in dispute. On
this ground the Presbytery and Synod refused to sustain the presentation,
but by orders of the General Assembly Mr Mutter was ordained, 28th
September 1762. The result was a large accession to the recently-con
stituted Presbytery of Relief. It appears from one of his notebooks that Mr
Gillespie of Dunfermline preached and baptised at Auchtermuchty on i7th
November 1762. He also officiated "at the tent," apparently on a com
munion Sabbath, 26th June 1763. The church, with 500 sittings, was built
that season. As for Mr Mutter, who was over fifty at the time, he was
transferred to Dumfries in three years, and died there in 1793.
First Minister. — THOMAS SCOTT, previously minister of a Presbyterian
church in Hexham, where he was ordained, 24th November 1756, by the
Northumberland Class. In 1761 he was invited to Colinsburgh, but he
declined uon account of his inability for such a great charge." WTe infer
that, like his brother, the Rev. James Scott of Jedburgh, he was a native of
Wilton parish, near Hawick, and had been a licentiate of the Established
Church. From a manuscript sermon of Mr Gillespie's we learn the exact
date of his induction at Auchtermuchty. Preaching there on a Fast Day,
loth August 1763, he began with the words : " To-morrow one is to be admitted
as your pastor." Old members of the congregation were proud to tell that
of Relief congregations theirs was the fifth in order of seniority, Blairlogie
having been the fourth. The Relief at the beginning, and long afterwards,
had a much larger hold of the parish than either of the Secession branches.
In 1793 the Old Statistical History gave the numbers, not including children,
as follows : — Relief, 284 ; Burghers, 189 ; Antiburghers, 93 ; which is almost
1 66 HISTORY OF U.P. CONGREGATIONS
exactly in the ratio, 3, 2, and i, and the frequency with which Mr Scott's
name appears in the parish register for baptisms shows that in him the
parochial incumbent had his chief competitor. On gth April 1786 the last
entry of a baptism by Mr Scott occurs, and this may be taken as an approxi
mation to the close of his ministry. At the Synod in May 1787 money
matters came up for adjustment between him and his late congregation.
There seems to have been a legal bond for stipend, which was in arrears, and
the Synod decided that the congregation pay Mr Scott ,£75 in three instal
ments, in satisfaction of all his claims. The circumstances in which the
pastoral relation was dissolved gave the parish minister occasion to tell the
public, in his account of Auchtermuchty for the Statistical History, that "the
Relievers lately turned off an inoffensive old man who had preached to them
for over twenty years." He then generalises on the demerits of Dissent in
the following terms : — " These divisions are among the greatest judgments
that can befall a place. They are a judgment temporally, as they take away
the substance of families to support ministers, and they often prevent the just
claims of others from being paid. They are a judgment spiritually, as they
extinguish the spirit of love and charity." Sir John Sinclair's history of the
several parishes in Scotland gave valuable results, but the work was left
generally in the hands of the Established clergy, and it is disfigured ever and
again by reflections through which the editor should have drawn his pen.
Mr Scott's tombstone in the Canongate Churchyard states that he died, I7th
February 1792, aged sixty-nine. His widow, who at the time of their marriage
was the widow of the Rev. John Warden, first Relief minister of Blairlogie,
died at Edinburgh in 1810, in her eighty-fifth year, and was buried beside
her husband.
Second Minister. — JAMES BONNAR, from the Antiburgher congregation
of Buchlyvie, but he was never a divinity student in that connection. Having
become a licentiate of the Relief Church, he was called to Falkirk not long-
afterwards, but the call was so divided that the Synod in 1786 set it aside.
Ordained at Auchtermuchty in 1788. The precise day cannot be ascertained,
but it seems to have been in April of that year. Though Mr Bonnar at this
time was not much under forty, his ministry lasted nearly sixty years. He
was born while Thomas Gillespie was still a minister of the Established
Church, and he died when the Relief denomination was about to be merged
in the United Presbyterian Church. After he had laboured in Auchtermuchty
forty-seven years, and was midway between eighty and ninety, his people
asked the Presbytery to aid them in arranging for an assistant, as their
minister's "advanced age rendered such a step desirable." He had survived
his fitness for regular work, and may not have been aware of it. Terms were
come to, the agreement being that Mr Bonnar should give up ,£35 of his
stipend, and retain ^45, with the manse. The people on their part were to
raise another ^35, making the junior minister's income ,£70 in all. This was
in August 1835, but it was nearly two years before they applied for a modera
tion, which even then was delayed owing to divisions among them. In June
1837 they called Mr James Hamilton, who was settled soon afterwards in
Largo, but though the call was sustained it was not concurred in. The con
gregation hesitated about committing themselves to the .£70, and wished to
begin with ^65, but the hindrance was got over. The signatures, however,
only amounted to 107, which showed want of harmony or want of heartiness,
and Mr Hamilton declined to accept. But within six months all came right,
and they went in unitedly and cordially for another.
Third Minister.— JOHN WISE, from Collessie parish, but brought up
under Mr Bonnar. Ordained, 6th February 1838. On the following Sabbath
he was introduced by his old minister, who took for his text : " He that
PRESBYTERY OF CUPAR 167
winneth souls is wise" On retiring, Mr Bonnar was exempted from ministerial
duty, but he used to occupy the pulpit when Mr Wise was engaged elsewhere.
Thinking, perhaps, that his services were too often required, he once, as I
had from a sure source, referred to his colleague in prayer as " Thy young
servant who officiates occasionally in this place." These touches help us to
understand what his friend and biographer meant when he said that to some
he might at times appear defective in veneration. But failure of memory
and bodily infirmities gradually unfitted him for taking any part in public
work, and he died, nth February 1847, in the ninety-seventh year of his age
and fifty-ninth of his ministry. The congregation had now the consolatory
reflection that during these nine years they had done their duty towards their
aged pastor up to the measure of their ability, yea, and beyond it. At Mr
Bonnar's death Mr Wise's stipend was raised to ,£90, with possession of the
manse, but trying times were before him and his people, though for a course
of years the pressure was slight. In 1868 the congregation was placed on
the supplemented list, the first of the three in Auchtermuchty that came
beneath the point of self-support. In the preceding year the stipend, which
had never been over ,£95, was raised to ,£120 by the congregation, and
there was an addition of ^30 from the Board. But Auchtermuchty was now
going rapidly back in population, having declined by 750 in twenty years.
Between 1868 and 1873 tne membership of the West U.P. Church suffered
in precisely the same proportion, the communion roll being reduced from
212 to 170, and, as there was no prospect of trade reviving, the decline was
sure to go on. This brings us to the movement for union with the East
congregation, and the formation of what is now known as the South Church,
Auchtermuchty.
AUCHTERMUCHTY, NORTH (ANTIBURGHER)
ON 2Oth February 1782 three commissioners appeared before Abernethy
session, one from Auchtermuchty, one from Strathmiglo, and one from
Collessie. They presented a petition from their constituents, asking the
session to concur with them in an application to the Presbytery of Perth
for authority to build a church with the view of being formed into a separate
congregation. For forty years the Antiburgher families from that wide
district had travelled across the heights to Abernethy, a distance of from
four to seven miles, and often over bad roads. They wished now, like
their Burgher brethren, to have a meeting-house of their own at Auchter
muchty. The proposal if carried out would cut off a large wing from
Abernethy, but opposition from that quarter, and on that ground, was over
come, and the place of worship was built in the following year. The
congregation must have been formed prior to 4th July 1783, as two members
were disjoined from Ceres at that date and annexed to Auchtermuchty.
The first they called was Mr James Biggar, ultimately of Urr, but, as he
had only preached one Sabbath, the Synod in May 1784 set the call aside.
This defect having been supplied, the people called him a second time,
but the Synod at their next meeting appointed him to Newtonards in
Ireland.
First Minister. — JAMES BROWNING, from Kilwinning. Called also to
Arbroath (now Princes Street), but the Synod decided for Auchtermuchty,
assigning as a reason the disappointment the congregation met with at
last meeting. The call was signed by 79 (male) members. Ordained,
1 7th August 1785, and a number of additional accessions followed from
Abernethy congregation. Mr Browning's theological course had been
168 HISTORY OF U.P. CONGREGATIONS
very slim and fragmentary. Though enrolled six successive sessions at
Alloa, he attended only no days in all, the reason generally recorded for
the brevity of his stay being : " Obliged to return to his school." Hence
he was two years longer in being taken on trials for licence. His was
an extreme case, but students in those days seldom took an entire session
of eleven or twelve weeks.
In 1825 steps were taken to provide Mr Browning with a colleague.
The stipend named for the junior minister was £70, with house rent and
sacramental expenses, and on his succeeding to the full charge it was to
be ,£90. A call which proved successful was brought out, but Mr Browning
did not survive to get the benefit. He died, 2Qth October 1825, in the
seventy-seventh year of his age and forty-first of his ministry. He left behind
him four volumes of discourses, of which the first two were published in
1793, the third in 1800, and the fourth a few years before his death.
They have more of polished diction than was common in Secession pulpits
a century ago. Mr Browning married a granddaughter of the Rev
Andrew Arrot of Dunnichen, and a sister of the Rev. Andrew Arrot
who was for some years Antiburgher minister at Wick. His son the
<ev. David C Browning, was for twenty years minister in Newcastle
Blacket Street), but he died in the communion of the Church of
England.
< Second Minister.— JAMES FORSYTH, son of the Rev. Robert Forsyth
Craigend. The Synod by a majority of seven preferred the call from
Auchtermuchty to another from Tillicoultry. Ordained on i8th April
20 Along with the stipend of ^90 and sacramental expenses there
would now be the occupancy of the manse. The strength of the con
gregation can scarcely be calculated from the 140 names appended to the
call as it was not uncommon at that time for females in what had been
Antiburgher congregations to refrain alike from voting and from signing
Forsyth remained in Auchtermuchty fifteen years, and then on oth
November 1841 he accepted a call to Craigend, to be his father's colleague
and successor. The stipend there was less than he was now receiving
but family affection, and perhaps the wish for quiet comforts among the
friends of his early days, prevailed.
Third Minister.— THOMAS STEVENSON, from Kilmarnock (Clerk's Lane)
which the great majority had recently left the Secession Church under
their minister, the Rev. James Morison. Mr Stevenson's father was a
leading man in the little party which adhered to the Synod. Called unani
mously to Auchtermuchty. Had been carried at Forres some time before
by a slight majority, and the call was allowed to drop. A third
ollowed from Nairn, but Auchtermuchty was preferred. The ordination
took place, i4th June 1842. The services were conducted in the open
nrn,nn \ T "*? * large audience> delightful weather, and a lovely
: from the scene of meeting gave unusual interest and solemnity
to the proceedings." On the following Sabbath Mr Stevenson was intro-
SlkirV £% ^G Y hlS maternal unde> the Rev. William Steele,
.irk At this time appearances were favourable, the call having been
signed by 201 members, and the population of the parish befn " on the
OnrShe'Tand m°r« th^ double What & was when the congregation began
w ih sht&S? 1^° th^ °ld thatch-roofed church gave Jlac* to anotherj
ittings for 400, and a new manse was built some years before the
zeal and liberality of the people on both occasions being consp cuous ' But
m Auchtermuchty Mr Stevenson may have felt the disadvantage of being
set over a congregation which held a secondary place in thf town the
East church in those days overshadowing the other two Acco d ngly
PRESBYTERY OF CUPAR 169
on 22nd April 1856, he resigned, with the intention of proceeding to Canada,
and, commissioners from the congregation being present, the demission
was accepted. Stagnation of trade was now beginning to tell on Auchter-
muchty, and Mr Stevenson left in time to escape the growing evil.
In Canada Mr Stevenson was minister at Stratford till 1860, and he then
succeeded Mr Gibson, formerly of Erechin, at Owen Sound. Having re
turned to this country in 1869, his name was placed on the list of probationers
by the Synod, where it remained for two years ; but a minister beyond middle
life has little chance of carrying a vacancy over younger men. For a con
siderable time he acted as travelling secretary for the French Evangelisation
Society of the Canadian Church, and ultimately was available for pulpit
supply. In 1886 he was received as an annuitant on the Aged and Infirm
Ministers' Fund, his absence of thirteen years in Canada having left his
rights of admission unimpaired. On the morning of I7th October 1895
he was seized with apoplexy, and died that evening, aged seventy-eight.
About the beginning of his ministry Mr Stevenson published a pamphlet,
entitled "An Exposition of Biblical Doctrine on Christ's Priesthood and
Suretyship in Opposition to Modern Errors," the errors with which he had
been in contact at Kilmarnock. Mr Stevenson was the oldest of four brothers
who studied for the ministry, the others being Andrew, who, after obtaining
licence and the degree of M.D., was set apart for work in Jamaica, where he
died, I4th April 1848 ; James, now of North Leith; and Hugh, of Melrose.
Fourth Minister. — DAVID SIDEY, from Pitcairn, the congregation of
which his brother-in-law, the Rev. Robert Nelson, was minister. Having
declined a call to Muckart, Mr Sidey was ordained, 5th August 1857.
Though the call was unanimous, the signatures were only 123, being 87
fewer than Mr Stevenson's had, but the stipend was the same, £100,
with the manse and garden. In the following year the membership was
considerably increased by accessions from the East church, when Mr Barlas
left. On 2 ist November 1865 Mr Sidey accepted a call to West Calder.
Fifth Minister. — JOHN MORISON, from Falkirk (now Graham's Road).
Ordained, 6th March 1867. His call was signed by 192 members, which
implies a goodly building-up under his predecessor. The stipend was ^140,
and next year it was raised to ^150, at which figure it still remains, exclusive
of supplement and surplus. For a course of years the communion roll kept
well up, in the face of an adverse tide, but since 1881 there has been steady
decrease with the decline of population. The membership is now slightly over
100 ; but besides the stipend arrangement, liberal for their numbers, they con
tribute yearly for missionary and benevolent purposes some ^30, so that they
return to the central funds more than they receive.
AUCHTERMUCHTY SOUTH (EAST AND WEST UNITED)
THE union between these two congregations was consummated on 23rd
April 1873. Cupar Presbytery met that day at Auchtermuchty, when a
suitable sermon was preached by Dr M'Ewen of Claremont Church,
Glasgow. Then the moderator, the Rev. Hugh Barr of Kettle, to whose
tact and kindliness the negotiations owed so much, declared " the East
and the West congregations to be formally and legally one." Next Sabbath
special services were conducted by Dr Logan Aikman in the East church,
which, as the newer and better building, was to be the place of worship. The
West church, which had done service for 1 10 years, was soon afterwards
cleared away, and the manse, which had been renovated shortly before, under
i yo HISTORY OF U.P. CONGREGATIONS
the Synod's scheme, was disposed of to Mr Wise at a very moderate price,
and thus became the property of his widow and family after his death.
A union among the churches in Auchtermuchty had become a matter of
immediate urgency, but in such cases pressure from without is apt not only
to fail but to leave matters worse than before. There was danger, therefore,
in making the attempt, but Cupar Presbytery took the initiative, and guided
the movement through all its stages. In September 1872, at the suggestion
of the Augmentation Board, they appointed a committee to inquire into
the state of the West church, which was seen from the statistical returns to
have suffered a reduction of 15 during the preceding year, and the at
tendance was given at 100. At their first meeting with the committee those
present, with one exception, were favourable to union with the East church,
and at the second meeting a paper was produced to that effect, signed by
about three-fourths of the members, and the others were willing to fall in with
the majority. When the feelings of the East congregation came to be tested,
155 approved of the proposal for union, and 34 "did not see how it could
be carried out." Progress at this stage was greatly helped by the high
esteem in which Mr Wise was held for transparency of character, and peace
ful, straightforward ways. It came to this, that, on the evening of 24th
March 1873, the basis of union, drawn up with care and skill, was un
animously adopted by the East church, and on 8th April commissioners
were present from both congregations to lay before the Presbytery the
decision arrived at.
It was probably in connection with stipend adjustments that a minority
of the East congregation saw difficulties. While they were self-supporting
the other congregation was much beneath that level, and were the two
ministers to be paid alike ? The answer by the Presbytery's committee was
that, of the ^220 which the funds of the united congregation were expected
to yield for stipend, the junior minister should receive ,£150, and the senior
only ^50. Then, to keep up the balance, a sum of ^410 was raised from
outside sources, largely through Mr Barr's exertions, and this was made over
to Mr Wise, and the two were to share equally in whatever supplement was
going. But, skilfully as these delicate matters were dealt with, the union
brought less advantage to the general cause than was looked for. When the
negotiations were going on, the names on the two communion rolls were over
350, but two years afterwards the return for the united church gave only
242. There are apt to be serious losses in the emptying from vessel to
vessel.
On nth January 1876 Mr M'Swaine was loosed from his charge, having
accepted a call to Brisbane, Queensland, the congregation of which the Rev.
Matthew M'Gavin had previously been minister. He is now retired from
active service there, but retains the status of senior pastor of St Paul's.
When on a visit to this country in 1896 he received the degree of D.D. from
Glasgow University. Mr M'Swaine's removal while Mr Wise was able for
full work might have raised the question whether the charge was still to be
collegiate, but such a contingency had been provided for at the time of the
union. Mr Wise was over threescore, and the agreement come to was "that
the charge should be collegiate during the lifetime of the senior minister."
Hence Auchtermuchty, South, was placed at once on the list of vacancies.
Presenf Minister. — JAMES BELL, B.D., from Springburn, Glasgow. Had
been previously called to Lumsden and Ardersier. Ordained as colleague
and successor to Mr Wise, igth January 1877. The number signing the call
was the same as in Mr M'Swaine's case, and yet the union had intervened.
The total membership was 239, and the stipend from the people ^150, as
before. Mr Wise appeared in the pulpit for the last time on the first Sabbath
PRESBYTERY OF CUPAR 171
of July 1879, but his strength gave way before the service was finished. He
died, 2nd October, in the sixty-ninth year of his age and forty-second of his
ministry. He was buried in Collessie, beside the dust of his fathers. The
stipend from the people is still £i 50, though the membership has come down to
between 140 and 150 ; but over against this decrease we must emphasise the
fact that the population of the parish declined nearly one-third between 1871
and 1891, or suffered a reduction of close upon 1000. It is now little more
than half of what it was forty years ago.
ST ANDREWS (BURGHER)
THIS takes us back to the beginnings of the Secession in the east of Fife.
On 2 1st December 1737 the Associate Presbytery received an accession from
" some societies in St Andrews and the adjacent parishes," and Messrs Mon-
crieff and Nairn conducted week-day services on 23rd March 1738 at a place
two and a half miles south-west of the town. After this there is mention of occa
sional sermon at such places as Kingsmuir, Drumcarra Craigs, and Nydie, but
ministers and preachers seem invariably to have kept at a respectful distance
from the town itself. Sabbath supplies being limited, those in accession
walked frequently to Abernethy, twenty-two miles distant. Here comes in
the story of the night journey with lanterns. The author of the " Social
Life of Scotland in the Nineteenth Century "has improved on this descrip
tion by representing them as setting out for home on communion Sabbath
evenings at the close of the services, and passing along the streets of St
Andrews in the morning, "amidst the jeers of reprobate students." He ought
to have known that those who went such a distance were certain to remain
over for the services on Monday, "the last day of the feast." Besides this,
Abernethy communion was in June, when the students were dispersed.
From 1741 the Seceders in St Andrews and the eastern extremity of Fife
formed a branch of Ceres congregation, but at the breach of 1747, when Mr
Campbell took the Antiburgher side, seven of his elders went in for more liberal
measures, and of these two were from Kingsbarns, one from Kilrenny, and one,
who died soon after, was from St Andrews. On Thursday, i6th June 1748,
Mr Johnston, the Burgher minister of Dundee, preached at Ceres, but in a
few months St Andrews became the Burgher centre of the bounds. In the
beginning of 1750 St Andrews congregation had five elders ordained, making
apparently eight in all. Among these was Henry Thomson, a merchant in the
town, and an unwavering supporter of the Secession. He had been chosen
to the eldership in Ceres years before, but a curious question was raised,
which stopped procedure. It was alleged that on congregational fast days
he allowed his shop to be kept open, and his goods sold. Then it came out
that, though he did not engage in business himself on such occasions, he
allowed "some of them who are not of our communion to do so." The
motion was made : Delay till the above practice be inquired into. " Some
were stiff against this," but the proposal carried by the minister's casting
vote. One of the elders from St Andrews parish seems never to have taken
his seat in the session again, and two others protested in favour of Henry,
who was greatly respected. This affair may have helped to sway the great
majority in that quarter to the Burgher side, when the separation came. In
1749 the St Andrews Seceders took possession of their first place of worship.
Among some old papers there is a receipt : " For knocking down two parti
tions and making two windows, converting cottage into meeting-house."
First Minister. — JAMES BENNET, from Kinross (West). Ordained, igth
August 1752, when, besides the special work of the day, there were three
discourses preached, the opening one from the text, " As for this sect, it is
172 HISTORY OF U.P. CONGREGATIONS
everywhere spoken against." Some particulars relating to Mr Bennet's
ministry would have been welcome, but time has washed every vestige
away. We know, however, that he was in his forty-fifth year when ordained,
and that the late beginning was followed by an early ending. He presided
at a meeting of session on 2nd May 1757, and the Presbytery minutes of
1 7th May bear that "it had pleased the Lord to call him hence." That he
was laid in the old burying-place at St Andrews, near the graves of Samuel
Rutherford and Thomas Haliburton, is well attested. He was in the fiftieth
year of his age and fifth of his ministry. Mr Bennet was proprietor of the
lands of Gairney Bridge. Particulars bearing on his son John are given
under Lynturk.
During the vacancy of over six years which followed, one half of the
Sabbaths were blank. This was all the worse to bear, the nearest Burgher
congregation being Dundee, which was twelve miles distant, with the Tay
to cross. In 1761 they attempted to obtain Mr John Low, probationer, for
their minister, and he was even entered on trials for ordination. " Notwith
standing that the call from St Andrews was first on the field, the Synod saw
meet to prefer the call from Biggar, by which means this congregation lay
desolate for some considerable time, being sadly discouraged by their dis
appointment." Thus it is written complainingly in the records of St Andrews
church.
Second Minister. — DAVID SMITH, from Auchtermuchty (East). The
money arrangements were on a very humble scale. Old receipts show that
the stipend was only ,£30, with £i, IDS., and later on, ,£2, for the rent of the
minister's house. They also paid £i, 6s. 8d. annually for their extemporised
place of worship. We infer from the description, " David Smith, jun., in
Creich," that he was a son of David Smith, an elder in that parish, who left
Ceres session at the Breach, and joined Auchtermuchty, and the son, when
a theological student, was precentor and session clerk to that congregation.
He was ordained at St Andrews, igth October 1763. Four years after this
a petition came in to the Burgher Synod from Nova Scotia "for a fuller
dispensation of gospel ordinances," and in 1769 Mr Smith was appointed to
proceed on a mission to that colony, but it was not till igth March 1771 that,
in the face of their earnest desire for his continuance among them, the relation
between him and his people was dissolved. That summer he was settled at
Londonderry, Nova Scotia, where he remained till his death, 25th March
1795. Though only in his sixty-third year he was "worn out in a service in
which he had exerted himself above many, and often out of measure." Dr
M'Gregor of Pictou describes Mr Smith as wanting in amiability, and says
that, though a man of learning and penetration, his untoward disposition had
alienated a great part of his congregation from him.
In May 1774 sister congregations were recommended by the Synod to aid
St Andrews people in the erection of another place of worship, and the second
church, situated in " the Burgher Close," was taken possession of some time
afterwards. During these years sermon was kept up in an intermittent way,
twenty-two Sabbaths, for example, in 1 778 being unprovided for in the Presby
tery's distribution of supply. It was not till 1784 that measures were taken to
secure a fixed ministry again. They now saw their way to offer a stipend of
,£40, and they promised a house besides. The first they called was Mr James
Forrester, but the Synod gave Bathgate (Livery Street) the preference. The
next was Mr John Auchincloss, but Liff intervened, and the Synod sent him
thither. On the third occasion the ordination day was fixed, but at this
point the minister-elect, Mr James Blyth, afterwards of Fala, intimated that
he would not advance another step. Indeed, he would rather have his licence
taken from him than submit to be ordained at St Andrews. At next meeting
PRESBYTERY OF CUPAR 173
commissioners asked the Presbytery to go on, but if Mr Blyth was still
opposed they were empowered to withdraw the call. The case went to the
Synod, where penitence was expressed and rebuke administered, but these
things were of no service to St Andrews.
Third Minister. — GEORGE WILLIAMSON, who had been minister in
Hawick (East Bank) for nine years, but had to resign owing to disaffection
among his people. After acting for six years as a probationer he was in
ducted to St Andrews, 24th November 1789. The call was signed by only
33 male, and 29 female, members, and everything was gone about in a half
hearted way. The stipend was now to be ^50 a year, and the membership
seems to have been about 100. In the beginning of Mr Williamson's
ministry the congregation sustained a severe loss in the death of Henry
Thomson, of whom a minister, who lodged in his house when a probationer,
testified : " I think I never saw a layman of more venerable appearance and
more holy deportment." He saw them through their weary vacancy of eighteen
years, and then departed in peace, in the eighty-fourth year of his age.
The circumstances in which Mr Williamson's ministry at St Andrews
came to a close were unique. The quarter's stipend which fell due in the
summer of 1794 was alleged by the treasurer to have been paid to Mr
Williamson, and Mr Williamson maintained that he never received it. This
led to a representation from part of the congregation to the Presbytery, that
a difference had arisen between them and their minister, and they craved to
have the relation between him and them dissolved. A counter petition from
four others was found by the Presbytery to amount to a libel on the treasurer.
The case having been referred to the Synod in May 1795, several ministers
were appointed to correspond with the Presbytery, the object being recon
ciliation. At a meeting in Auchtermuchty parties were heard at some length,
but no accommodation of their differences was found possible. At this stage
a paper, purporting to be terms of agreement arrived at the year before, was
laid on the table by a member of Presbytery. In that document Mr William
son declared his belief that the treasurer was an honest man, and " that he
had acted honestly in the matter in dispute/' He also wrote out and signed
a paper, granting that he had received the quarter's stipend in question, and
discharging the same. Then the two took each other by the hand, with
expressions of mutual forgiveness. All this had been gone through in the
presence of several ministers who interested themselves in the affair. But
Mr Williamson, after giving the above receipt, began to speak to his con
gregation about casting himself on their generosity for payment of the missing
quarter's stipend, and this made matters worse than ever. The Presbytery
found that in putting in such a claim he was guilty of impropriety, and they
then decided to dismiss the whole affair, recommending the parties to live at
peace. But Mr Williamson, gauging the situation, announced that his con
tinuance in St Andrews would not answer the ends of edification, and demitted
his charge. At next meeting, on 4th August 1795, the congregation responded
by petitioning the Presbytery " instantly to loose the relation," and the de
mission was accepted. Mr Williamson returned to preacher life again. In
this position he had his difficulties, and the Synod in September 1798 made
him a grant of ^10 to aid him "in his present distress." On I2th November
1799 he acceded to the Original Burgher Presbytery, and in that connection
he remained to the end. He died at Kirkcaldy, 26th November 1817, in the
seventy-sixth year of his age and forty-fourth of his ministry. He had
laboured under palsy upwards of thirteen years.
It is but justice to Mr Williamson's memory to mention that, with regard
to the original question in dispute, the impression deepened in St Andrews
as time passed that he was right after all. It was more likely in itself that
174 HISTORY OF U.P. CONGREGATIONS
the treasurer of the congregation should hold back the money, and then
allege that he paid it, than that the minister, after being paid, should affirm
that he never received it. It is also conceivable that Mr Williamson, in his
anxiety to have matters made up, went beyond what conscience warranted,
when he wrote down that he believed the treasurer to have acted honestly in
this matter. If so, he cut the ground from under his own feet, brought his
integrity into question, and paid the penalty in due time. But other things
tempt the conclusion that discretion was not an outstanding feature in Mi-
Williamson's character.
Fourth Minister. — JOHN RAE, from Stirling (now Erskine Church).
Ordained, 29th August 1797. The numbers signing the call were short of
the maximum reached during the former vacancy, being only 72. The
stipend was to be ^60, and an addition of £4 was afterwards made for
sacramental expenses. Under Mr Rae's ministry the finances improved, but
on 5th September 1805 he was loosed from his charge by the Synod, and
translated to Miles Lane, London, where he was promised a stipend of
^200. Here he remained four years, his resignation being accepted on 5th
September 1809. The congregation found themselves in a reduced state,
and differences had arisen between minister and people which could not be
got over. He afterwards emigrated to New Providence in the Bahamas,
and in 1814 a memorial was presented to the General Assembly from the
minister and managers of the Presbyterian meeting-house in that island,
praying to be taken into connection with the Church of Scotland, and they
were assured of brotherly regard in return. We only know further that a
successor to Mr Rae arrived at New Providence in 1817, and that he himself
died at Stirling, of decline, as the parish register states, on 26th February
1821, aged forty-nine.
Fifth Minister.— JOHN JOHNSTON, son of the Rev. John Johnston of
Ecclefechan. Ordained, 2ist November 1809, after a vacancy of four years,
during which an unsuccessful call was issued to Mr Alexander Campbell,
who became minister of Irvine. To Mr Johnston Thomas Carlyle paid the
following tribute long afterwards : — " To me he was a benefactor, my first
good instructor in the Latin language ; his father was my father's venerated
minister, and still lives in my memory as one of the most venerable and
Christian men I ever knew." At St Andrews there was steady progress now.
From answers to certain queries by the Presbytery in 1823 we learn that
there were about 80 members when Mr Johnston was ordained, and there
were now 160. The stipend was much as before ; but in 1819 they built a
manse for their minister, the first they ever had. Of ordinary hearers, not in
communion, they had usually about 140 in attendance, though of these not
over 20 had sittings. But on I5th September 1825 the Synod agreed un
animously to transport Mr Johnston to Eglinton Street, Glasgow, "owing
to the peculiar circumstances of St Andrews congregation." Besides con
tracting debt in building the manse, they were in course of erecting a new
church in a better situation. This was an argument for Mr Johnston's con
tinuance ; but the Synod, looking at the matter in another light, transferred
him from the humble meeting-house in the Burgher Close, St Andrews, to
the stately building in Eglinton Street, Glasgow, with sittings for 1200, and
newly erected at a cost of ,£4000.*
Mag
himself. But Dr Hanna tells plainly that it was Mr Lothian of the Independent
Church on whose ministry Mrs Chalmers and part of her family frequently attended,
when, amidst the chill air of Moderatism, she was like to turn a Dissenter.
PRESBYTERY OF CUPAR
J75
Sixth Minister. — EBENEZER HALLEY, from Kinross (West), where, like
his younger brother, Dr Halley of Dumbarton, he was brought up under the
ministry of Dr Hay. The Synod having preferred St Andrews to Partick
(Dowanhill), the ordination took place, 9th August 1826. The church in
North Street, with sittings for 440, and built at a cost of ,£940, was opened
on 4th October. The people were to give the minister ,£115 of stipend,
with the use of the manse as soon as required. Mr Halley was exceptionally
popular, and in less than a twelvemonth he was called to Kirkgate,
Leith. The Synod decided against the translation ; but this only prompted
a second call, and on i6th May 1828 the transportation carried by a great
majority.
Seventh Minister. — THOMAS AITKEN, from Falkirk (now Erskine Church)
Prior to this they called Mr Robert Wilson, ultimately Dr Wilson of
Greenock, but in opposition to his own expressed desire he was appointed
to Kendal. Mr Aitken was ordained, 2nd June 1829, and the stipend named
was j^ioo, with the manse, and £10 for sacramental expenses. In a lengthy
paper given in to the Presbytery in 1831 we have interesting particulars as
to the workings of the Secession in St Andrews. In answer to a question
as to the deportment of members it was stated that " in situations of trust,
and as domestics in families, Seceders are very generally preferred." With
regard to family worship, it was believed that the duty was faithfully performed
in many houses, morning and evening ; and in other cases, where the situa
tion in life interfered with its observance twice a day, it was regularly
attended to at night. As for Sabbath attendance, though many of the
families came from four or five miles they were seldom absent. " It is by
no means uncommon," they add, "for members of the Established church to
hear with us the whole year round, and observe the sacrament at the annual
communion in the Established church." Then, to reward the Presbytery's
concern for their highest good, they told them "that it would tend to
advance the interests of religion throughout the bounds, if the Presbytery
under whose inspection Providence has placed them would always be mind
ful to exhibit at their meetings the hallowed influence of that religion they
teach, and be at peace among themselves."
On nth July 1838 Mr Aitken made a statement to the Presbytery, read
certain documents, and tendered the demission of his charge. Towards the
close of the preceding year the communicants were given at 233, and
though the debt amounted to .£450 the interest was nearly covered by rent
received for the ground flat of the manse, and there was nothing to forecast
what was coming. But now a wish had been expressed, Mr Aitken said, for
his resignation, and in these circumstances he declined to go on. On 24th
July a committee reported that there was no prospect of reconciliation, and
as Mr Aitken earnestly urged the dissolving of the connection, and as the con
gregation considered that his continuance among them would neither be for
his comfort nor their good, the resignation was accepted. Attested as a
faithful and devoted minister, Mr Aitken now emigrated to America, where
he connected himself with the Old School Presbyterians, and in December
1839 it was announced in the Edinburgh newspapers that he had been in
ducted to a ministerial charge in Genesse, State of New York. In 1880 he
was entered as retired minister of a congregation at Sparta in the same
State. He died there, nth March 1884, in the eighty-fifth year of his age
and fifty-fifth of his ministry.
The dispute which ripened so rapidly into separation originated in a
spirit of discontent which had been intensified by Mr Aitken's want of tact
in his advocacy of the temperance cause. The funds were going back, and
the congregation was coming face to face with money difficulties again. At
176 HISTORY OF U.P. CONGREGATIONS
a congregational meeting, when the question of ways and means was under con
sideration, two of their number were commissioned to make the minister aware
that if he had another sphere of labour at his command, as was reported, it
might be better both for him and them that he should accept. He went to
the pulpit next Sabbath, broke down, and never entered it again. On the
day when the case was issued, a paper signed by 125 members and 58
adherents was laid before the Presbytery, testifying to Mr Aitken's talents,
zeal, and usefulness, and also expressing " their disapprobation of the steps
taken in giving instructions to the deputation." Some damage was sustained
at this time by withdrawals, which may partially account for the next call,
though unanimous, carrying only 121 names. The stipend, however, was the
same as before, £110 and a manse. From this time the history of St
Andrews congregation admits of being rapidly gone over.
Eighth Minister.— JAMES TAYLOR, M.A., from Greenlaw. Ordained,
22nd May 1839. Under him activity revived, and a spirit of hopefulness
was infused into the church ; but on 4th February 1846 he accepted a call
to be colleague to Dr Heugh of Regent Place, Glasgow. Some articles of
his in the United Secession Magazine, written shortly before in a clear,
prompt, business-like style, had drawn attention to him as a man of cultured
mind, who had the pen of a ready writer. After the translation was effected,
certain members of Regent Place Church sent through ^120 to St Andrews
congregation to assist them in extinguishing their debt.
Ninth Minister.— JOHN KIDD, from Alloa (West). Ordained, 3rd
November 1846. The young minister had a high-wrought style of composi
tion and delivery, and within a year and a half he was called to Bread Street,
Edinburgh, but did not accept. In October 1854 it came out that a serious
charge was established against him, and that he had been snared by the
action of his own pen. On the following Sabbath a stranger entered the
pulpit, and gave out the paraphrase : " O God of Bethel, by whose hand Thy
people still are fed." On 22nd November the Presbytery of Cupar, by a
majority, pronounced for deposition, and though Mr Kidd appealed to 'the
Synod he did not remain to prosecute the appeal. In March 1855 he landed
at New York, and was admitted to ministerial standing in the United Pres
byterian Church by the Presbytery of Michigan. He ministered first to
a congregation in Milwaukie, Wisconsin, for two and a half years ; and
after that he held several New School Presbyterian charges in succession
m Illinois. He died, 22nd March 1876, in the sixtieth year of his age and
thirtieth of his ministry.
St Andrews congregation had a vacancy now of two and a half years. The
membership was about 260, and the stip'end was to be ,£140, inclusive of
house rent, and ^5 in name of expenses. They first called the Rev. A. C.
Rutherford, but though the call was technically unanimous it was signed by
not more than half the members, and Mr Rutherford preferred Buckhaven.
The next call was addressed to Mr George Wade. St Andrews was his first
vacancy, and the signatures rose from 130 to 189. But for Mr Wade Falkirk
(West) was in store, and St Andrews was declined. This disappointment
was followed forthwith by a call to Mr David Duff, the impression being
that between him and St Andrews there were special affinities. However,
with Helensburgh in sure prospect, the offer was set aside.
Tenth Minister.— JAMES BLACK, from Urr, where he had been ordained
three years before. Inducted, 26th May 1857. There was now a steady
building-up, till the place of worship in North Street became too strait for
the congregation. This led to the erection of the present church at a cost of
£3300, with sittings for 700. It was opened on Wednesday, isth November
1865, by Dr Cairns of Berwick. In the early part of Mr Black's ministry the
PRESBYTERY OF CUPAR 177
congregation also purchased a substantial manse. Thus all round there was
encouragement, but on yth January 1868 Mr Black accepted the collegiate
charge of Wellington Street, Glasgow. He was scarcely gone when the
Senatus of St Andrews University conferred upon him the degree of D.D.
Eleventh Minister. — JAMES GRIERSON SCOTT, who had been eight years in
Church Street, Berwick. The call was signed by 230 members, and the
stipend was up to ^250, with the manse. Mr Scott was inducted, 5th August
1868. In 1872 he declined an invitation to Queen Street, Edinburgh (now
Eyre Place), but on i8th April 1873 he accepted Renfield Street, Glasgow,
as successor to Dr James Taylor. On making this change Mr Scott resigned
the editorship of the U.P. Magazine, which he had held for several years.
Again there was a vacancy of two and a half years, during which the
congregation called Mr Daniel M'Lean, who accepted Townhead, Alloa ;
and Mr Armstrong Black, who accepted Waterbeck.
Twelfth Minister. — JAMES M'OwAN, M.A., who had retired from the
pastorate of the North Church, Perth, but whose gifts, it was calculated,
might be available for a less onerous field of labour. This prompted a
unanimous call to St Andrews, where he was inducted, 3rd November 1875.
On 3oth March 1880 Mr M'Owan's resignation, on the ground of ill-health,
was accepted, the congregation acquiescing with expressions of regret. He
then removed with his family to Edinburgh, where he now resides.
Thirteenth Minister. — JAMES KIDD, B.D., from Lansdowne, Glasgow,
brother of the Rev. Thomas Kidd, Moniaive. Ordained, 24th November
1880. A stipend of ,£300 had been undertaken when the congregation
called Mr M'Owan, but there was a coming back now to the normal standard
of ,£250. On 24th July 1888 Mr Kidd accepted a call to Erskine Church,
Glasgow. It was the fifth time within sixty-three years that the great city
had drawn upon St Andrews for the filling up of its vacant pulpits.
Fourteenth Minister. — ANDREW D. SLOAN, B.Sc., from Rose Street,
Edinburgh. Ordained, 2oth December 1888. The membership, which was
but slightly over 300 at that time, was 445 at the close of 1899, thanks in
some measure to the growth and prosperity of the town, and the stipend was
^250, with the manse, while the contributions for missionary and benevolent
purposes were over ^100.
RATHILLET (BURGHER)
ON 24th September 1761 Mr William Gib was ordained parish minister of
Kilmany in the face of strong opposition. The Presbytery of Cupar had
refused to proceed with the settlement on the ground that there was " no
such call as the laws of the Church do require." But the Senatus of St
Andrews College appealed to the General Assembly, which ordered their
rights as patrons to be enforced. This led to a petition for sermon to the
Burgher Presbytery of Perth and Dunfermline on gth March 1762, and a
formal accession was given in on 4th May. The old church, with sittings for
370, which stood for nearly a century by the wayside in unassuming garb,
was built that year in the hamlet of Rathillet, a little to the west of the
parish church. On I2th July a session was constituted, consisting of two
members, John Kilgour and Andrew White, representatives of the two
sections that made up the congregation. The former had been an elder in
the parish church, but took the lead in opposing the settlement of Mr Gib ; the
other was originally an elder in Ceres congregation, but after the Breach
his name appears as a member of the Burgher session of Auchtermuchty.
This involved a Sabbath day's journey of eight or ten miles ; but now, by the
178 HISTORY OF U.P. CONGREGATIONS
disruption in his own parish, he was to have religious ordinances quite at
hand. So would it be with the sprinkling of families in the neighbouring
parishes, such as Creich and Flisk, and amalgamation with these thorough
going seceders would give stability to the new cause at Rathillet.
First Minister. — GEORGE THOMSON, from Leslie (West). Had been an
Antiburgher student at Abernethy, but at the time of Thomas Mair's sever
ance from the Antiburgher Synod he was teaching a school in connection
with Milnathort congregation, and, as was common in such cases, combined
the functions of schoolmaster and precentor. By his adherence to Mr Mair
Mr Thomson's theological course was arrested, but in 1761 he was admitted
to the Burgher Hall at Glasgow by recommendation of Mr Swanston of
Kinross. Having given attendance for two sessions he got licence, was
called to Rathillet, and ordained, 22nd February 1764. The stipend under
taken was not more than ,£28 or ^29, but in country districts gifts from
farmers and small proprietors made up so far for deficiency in hard cash.
After going on for a few years at Rathillet, better prospects opened for
Mr Thomson. Like himself, Orwell congregation had gone over to the
Burghers after Mr Mair's death, and they were now bent on having him for
Mr Mair's successor. He would, they considered, take up their late minister's
mantle, and in his preaching would give prominence to the Atonement in
its universal aspect. It was a point, this, on which his orthodoxy was care
fully tested by the Presbytery before he got licence, but none the less he
bore the impress of Mr Mair's teaching to the close of his life. Three
times Mr Thomson was called to Milnathort ; but on the first occasion the
call was set aside by the Presbytery for special reasons, and on the other two
by the Synod for want of unanimity, but the full particulars belong to the
history of Orwell congregation.
Meanwhile matters had not improved with Mr Thomson at Rathillet.
According to Ur George Brown there was dissatisfaction with his doctrinal
views, and still more, perhaps, with what they looked on as an imprudent
marriage. A parochial visitation followed, when Mr Thomson preached a
discourse of which the Presbytery expressed approval, and he and his people
got words of encouragement. On 2nd April 1776 Mr Thomson demitted his
charge, and in so doing he reflected on the Presbytery for having fixed him
down at Rathillet, " when another congregation was making repeated efforts
to obtain him for their minister." The people were quite agreeable for the
separation, and the connection was forthwith dissolved. Mr Thomson now
returned to the probationer list, but his fortunes there and afterwards are
held in reserve, till we reach Milnathort.
Second Minister. — JAMES JOHNSTON, from Greyfriars, Glasgow. Ordained,
23rd May 1781, after a vacancy of five years. Mr Johnston was examined
for admission to the Hall in 1773, but though satisfied with his scholarship
the Presbytery of Glasgow only allowed him to enter as a hearer, as he was
only fifteen. For a like reason his theological course was prolonged, and yet
at his ordination he was little beyond his minority. The stipend named was
^44, and "a mansion-house." The Presbytery in 1784 urged an increase, as
the congregation had improved considerably, but it was not till about the
year 1808, according to Dr George Brown, that systematic plans were
adopted at Rathillet for raising the necessary funds, and at that time there
was a big addition made to the minister's income. The congregation under
Mr Johnston was in a state of harmony and good feeling all through. He
died on 6th November 1812, in the fifty-fourth year of his age and thirty-
second of his ministry. On Thursday of the week before the parish minister
of Kilmany, the Rev. Thomas Chalmers, wrote as follows : — " Poor Mr
Johnston of Rathillet is dying. I saw him to-day for the first time. Mrs
PRESBYTERY OF CUPAR 179
Johnston was much overpowered. He, poor man, is so low that I am not
sure if he recognised me. His son James from Glasgow was in the room ;
and what with the deep affliction of the wife and son, and the moving
spectacle before me, I never was so melted into a sense of the vanity of all
that is human." One of Mr Johnston's sons, the Rev John Jamieson
Johnston, was long Secession minister in Newburgh.
Dr George Brown, who taught a school in the neighbourhood when a
student, has given some interesting reminiscences of Mr Johnston as a man
and as a minister. His public services were protracted to an extent almost
beyond parallel, even in early Secession times. " His lecture or exposition
in the forenoon was within a few minutes of two hours in length, and his
sermon in the afternoon, delivered after a short interval, and in the winter
season without any interval at all, was never less than one and a half hours."
He mentions in addition the prefacing of the Psalm for half-an-hour, and a
prayer of equal length. We can well believe that the excessive length of the
services was a drawback on the attendance of the congregation, as well as
on its increase. The only sermon of Mr Johnston's that appeared in print,
so far as we know, was one preached in 1796 before the Dundee Missionary
Society on the text : " Other sheep I have which are not of this fold."
Third Minister. — JOHN TINDAL, M.A., an Original Burgher student who,
after attending the Divinity Hall of that body for two sessions, went over to
the New Light Burghers, and joined Shuttle Street Church, Glasgow. Called
to Cambusnethan, but owing to want of harmony the call was laid aside.
He was also the minority's candidate in Kilmarnock (Portland Road), an
important congregation, and was even put up against Air Robert Balmer at
Berwick. Then came Rathillet, with unanimity in its favour. The stipend
was to be ^100, with house and garden, and £10 for sacramental expenses,
if at all able. Ordained, 2Oth April 1814. The number of hearers in the
early part of Mr Tindal's ministry Dr Brown placed at 300, of whom about
240 were members. After a period of failing health Mr Tindal died, I5th
September 1836, in the fifty-fifth year of his age and twenty-third of his
ministry. It has been said that, "when disease was breaking up his con
stitution, the taste of the scholar gave way to the feelings of the man, and by
giving more scope to the impulse of the moment he preached with more
power than he had ever exercised in the days of his strength."
Fotirth Minister. — JAMES BORWICK, from Kirkwall. Ordained, nth
October 1837, the stipend being ^109, with manse and garden. The call
was signed by 147, or two dozen fewer than in 1814. On Sabbath, I2th
August 1860, a new church, seated for about 300, was opened by Dr Robson
of Glasgow. The movement was suggested by a liberal-minded supporter
of the congregation, whose name deserves to be recorded — James Miller,
Esq., of Kinnear. The original building had by this time served its day, and
he undertook to bear half the expense of the present erection, which was
estimated at ,£900, exclusive of cartage. Thus encouraged, the people went
heartily into the proposal, and the church was opened free of debt. Eleven
years before this the old manse had been displaced by another, the cost
being largely met at the time, and some years earlier a debt of ^150 resting
on the old property was cleared off by their own exertions. Thus the con
gregation was all the better prepared to encounter the strain of adverse
times, besides being closely united by respect for their minister.
In the summer of 1882 Mr Berwick required sick supply for three
months ; but the evil lay too deep to be got over by temporary rest, and on
1 3th February 1883 he resigned his charge, retaining his seat in Presbytery
and Synod. He then retiredSvith his family to Newport-on-Tay, where he
died, nth February 1884, in the seventy-first year of his age and forty-
i8o HISTORY OF U.P. CONGREGATIONS
seventh of his ministry. The funeral sermon was preached by the Rev.
John Clark, Abernethy, who, like Ur George Jeffrey of Glasgow, had been a
very intimate friend of his from student days onwards. Mr Borwick had
also a wide circle of clerical relationships. Not to speak of his cousin, the
Rev. William Borwick of Bell Street Church, Dundee, Mrs Borwick was a
sister of the Rev. George Jerment M'Kenzie, Carnoustie. Of their family
one daughter was married to the Rev. John B. Ritchie of Aberdeen (Charlotte
Street) ; another to the Rev. Frederick Johnston of Tannaclice Established
Church ; and a third to the Rev. Robert Wylie of Rathillet.
Fifth Minister. — ROBERT WYLIE, from Leith (Bonnington). Ordained,
loth January 1884. There was not entire unanimity in the selection, and for
some reason alienation of feeling set in, and this again led to disputes about
certain rights, and the result was litigation in the Court of Session, with a
train of heavy expenses. By means of a bazaar the money balance was
restored, but Mr Wylie saw reason to withdraw from the situation, and he
was loosed from his charge, i3th September 1887. In 1889 his name was
placed on the probationer list, and he was admitted soon after to Canonbury,
London, in connection with the Presbyterian Church of England. In 1897
he left with his family for New Zealand, and was inducted to Onehunga in
Auckland Presbytery, before the close of the year.
Sixth Minister. — EDWARD MARR, M.A. from Craigdam, Aberdeenshire.
Ordained, 5th April 1888. It is to be regretted that the congregation is little
more than the skeleton of what it used to be. In the case of Rathillet the
period of marked decline dates about forty years back. The five parishes
from which the bulk of the families were drawn, Kilmany, Flisk, Creich,
Balmerino, and Logie, have an aggregate population now of little over 2000,
and worse than the absolute decrease has been the thinning-out of the class
which formed the strength and staple of dissenting congregations. Of
Rathillet the membership at the close of 1899 was 74, and the stipend paid
by the people ,£72, los. The two Free churches in the locality are but
slightly larger, — Flisk and Creich, Logie and Gauldry. It suggests the need
for new adjustments. Wre stop short at this point by remarking that Mr
Marr was under call to Loughborough Road, Kirkcaldy, when the recent
Union took place.
CUPAR, BOSTON (RELIEF)
THIS congregation's earliest landmark is W7hitsunday 1770, when ground was
bought at the Westport for the building of a church, and from this time
"divine worship was regularly performed." In Cupar there was ample room
for a good beginning, as, apart from the Established church, there was
only an Episcopal chapel in the town. The Burgher Presbytery of Perth
was petitioned for sermon five years before, but the fear of weakening the
young congregation of Rathillet, four miles to the north, kept them from
responding. Under pressure they allowed the applicants sermon six times
in 1768, and then all reference to Cupar disappears from their minutes.
Two years later the Relief came in to supply what was wanting. Their
meeting-house was built on a humble scale, thatch-roofed, and no gallery,
nor room for one without raising the walls. Some years afterwards there is
mention of 21 members having subscribed £$ each to aid in paying the
expense of the erection.
First Minister. — LAURENCE BONNAR, from Auchtermuchty (East). As
a student he passed through the Burgher Hall, but when about to be
entered on trials for licence he did not appear. The Presbytery understood
PRESBYTERY OF CUPAR 181
he was "personally indisposed" — but the indisposition was chronic, and of
another kind. Residing within easy reach of Abernethy he seems to have
come under the influence of Alexander Pirie, who was striking out against
the obligation of the Covenants, and Secession principles in general. When
Pirie was under process for heresy before the Burgher Presbytery, Laurence
Bonnar, student, was one of the witnesses brought forward to prove what he
said in a particular discourse, but his evidence did nothing to help the
prosecution. When we next meet with Mr Bonnar he is minister of the
Relief Church in Cupar. He must have been ordained there not later than
1772, as the old tokens bear that date on the one side, and the letters L. B.
on the other. The yearly income of the congregation at this time was only
about £60. After Mr Bonnar had been ten years in Cupar differences arose
between him and his people. In the minutes of Synod for 1782 there is
reference to "complaining elders," and all we know further is that the con
gregation was preached vacant on i5th July of that year, and that at the
following Martinmas Mr Bonnar was paid £20 for arrears of stipend. He
afterwards resided on a property of his own above Edenshead, but, so far as
I can gather, he attended Strathmiglo parish church. The last notice of
him is taken from the Scots Magazine: "25th January 1824. Died at his
house, Gateside, Laurence Bonnar, Esq., of Ballingray, Fifeshire." The
parish register shows that he was in his seventy-ninth year. The Rev.
Francis Christie of Kilmaurs was a grand-nephew of Mr Bonnar by the
mother's side.
Second Minister. — ALEXANDER SMKLLIE, from Dovehill, Glasgow. But
in tracing his connection with Cupar we have only broken footprints to go
by. In the managers' books there is a charge on 8th April 1783 for
expenses at Mr Smellie's acceptance of the call, and on 27th May he was a
member of Synod. His ordination must have been between these dates.
At this point documents of every kind fail us, but Dr M'Kelvie has stated
that Mr Smellie became depressed in mind, and left suddenly, after a
ministry of nine months. There is no indication that he ever returned to
preacher life, and his name is henceforth lost sight of.
Third Minister. — NEIL DOUGLAS, M.A., a native of Glendarvel in
Argyleshire, which accounts for his possession of the Gaelic tongue. Got
licence from the Relief Presbytery of Glasgow in August 1783. Two years
after this he was sent through to supply two Sabbaths at Cupar, and he was
ordained there probably before the end of 1785. These are points on which,
owing to the dearth of material, Dr M'Kelvie has gone a good way aside.
Mr Douglas made his first appearance as an author in 1788, by publishing
a volume of sermons, the profits of which were to aid in roofing the church
with slates and in making other improvements. He was quite orthodox
as yet, and the discourses are more artistic in style, and less conventional,
than was common in those days. Dr Struthers has credited Mr Douglas
with genius, but in the specimens of his poetry appended to the sermons
there is not much to bear out this testimony. Let one specimen from the
bottom of the scale speak for itself :
" On yonder couch a brother lies,
The fatal hour at hand,
Nor is like from that couch to rise,
For life hath reached its strand."
But the specific design of the publication was gained, the " profits arising
from the sale of books published for the benefit of the meeting" amounting
to ^26.
182 HISTORY OF U.P. CONGREGATIONS
In the year 1792 Mr Douglas' go-ahead tendency showed itself in the
proposal to have the communion observed more frequently, and week-day
services dispensed with, except when the town fasts happened. But he was
too far in advance of his times to get a single elder to support him. In other
respects discomfort arose. The stipend was ,£70, but when Mr Douglas was
ordained the people agreed to give him ^5 additional for expenses, and a
horse if they could afford it. On receiving his first year's salary he claimed
the horse and the allowance, but, inability being pleaded, he dropped his claim.
Now, however, he was in course of receiving a call to Dundee, and it was
believed that unless full payment were made he would remove. Efforts were
to be put forth to raise the sum required, but in December 1792 the Rev.
Neil Douglas cordially accepted a call to West Port, Dundee, and was
loosed from Westport, Cupar. In his new charge we shall meet him at a
further stage of development. It was in Cupar that he married his first
wife, a daughter of the proprietor of Stair, and a cousin of Lord Melville,
a relationship which is understood to have done something for him when
his Radical principles brought him into trouble with the powers that be.
The congregation now called Mr John Anderson, but he preferred Kilsyth.
Stimulated, perhaps, by competition they named ^100, which was to include
all charges except sacramental expenses and keeping the horses of the
assistants. They next called the Rev. David Fergus of Auchterarder, but
he wrote that he could give them no encouragement, and the movement took
end. The right man now came into view, and the first under whom they
enjoyed real prosperity.
Fourth Minister. — ROBERT WALKER, a Burgher student from Biggar
(now Moat Park). His antecedents in this respect resembled those of their
first minister, Laurence Bonnar. In May 1793 the Burgher Presbytery of
Edinburgh entered him on trials for licence, but on 3rd June he neither
appeared nor was there any communication from him. On 2oth August he
was introduced to the Relief Presbytery of Edinburgh as a candidate for
licence, which he obtained on 25th February 1794. On 2nd June thereafter
he became the unanimous choice of Cupar congregation. Ordained, 9th
October, and introduced to his charge on the following Sabbath by Mr
Struthers of Edinburgh. In the managers' books there is a charge for
" candle at the evening service," when, no doubt, the pulpit orator of College
Street would have a crowded audience, and yet the collection only amounted
to eight shillings. The days when church plates were to overflow with silver
and gold on such occasions had not yet arrived. The year after Mr Walker's
ordination it was found necessary to put up a gallery, and to accomplish this
the walls had to be raised. While the work was going on, the congregation
Avorshipped ten Sabbaths in the open air, and when it was finished there was
accommodation for about 700. The sittings alone, it was calculated, should
yield ,£126 a year, which would suffice to pay the stipend and the interest on
borrowed money without encroaching on church-door collections at all.
In 1806 it was agreed to give Mr Walker, in addition to his original
stipend, a house and garden and the piece of ground before the door.
" The price of living," they said, " is much more than at the time of his
settlement." But within ten days he was called to Campbell Street, Glasgow,
with a legal bond for ,£200 a year, a circumstance which may account for
that opportune display of liberality. The issue was doubtful, but both on this
occasion and in the end of 1807, when he was called to Bridgeton, Glasgow,
Mr Walker decided to abide by Cupar. He died, I7th November 1827, in
the sixtieth year of his age and thirty-fourth of his ministry. By his own
wish he was buried underneath where the communion table stood, and a
tablet to his memory is built into one of the walls of the present church.
PRESBYTERY OF CUPAR 183
A friend who was brought up under Mr Walker's ministry described his
preaching as remarkable, not for oratorical power, but for clearness of outline,
and for the care he took to impress his divisions upon the memory of his
hearers. With this description a Synod sermon he preached harmonises.
The text is : "Let no man despise thee," and his divisions are — (i) Let no
man despise thee on account of ignorance ; (2) Let no man despise thee
on account of immorality ; (3) Let no man despise thee on account of negli
gence ; (4) Let no man despise thee on account of imprudence."
Fifth Minister. — WILLIAM BURNET, from Bridgeton, Glasgow. Or
dained, 4th March 1829. At the moderation the majority was slight, and
the party who failed to carry their man withdrew, and formed Provost Wynd
Church. The feeling of the Presbytery would be that a congregation of
800 members could afford to divide. The stipend promised was ^100, with
manse and glebe. Seven years after this the communicants are given as
upwards of 500, and the debt, which amounted to ^550 twenty years before,
was now under ,£100. At the division most of the distant families must
have kept by the old walls, for while the Westport congregation had 26
from over four miles, that of Provost Wynd had only 3. The present church,
with sittings for 700, was opened, gth December 1849. It stands on the old
site, but the name was changed from the " Westport " to " Boston Church."
Whatever the cost may have been there is no trace of debt requiring to be
cleared off by aid from denominational funds. It was to be hoped now that
with this work accomplished, and Provost Wynd Church at an end, the old
congregation would have growing prosperity, but within two years a dis
integrating process began. Some lectures on Popery which Mr Burnet was
giving on Sabbath evenings proved distasteful to most of his elders, and
they had also listened to the complaints of members against the minister,
and had brought them up in the session. The Presbytery found the alleged
grounds of dissatisfaction "trivial, exaggerated, or imaginary," and all
parties were exhorted to study the things that make for peace. But even
apostolic injunctions are little heeded when the spirit of concord is at an end.
Seven elders left, and the congregation sustained harm from which it did not
recover for at least one generation.
In 1855 the stipend was only ^100, with ^20 of supplement, and by this
time there was no manse. In 1863 the membership was 130, and the
minister was only receiving ^70 from the people and ^30 from the
Augmentation Fund. It was a comment on what dispeace in a church will
come to. The Relief cause in Cupar was strong enough thirty-five years
before to form two good congregations, but of these the one had disappeared,
and the other was reduced to a fraction of its former strength. It is gratify
ing to record that, towards the close of Mr Burnet's ministry, things began
to improve, and when the vacancy occurred there were nearly 200 names
on the communion roll. He died, igth March 1866, in the sixty-eighth
year of his age and thirty-eighth of his ministry. In the records of the
congregation it is stated that "his last work, the work in which he contracted
the illness which resulted in his death, was the raising of subscriptions to aid
the congregation in the erecting of a manse which, however, he did not live
to occupy," and the Presbytery minute makes mention of his upright, straight
forward character, and his labours among the poor and the afflicted.
Sixth Minister. — ALEXANDER HAY, M.A., who had been seven years in
Leitholm. Inducted harmoniously on 26th September 1866. He was to
receive ^120 of stipend and ^20 for house rent till the manse was finished.
It was ready for occupancy in the following year, free of debt, the Manse
Board having granted ,£300, and the people, aided by the efforts of their late
minister, and in other ways, having raised .£525. Within four years Mr Hay's
184 HISTORY OF U.P. CONGREGATIONS
state of health compelled him to demit his charge, and to remove to a milder
climate. His resignation was accepted, 1 4th June 1870. Queensland was his
destination, and after ministering in South Brisbane for a few years he was
inducted to Rockhampton, Australia, in September 1876, where he still
labours. Mr Hay received the degree of D.U. from St Andrews University
Seventh Minister. — JAMES ALLISON, originally from East Kilbride.
When a preacher, Mr Allison, after setting aside calls from Newburgh
(Second) and Wolverhampton, undertook the task of keeping up Oxendon
Church, London, and was ordained there, 2Oth February 1866. But, as has
been said, to bring back the people who had clung to the building for the
sake of Dr Archer was impossible, and to make bad worse, dissension got
in among the remaining members, and on I3th December 1869 Mr Allison
resigned. Two quarters on the preachers' list sufficed to furnish him with
a choice between Hull and Cupar-Fife. He accepted the latter, and was
inducted, 8th November 1870. The stipend of Boston Church was now
^150, with the manse. Here Mr Allison remained till 25th December 1877,
when he accepted a call to Alexandria, Dumbartonshire. The congregation
was now in a position to name ,£200 as the stipend, along with the manse.
Eighth Minister. — THOMAS M'CLELLAND FLEMING, M.A., son of the
Rev. James Fleming, Whithorn. Ordained, I7th July 1878. After thirteen
years of active service Mr Fleming's voice began to fail, and supply from the
Presbytery was needed. There was now the gradual narrowing-in, and on
ist March 1892 all parties had to acquiesce in the severance of the pastoral
tie. Mr Fleming went to Australia in hopes of recovery, but it was to find
a grave. He died at Melbourne, 22nd April 1895, in the forty-third year
of his age and seventeenth of his ministry.
Ninth Minister. — JOSEPH H. LECKIE, son of Dr Leckie, Ibrox, Glasgow.
Ordained, 8th September 1892. The membership is now between 310 and
320, and the stipend is ^200, as before, with the manse. Thus has Boston
Church, Cupar, surmounted its days of adversity.
CUPAR (ANTIBURGHER)
THE Antiburgher families in Cupar formed a part of Ceres congregation till
the death of the Rev. Thomas Bennet in October 1 793. Then, without delay,
a number of Cupar people applied to the Presbytery of Kirkcaldy for " some
Sabbath days in winter," but it was well understood that they had an ulterior
object in view. The session complained of having been "contemptuously
overlooked" in this case, but they resolved to stand aside, believing, they
said, that opposition would probably tend to make the parties " more forward
and furious in pushing their scheme." They did not, however, keep by this
attitude of sullen neutrality, but on nth May 1794 they decided to send up a
representation to the Presbytery "regarding the disjunction from Cupar."
This narrative makes manifest that the severance was very far from being,
as Dr M'Kelvie supposed, "with the concurrence of all parties." In like
manner, what has been said about praying societies in Cupar acceding to
the Associate Presbytery at an early period is borne out by nothing in the
minutes, in which the name occurs only once, and in conjunction with St
Andrews. Monimail was the headquarters of the Secession in that quarter
at first, five elders from the parish church there being received to office in
the East of Fife congregation, the proviso being that " such persons only
be admitted members of this session as have a conversation becoming the
Gospel of Christ, and make conscience of keeping up the worship of God in
PRESBYTERY OF CUPAR 185
their families morning and evening." But at no time was there recognition
of Cupar as the centre of a forming congregation, or of sermon being kept
up there, till 1794.
Tradition is clear that the station at Cupar was opened by the Rev. James
Browning of Auchtermuchty. This cannot have been later than May 1 794.
and in 1 796 the place of worship at Burnside was taken possession of. The
cost is put as high as ^noo, but it is hardly conceivable how that could be,
as the building was very plain, and galleries were not put in till 1 830.
First Mi?iister. — JOHN ROBSON, a native of Sprouston parish, but brought
up near Kelso. Mr Robson has been entered from Morebattle congregation,
but it was only when engaged as a tutor in that locality that he attended
there. At Cupar moderation 29 voted for Mr Robson, and 5 for Mr David
Hogg, afterwards of Rothesay. These figures may be taken as coming
within a very few units of the entire male membership. Ordained, I4th
December 1796, and within a few months several families within the Cupar
bounds, who had kept on by Ceres, were added to the new congregation.
Mr Robson's stipend at first was ^70. That same year one of the parish
ministers had only about " 1000 pounds Scots," or .£83, 6s. 8d. sterling. For
the first twenty years of his ministry Mr Robson preached three times each
Sabbath. " So regular," says George Brunton, " were some of his evening
adherents in their attendance that they held sittings in his place of worship."
But Mr Robson's labours were not to be prolonged into an advanced old age.
At the forenoon service on the second Sabbath of July 1828 he was unable
to complete the opening exercises, and, on being supported from the pulpit,
" he expressed a wish that the people should remain together, and unite in
devotional exercises." Two Sabbaths intervened, and on Friday, ist August,
he died, in the sixty-fourth year of his age and thirty-second of his ministry.
A discourse of his, entitled " Salvation through Christ superior to Primeval
Happiness," appeared in the second of two volumes of sermons by Anti-
burgher ministers published in 1820. Mrs Robson was a sister of the Rev.
Simon Sommerville, Antiburgner minister of Elgin (Moss Street), and their
only daughter who reached womanhood was the wife of the Rev. James
Paterson of Auchtergaven, where she died a few months before her father.
Their second son, John, after attending the Divinity Hall three sessions,
turned aside to another profession, and was now a mathematical teacher in
Greenock ; but his father's death, and other breaches in the old home circle,
are understood to have determined him to resume his theological studies, a
resolution from which Lasswade, and Wellington Street, Glasgow, were to
reap lasting benefit.
Second Minister. — WILLIAM ROBERTSON, from Haddington (West), and
latterly from Potterrow, Edinburgh. The call was supported by 107 members,
and opposed by 55. The Presbytery set aside the plea that a majority had
been obtained by improper means, and sustained the call, a decision which
was affirmed in the Synod by the Moderator's casting vote. Both motions
expressed strong disapprobation of the attempts which had been made to
injure one of the candidates, the Rev. Andrew Young, formerly of Lochmaben.
It appears that a report about want of integrity in money matters had reached
Cupar in the midst of the turmoil, and had been turned to electioneering
purposes. The Presbytery found from documents read that Mr Young's
character was not only placed above suspicion, but " most amply and honour
ably justified," and six months afterwards he was inducted into Lanark. By
directions of Synod the slanderers of Mr Young were to be dealt with, but
in the end there was the narrowing-in to a single culprit, and he suffered
nothing more serious than an admonition from the Chair. Mr Robertson
was ordained, 8th December 1829.
186 HISTORY OF U.P. CONGREGATIONS
In March 1832 a paper from Cupar was given in to the Presbytery
on a matter which, it was announced, deeply concerned the peace and
prosperity of the congregation. At next meeting Mr Robertson gave an
account of the difference which had arisen between him and his people,
and tendered his resignation ; and along with this there was a petition from
the congregation, adopted, it is said, by a majority of one, that the resigna
tion be accepted. At next meeting a petition was presented from 86
members praying that the connection be continued. But the case was
simplified through Mr Robertson having made up his mind to go abroad.
The session and congregation having expressed readiness to raise ^50 for
his behoof, and as much more as possible, the Presbytery, though not
without dissents being entered, received the resignation. This was on
i6th May 1832.
The severance of one bond opened the way for the formation of another,
and three weeks after becoming a free man the Rev. William Robertson was
married at Perth, by the Rev. David Young of the North Church, to a young
woman belonging, we presume, to that congregation. The bride had been
his servant in Cupar, and it was the prospective relationship which stirred
the above commotion. But Mr Robertson was not to be turned from his
purpose ; only, he decided to seek comfort and a field of labour elsewhere.
Still, there was force in the entry which Mr Richardson of P'reuchie got
inserted in the minutes after all was over — that, in his opinion, " there was
no reason, real or pretended, why Mr Robertson should be separated from
his charge." The newly-married couple reached Montreal on Wednesday,
29th August, and next Sabbath he preached to a number of Scottish people
in that town, and was requested to remain among them for the organising
of a congregation. With this view a list of about 50 names was made up,
and an equal number expected. For other two Sabbaths he ministered to
them with great acceptance, but on the following Saturday morning, 22nd
September, he felt a little sick. It was cholera, which was doing fearful
work in Montreal at the time, and he died that evening. When the tidings
reached Cupar it is not too much to imagine that, in some cases, along with
grief, there would be self-accusings. Mr Robertson's widow returned to this
country, and the Synod in April 1834 granted her ^10, adding, "She is
the mother of a posthumous child."
Three calls were issued by Cupar congregation during this vacancy.
The stipend named at first was ^uo in all, but after the first disappoint
ment it was raised to ^120. The first they called was Mr William France,
who was appointed colleague to Dr Ferrier of Paisley. The second was the
Rev. James R. M'Gavin, who was appointed to Tay Square, Dundee. Aware
that the power was passing from their hands, the Synod was chary now
about crossing the wishes of preachers, and in both cases the decision was
come to without a vote.
Third Minister.— JOHN RANKINE, from Falkirk (now Erskine Church).
On 27th May 1834, when the Presbytery met for the ordination, notice came
from Glasgow Presbytery of a call to Mr Rankine from Campbeltown (now
extinct), but he declared his adherence to Cupar, and the services went on.
In 1837 Mr Rankine reported 260 communicants. Of members and ad
herents from other parishes there were only 54, or scarcely more than one-
third of the number claimed by Mr Burnet's church. Galleries had been
erected in 1830 at a cost of £250, and the debt was about £300. The
stipend still remained at ,£120, but successive augmentations followed, and
in 1859 a manse was secured at a cost of nearly ,£700. In 1844 the Original
Burgher congregation, which had a membership of 240 in 1837, broke up,
and the Relief Church, Provost Wynd, also disappeared in 1849. These
PRESBYTERY OF CUPAR 187
changes may have contributed indirectly to the growth of Burnside congre
gation. It happened, also, that in 1852 it received considerable additions
from Boston Church. Of seven elders who took a leading part in the dis
putes there, all, I believe, became connected with Burnside, and three of
them held seats in the session. Soon after this the congregation suffered
a severe loss by the death of Mr George Brunton, who had been identified
with its interests since Mr Robson's days. Though holding but a humble
position in society he was a man of large mental calibre ; his heart was in
the right place ; his interest in Burnside Church and its minister was
unswerving ; and his influence for good was felt throughout the community.
A year after his death a volume of his " Selected Remains," literary and
biblical, was published under the editorship of his minister, with a lifelike
memoir from the pen of the Rev. Peter Landreth.
On Sabbath, i6th December 1866, the present church, with sittings for
650, was opened by Dr Robson of Glasgow, and the name changed from
Burnside to Bonnygate. The cost was above ^3000, but in six years the
debt was extinguished. In March 1878, when Mr Rankine was in his
seventieth year, he expressed the wish to have the burden lightened by the
appointment of a colleague. Arrangements were aided by the liberality of
one of the members, James Miller, Esq. of Kinnear, who gifted ,£500 to the
congregation to purchase an annuity for behoof of the minister. On this
footing Mr Rankine was to have ^200, with manse and garden, so long as he
continued to discharge the duties of senior pastor.
Fourth Minister. — JOHN PATRICK MITCHELL, from Wellington Street,
Glasgow, a grandson of Dr John Mitchell. Ordained, 3ist October 1878 ;
stipend ,£200, with ^40 for house rent. The relation lasted till 28th July
1885, when Mr Mitchell accepted a call to Eyre Place, Edinburgh. In
1884 Mr Rankine, on completing his fifty years' ministry, withdrew from
regular service, and it was arranged that he should have a retiring allow
ance of ,£150 from the congregation, with the manse. At the jubilee cele
bration he was also presented with ^600 from his people and other friends.
Fifth Minister. — ARCHIBALD B. CAPE, M.A., from Kinross (West).
Ordained, 26th May 1886. Mr Rankine survived five and a half years, and
was able to occupy the pulpit occasionally till near the end. He died,
2 ist November 1891, in the eighty-fourth year of his age and fifty-eighth
of his ministry. Two of his sons-in-law are ministers of the U.P. Church —
the Rev. William Smith, Bonhill, and the Rev. David H. Lawrence,
Broughty- Ferry. The membership of Bonnygate Church at the close of
1899 was 290, and the stipend .£220, with the manse.
CUPAR, PROVOST WYND (RELIEF)
THREE months after Mr Walker's death the Westport congregation
petitioned the Presbytery for a further hearing of Messrs William Burnet
and Thomas King to make them eligible. It was around these two
candidates that the contention arose which led on to separation. Mr King
was under call to Newlands, and when he arrived in Cupar to occupy the
pulpit on the first Sabbath of April he let it be known that next Wednesday
he would have either to accept or reject the foresaid call. A congregational
meeting at the close of the afternoon service was deemed a necessity, that
he might learn before leaving what his prospects were in Cupar. The
meeting proved a scene of disorder; "hissing and cries of 'shame' were
heard, which expressions of disapprobation were understood to be directed
against the friends of Mr King." So flagrant was the scandal that the
i88 HISTORY OF U.P. CONGREGATIONS
Presbytery had to inquire into the affair, and their verdict was one of strong
disapproval, such procedure being pronounced "unconstitutional, indecorous,
.and inconsistent with the sanctity of the Sabbath." On Wednesday Mr
King appeared before Edinburgh Presbytery, and, having accepted the
call to Nevvlands, was ordained within a fortnight.
But though Mr King was thus far withdrawn from the field his sup
porters did not lose sight of him, and they attempted without delay to
have a congregational meeting called, but the elders and managers, the
greater part of whom favoured Mr Burnet, decided that rather than tolerate
this they would lock the church doors. There was now a pause of six
months, and then came a petition for a moderation, but in the interim let
them have an additional hearing of Mr William Burnet and the Rev.
Thomas King. A wiser course would have been to lay both candidates
aside, but wisdom's still, small voice was unheard in the general commotion.
On 1 5th December 1828 the moderation took place, and the vote stood
thus — for Mr Burnet 269, for Mr King 263. Next day, when the Presbytery
met to receive the report, the minority had commissioners up to ask that
.the call be not sustained, and, if it is, that they be allowed supply of sermon
for themselves. It was the way in the Relief to sustain a call wherever
there was a clear majority, and this being unanimously done the petition
for sermon was all that remained to be considered. The commissioners
on both sides were conversed with at next meeting, on 2Oth January 1829,
but reconciliation was found to be hopeless, and a petition signed by 275
members for an immediate disjunction was granted. Next Sabbath Mr
Pettigrew of Dysart preached to the newly formed congregation " in the
place provided." A new church, a comely erection with sittings for 650,
was opened by Mr Pettigrew on the fourth Sabbath of April 1830. The cost
was ^1000.
First Minister. — THOMAS KING, called on 2ist July 1830, a year and a
half after his defeat at the former election. During that period no preacher
or minister had come between him and his admirers in Cupar, and he was
now the unanimous choice of Provost Wynd Church. Inducted, 2oth
October, the Rev. William Burnet preaching on the occasion. There are
several indications that the better class families had gone in generally for
Mr King. Hence, in 1837, while Mr King reported that the majority of his
congregation belonged to the working classes, Mr Burnet's account bore
that he had no others. In like manner, while Mr Burnet had only ^100 of
stipend, with manse and garden, Mr King had ^130 in all. The member
ship of Provost Wynd was now 380, and the average income between ,£210
and ^220 a year. The debt on the building by this time was reduced to
.£400. Mr King died on 2ist April 1841, in the fortieth year of his age and
thirteenth of his ministry. The Presbytery, having met after his interment,
put on record their sympathy with the congregation, " thus early deprived
of their loved and lamented pastor."
In March 1842 the congregation gave a unanimous and hearty call to
JMr William Ramage, but "after serious and mature deliberation" he
intimated his non-acceptance. This declinature may have had a depressing
effect, as the stipend was now reduced from ,£120 to .£100, and though the
next call was unanimous the signatures were down from 252 to 175.
Second Minister. — JAMES DRUMMOND, a native of Largo, but brought up
in Leven, where he succeeded his father as a teacher. He had Largo in
his option, with ,£90 and a manse, but a large minority voted for another
candidate, and it was well that Cupar got the preference. Ordained, 25th
January 1843, when he had reached the mature age of thirty-seven. The
family to which he belonged sent two younger sons also into the ministry —
PRESBYTERY OF CUPAR 189
David, of the Relief church, Largs, and William, U.P. minister of White-
haven.1 Mr Drummond when a preacher had the support of a large party
in Irvine church, but, though another had the majority on the moderation
day, the call had to be laid aside owing to utter want of harmony, and when
the confusion was over, and a considerable number had left, Mr Urummond
became the unanimous choice of the congregation. This call was accepted
on 2oth February 1844, and Provost Wynd, Cupar, was again vacant.
Third Minister. — ROBERT GEMMELL, from Irvine (Relief). Ordained,
25th September 1844. The call was signed by 246 members, and the
stipend was up £40 - tokens of ground having been gained under his
predecessor. But for Mr Gemmell another door opened early. Within a
year and a half he was invited to Temple Lane, Dundee, and was loosed
from Provost Wynd on loth March 1846. Though there were drawbacks
in Cupar, Mr Gemmell's brief sojourn there was probably the smoothest
part of his ministerial life.
Fourth Minister. — JOHN CRAIG, D.D., from Newlands, where he
succeeded Mr King fourteen years before. Inducted, 3oth September 1846.
Dr Craig was rather beyond middle life now, but a book which he published
in 1845 on " The Apostleship and Apostolical Succession" brought him into
notice, and secured him the degree of D.D. from St Andrews University.
" The treatise," said the U.P. Magazine, " has inspired us with high respect
for the author as a Scripture expositor, an accomplished theologian, and a
chaste and forcible writer." With his honours fresh about him he under
took the pastorate of Provost Wynd Church, but no sooner had he entered
on his new field of labour than he began to figure as the out-and-out up
holder of the anti-union flag of 1847, and as such he is best remembered.
His contention from first to last was that "Free Communion" was not
recognised in the Basis of Union. At an early stage in the negotiations it
was ascertained that this was a point on which the two denominations were
substantially at one, and that both were satisfied with what the Westminster
Confession lays down on the subject — that saints by profession are bound, as
opportunity offers, to maintain an holy fellowship and communion with each
other, and with all who in every place call upon the name of the Lord.
But at their meeting in October 1846, when the final adjustments were made,
the Relief Synod wished an article inserted in the Basis, securing to those
ministers who believed the Westminster Confession to sanction the admission
of members from other denominations to occasional communion the right
to act on their conscientious convictions.
At the meeting of the Relief Synod in May 1847 Dr Craig dissented from
the resolution to consummate the Union with the Secession Church, and on
Sabbath, 6th June, he told his people that by the Basis of Union "a wall
high as heaven had been raised between the U.P. Church and every other
Church on the face of the earth." The principle of Free Communion, the
distinguishing characteristic of the Relief Church, he also maintained, had
been completely merged in October 1846 by what he called "the suicidal
decree of her extinction." At the congregational meeting which followed,
at the close of the afternoon service, a proposal was made to join the United
Church, but, as this would have obliged them to leave their minister behind,
it was agreed to continue in their separate capacity. On i2th March 1848
1 Mr William Drummond was ordained at Whitehaven, I3th April 1852, having
declined a call to Hexham two years before. Demission accepted, nth July 1865.
Was three years on the probationer list. Settled down in Leven, where he was
available for pulpit supply, and where he died, I4th April 1879, in the sixty-fourth
year of his age.
190 HISTORY OF U.P. CONGREGATIONS
Dr Craig intimated from the pulpit that he had made up his mind to apply
for admission to the Established Church, and on Monday night the con
gregation met to discuss the situation. Prior to this the communion roll
had been pruned, and, according to the newspaper report, town officers were
stationed at the door to keep excluded members outside. Inside there was a
scene of confusion, and one of the members read from an article by Dr Craig
in the Relief Magazine two years before, in which he characterised the
alliance between Church and State as something he could not away with
savouring too strongly to his nostrils of " the mother of abominations." In
the end 39 voted to join the Establishment, and 35 voted not. Next day
Dr Craig's application to be admitted to the Established Church came before
the Presbytery of Cupar along with a petition of like import from the
session and congregation. To test the Doctor's gifts he had to deliver a
discourse before them, which was received "with the most unqualified
approbation." His petition was to be transmitted to the General Assembly,
and members of Presbytery were to support it " in the strongest possible
manner." Indeed, so overdone was the welcome that an unsympathetic
observer quoted over it the text : " There was a great famine in Samaria,
and behold, an ass's head was sold for fourscore pieces of silver."
In the document laid before the Assembly it was stated that the applicant
"had been minister of the sole Relief congregation in the country," and that
he cordially approved of the doctrine, discipline, and worship of the Estab
lished Church. A member of Presbytery also informed the court that
Provost Wynd Church " included two landed proprietors and some of the
most respectable merchants in Cupar." However, Principal Lee of Edinburgh
University made serious objections to the petition being granted. As he
belonged originally to the Secession congregation of Stow, and studied at
the Burgher Hall, he could, better than most, estimate what the transition
involved. He said that in their former connection neither the applicant nor
his people held doctrines consistent with the Confession of P^aith on the
subject of the magistrate's power. More than this, Dr Craig had gone in for
F ree Communion, a doctrine " which had been strongly protested against,
and never recognised, in the Church of Scotland." The case was remitted
to the Presbytery of Cupar to be brought up anew at next Assembly, should
they see cause.
Meanwhile there had been a large break-up in Provost Wynd Church
and the party opposed to Union with the Establishment asked advice from
the UP. Presbytery. On Sabbath week after the meeting at which it was
carried by a small majority to go with Dr Craig, Mr Gorrie of Kettle
preached in the Academy Rooms, when there was an audience of about 200.
But it was vain to attempt a second Relief congregation in Cupar, and while
a few of the families joined Mr Burnet's congregation the greater part were
At the General Assembly of 1849 Dr Craig was received without
rther demur, but it was on the understanding that the congregation should
be dissolved, and on 2nd July of that year it closed its existence with stately
formality. The members were "henceforth to be one, and indivisible, with
the Church of Scotland," and being " the last and sole Relief Church in
existence they made over the whole funds and belongings of the denomina
tion to the Established Church," Dr Craig and others being vested with
power to sue and defend. The terms of the trust deed were that it required
our-nfths of the members to alienate the property from the Relief, but, when
the church in Provost Wynd was sold to the Baptists, the proceeds were
swallowed up in clearing off debt and meeting other liabilities. Such was
the end of the second Relief church in Cupar-Fife with its brief history of
twenty years.
PRESBYTERY OF CUPAR 191
Dr Craig was now a minister at large, and in that capacity he officiated
for some years in the Town Church, St Andrews, as assistant to Dr Haldane.
After that he was employed for a time in Westray, Orkney, and in 1866 his
name appears in the clerical list as missionary in Lunna, Shetland. In 1869,
after twenty years of hope deferred, he was presented by the Crown to the
parish of Sandwick in Shetland. At first he was only assistant and suc
cessor, but in 1871, when over threescore and ten, he obtained the benefice,
the value of which is set down at present as ^130 a year. He died in the
manse there, 7th October 1893, in the ninety-fourth year of his age and sixty-
second of his ministrv.
BALMULLO (ANTIBURGHER)
ANTI BURGHER families in Leuchars and the adjacent parishes were orig
inally included in Ceres congregation, but from an early period there were
workings in the direction of a severance. In December 1760 Mr Foote,
the minister of Ceres, spoke to his elders about a wish the people in Forgan
parish had expressed that he should preach there some Sabbaths in winter,
their distance from the place of worship being eight or ten miles. The
proposal was pronounced impracticable, as " it would be depriving many of
public ordinances for the sake of a very few." That year Mr James Burn,
an evangelical preacher of high name, became minister of Forgan, and he
states in the Statistical History that some of the Antiburghers joined the
Establishment at that time, "but, when the new mode of singing without
reading the line was introduced, they withdrew, and carried two or three
individuals along with them." In 1775 a second request for sermon came
before Ceres session from Forgan, and the minister was to apply to the
Presbytery for some supply to that corner. Such is to be looked on as the
beginning of the movement which led to the formation of an Antiburgher
congregation at Balmullo, a village midway between Cupar and Tayport.
The date of the congregation's origin cannot be ascertained with exact
ness, but an aged inhabitant of Strathkinnes, who kept by the Old Light
cause at Balmullo to the end, and preferred it above his chief joy, used to
tell that he remembered men and horses being engaged driving stones for
the erection of the church in 1778. A manse was built some time afterwards,
and to this a glebe was attached. The manse is still occupied, but it is
many years since only a foot or two of the church walls, which gave accommo
dation to 300, remained to tell of what had been. When the people came to
choose a minister they were few in number, the Antiburghers in Leuchars
parish, according to the Old Statistical History, numbering only 22
adults. There would be, in addition to these, the representatives of the old
contingent from Forgan, and a few from other parishes. The call to their
first minister was signed by no more than 20 members, which may be
taken as nearly exhausting the male element in the congregation. But
before reaching this stage they called Mr James Clark, afterwards of
Dalreoch, whom no amount of dealing on the part of Kirkcaldy Presbytery
or Perth Synod could induce to accept. Other three years passed before
the end was gained.
First Minister. — JAMES METHVEN, from Edinburgh (now Nicolson
Street), who was also called to Montrose, but the Synod favoured Balmullo.
The ordination followed on 22nd August 1797, and an inbreak on the
services, which were conducted in the open air, made the occasion memor
able. While public worship was going on a company of armed men came
marching up with fixed bayonets, and surrounded the assembly. The
i92 HISTORY OF U.P. CONGREGATIONS
people were in alarm, but the mystery was explained by-and-by. It was
a time when the Militia Act was causing disturbance, and this was a troop
of soldiers sent out to apprehend two farm servants who had been ring
leaders in a riot at Leuchars. Having ascertained that the men they
wanted were at Balmullo ordination, they made for the ground with the
appearance of hostile intentions, but, the purpose of the intrusion being
announced, the culprits quietly surrendered, and the work of the day
went on.
Mr Methven, though brought up under Adam Gib's ministry, swerved
so far from Antiburgher strictness when a student as to allow himself to be
married by a minister of the Established Church, and, what was worse, he
kept the newly-formed relationship a secret. The double blunder brought
him under the censure of the Presbytery, and the question of his readmis-
sion to the Hall was referred to the Synod, but the matter was allowed to
drop. In April 1800 the state of Balmullo congregation was brought before
the Synod by Kirkcaldy Presbytery. All was in confusion, and four of the
elders "had deserted the exercise of their office." As for Mr Methven,
though the Synod did not justify him throughout, they were satisfied that he
had upheld the rules of Church order, but at the meeting of Synod in Sep
tember it was reported that his demission of his charge had been accepted.
After itinerating as a preacher for two years he was inducted into
Stewarton.
Balmullo congregation had been out of harmony with Kirkcaldy Presby
tery almost from the beginning. Ten years before this they complained to
the Provincial Synod of Perth that they were denied their due share of
preachers. The Synod after hearing parties were of opinion that the
Presbytery had not paid due attention to Balmullo, "particularly in not
granting them a session for a long time after they were erected into a
congregation." The people were at the same time warned not to harbour
prejudices against the Presbytery or any member of it. They may have
suspected sinister influences from Ceres, and these things may have pre
pared the way for Balmullo throwing off its allegiance to Kirkcaldy Presby
tery fifteen years later, and casting in its lot with the Constitutionalists, from
whom we find them receiving sermon in 1808.
In this connection the congregation remained vacant for nearly twenty
years, but on igth July 1826 Mr James Beattie from Arbroath was ordained
at Balmullo, where he remained till after the Union with the Free Church in
1852. The membership, which was about 70 in 1843, went by a large
majority with their minister into the Union, but a few of their number kept
by the old banner, and retained the property. Mr Beattie then removed to
Cupar, reserving his status as a member of Presbytery, and his adherents
divided themselves among the Free churches of Leuchars, Logie, and
Dairsie. He died, 8th January 1887, in his ninety-first year. The property
of Balmullo, when the little company of Old Lights died out, was sold, and
the proceeds brought about ^300 to the funds of the Original Secession
Synod. Of Mr Beattie's family the older son, James, formerly of Pitcairn-
green, is now minister of the Presbyterian Church, Queenscliff, Australia,
and David is minister of Monimail Free Church, Fifeshire.
KETTLE (RELIEF)
ON 1 4th May 1778 Mr Peter Barclay was ordained as minister of Kettle
parish. His was a Crown presentation, but the appointment was ascribed
to the influence of a principal heritor, in whose family he had been tutor.
PRESBYTERY OF CUPAR 193
The feeling of the people was that their interests had been disregarded,
and, from the fear that their aversion to the settlement might take lawless
shape on the ordination day, a company of dragoons is said to have been
stationed within reach in view of contingencies. All passed quietly on,
however, and the Rev. Peter Barclay, D.D., after holding the charge for
sixty-four years, died, I3th December 1841, aged ninety-two. Through the
exercise of patronage on his behalf he was able to tell in the Old Statistical
History that there were in Kettle parish towards the end of last century 587
" Separatists " above eight years of age. A large disruption having been
the result, Mr Nicolson, Relief minister at Pittenweem, preached at Kettle,
and opened the station there, as tradition clearly attests, but the precise
Sabbath is matter of assumption. The building of a church with 500
sittings went on with spirit, and was completed at a cost of not quite ,£500.
First Minister. — JOHN IONG, M.A., who resigned Kilmaronock in 1779,
where he had been for two years, and since then had acted as a probationer.
His name reappears on the Roll of Synod in May 1781, and he was preach
ing as a probationer the previous February. This is the nearest we can come
to the date of his induction at Kettle. In 1793 a manse was built for him at
a cost of about ^220, and the money charges appear to have been met by
the people all along from their own resources. Mr King, as his tombstone
bears, died in May 1803, in the sixty-sixth year of his age. The last years
of his life were darkened by domestic sorrow. In the managers' books there
is a collection entered in 1799 to pay for sending John King, their minister's
son, to Montrose Asylum. The sum was made up to ^6, 6s., and year by
year ,£5 were applied to his maintenance. After the father's death it rose
to over £12, and the last payment, marked 7th January 1812, reads : "To
Mr John King's board and funeral expenses, .£16, 75. gd." His brother
Alexander was ordained over the Relief Church, Dalkeith, shortly after
John's removal to Montrose, but he was visited with the same malady, and
in 1803 he had to be sent to the same place of confinement. Recovery
was looked for, but, though he survived thirty-eight years, it never came.
Second Minister. — WILLIAM FAMILTON, who, after having been some
years in Newlands, was inducted to the Postern Relief Church, Newcastle,
on 4th August 1802. The congregation there had come over from con
nection with the Established Church a little time before, but Newcastle was
a place where the Relief interest never flourished. When the call from
Kettle came out Mr Familton was ready for a change, and when the case
was disposed of in Edinburgh Presbytery no commissioner appeared from
Newcastle, and no communication was received from the congregation,
which dropped forthwith from the list of Relief churches. Inducted, i8th
January 1804. The stipend was to be ^85, but in addition to the sum for
which he had security the congregation made him an annual payment of
^15. In connection with this latter sum Mr Familton applied to the Presby
tery for advice in August 1819. It comes out that owing to decline in numbers
and in funds the managers were withholding what they regarded as a free gift,
and he claimed as a legal right. No amicable accommodation being arrived
at, the next thing was a strongly-expressed petition from Kettle congregation
to have their connection with Mr Familton dissolved. He had alienated
their affections from him, they said, "by his eager pursuit after secular
emoluments." The paper was dismissed by the Presbytery, and the people,
by their own account, branded with combining to run down their minister.
But the reply was that " no such combination would prosper if the minister
did not first stumble, and split upon a rock." The congregation in their
reasons of protest and appeal to the Synod complained that the Presbytery
were giving countenance to the dispersion of the meeting. They also spoke
i94 HISTORY OF U.P. CONGREGATIONS
as if there had been gradual decline a good way back, but that at Martinmas
last the evil " arrived at its acme" and a disruption was the consequence. The
Synod decided that Mr Familton should receive ^200 in full of all his claims,
and on nth May 1820 he was relieved from his charge. After this he re
sided about Edinburgh, and was receiving appointments as a preacher in
December 1822. It is said that he ultimately removed to America, and was
drowned when bathing in a lake. The records of the Relief Widows' Fund
indicate that he died in 1825.
Third Minister. — DANIEL GORRIE, who acceded to the Relief at the
close of his theological course, and got licence from the Presbytery of
Edinburgh. He was born at Condiecleuch, a farm in Glenalmond district.
This was the name of a place where the Associate Presbytery held one of
their early meetings, but it is scarcely conceivable that that could be in
the remote region of Logiealmond. Ordained, 5th December 1821. The
stipend promised was the ^100 which his predecessor had received in his
better days, with manse and garden. Under Mr Gorrie all was peace, and
in one of his last discourses he testified that during his thirty years of
service there had not been one discordant sound among them. On their
last Sabbath in the old church he preached a pensive discourse from the
words : " The earthly house of this tabernacle," full of tender memories,
and suitable in a twofold way. Another Sabbath, and his work was done.
Deadly illness came, and after lingering for several weeks he died, 3ist
March 1852, in the fifty-third year of his age and thirty-first of his ministry.
Mr Gorrie, as I recall him a few years before his death, was a stately man,
with hair whitened beyond his age, and with a good amount of the figurative
in his pulpit style. His youngest son, of the same name, when a theological
student, wrote a prize essay on the Sabbath, displaying remarkable power
of versification. After becoming a preacher he published a volume of
" Orations and Lectures on Sacred Themes." Not obtaining a call he
turned to literature, and died in London, i6th September 1893, in his sixty-
third year. Another son of Kettle manse was Sir John Gorrie, who, after
holding Government offices in other British colonies, was ultimately Chief-
Justice of Trinidad and Tobago. He died at Exeter on his way back to
London in broken health, 4th August 1892, in his sixty-fourth year.
The new church, which cost nearly ^1850, and accommodates 700, was
opened on Sabbath, gth January 1853. This graceful erection may have
done much to keep the people together during the troubles which had already
set in. It had been carried by a majority several weeks before to apply for a
moderation, but against this resolution a protest was taken. The Presbytery
decided for delay, and after an interval of five months a committee reported
that it had been agreed to solicit a hearing of two or three preachers, that
a moderation should follow, and that all parties should acquiesce in the
choice of the majority. The moderation took place on yth June 1853, and
Mr George Barlas, whom the majority had in view from the first, was
carried over Mr John Maclaren, afterwards of City Road, Glasgow. But
out of a membership of 430 only 184 signed the call. Mr Barlas had
already decided to accept Auchtermuchty (East), and Kettle was left to
begin anew. Another one-sided call followed to Mr James Imrie, but it was
allowed to drop, as he intimated to them that he had given the preference
to Bridge Street, Musselburgh.
In Mr Beveridge's " History of Kettle Church" a minute of a congrega
tional meeting held the year before Mr Gorrie's death is given, of rare
quality. Instead of being favoured with the services of the rising hopes of
the church in their minister's absence they had for several years been
"supplied with very aged men, almost incapable for duty, or by one who,
PRESBYTERY OF CUPAR 195
from other engagements (the Synod librarian probably), cannot commit his
sermons, but only reads a paper, whether of his own or another's production."
To meet the exigencies of the case they resolved as follows : — " We authorise
the managers that, should any such be pawned on us, they should shut the
door against them, and instruct the treasurer to allow no pay for their services."
There was strength of will at the helm of affairs in those days, and, though
the above was only a sky rocket, it evinced the possibility of headstrong
work should differences arise about the choice of a minister.
Third Minister. — HUGH BARR, from Kilbarchan, on whom the two
antagonistic parties united, and through whose prudence and devotedness
to duty harmony was restored to the congregation. The stipend was raised
at this time from .£120 to ^150, besides ^10. for expenses. Ordained, 27th
September 1854. Mr Barr's ministry lasted into its twentieth year, and then
closed after a brief but severe illness. He had taken absorbing interest
in certain negotiations for the union of the two congregations in Ceres, and
all the more so that, rightly or wrongly, he believed there was ungenerous
treatment going on. A long sederunt in the cold church after exposure to
drenching rain, it is feared, lodged the germs of disease deep among the
springs of life. On Sabbath, 28th October 1873, he assisted at the com
munion in Lothian Road Church, Edinburgh, and preached in the evening
on " The Path of the Just," a sermon which has a place in his memorial
volume. In a few days the ailment developed itself in an acute form, and
on Friday week, Qth November, he died, in the forty-ninth year of his age.
A volume of his discourses, and also some specimens of his poetical tastes,
with memoir by the Rev. Thomas Dunlop, then of Bristo Street, Edinburgh,
was published in 1875.
Fotirth Minister. — WILLIAM TEES, from Glasgow (London Road).
Ordained, gth July 1874. In 1879 the old manse, which had done service
for eighty-five years, was taken down, and another built on the same site
at a cost of £1440, the undertaking being accomplished apart from the
Manse Building Scheme. In March 1884 Mr Tees had a call presented to
him from Trinity Church, Rochdale, which "he was not prepared to accept" ;
but the offer was renewed under better auspices within two months, and on
2oth May he was loosed from his charge. Owing to the state of his health
Mr Tees removed from Rochdale to South Africa in 1889, and since then
he has been minister of a Presbyterian Church in Durban, Natal.
Fifth Minister.— JAMES B. NICHOLSON, M.A., from Leven. Ordained,
i8th February 1885. Declined John Street, Glasgow, in 1887, but accepted
Hutchesontown on 29th January 1889. Kettle congregation now called
Mr John Addie, but Wilson Church, Perth, followed, and got the pre
ference.
Sixth Minister. — ARTHUR SIMMONS, M.A., from Dairy, Ayrshire.
Ordained, 24th October 1889. The membership is now about 325, and the
stipend .£225, with the manse and garden. A quoad sacra church organised
some twenty years ago at Ladybank, half a mile distant, which has now 300
communicants, must have encroached seriously on the sources of increase
at Kettle.
NEWBURGH (BURGHER)
THIS parish fell vacant in June 1780, and in August Mr Thomas Stewart
was presented to the charge by J. H. Balfour, Esq., of Leys and Randerston.
But the Laird of Pitcairly was bent on securing the living for a Mr Jeffrey,
who had been tutor in his family, and under his influence the Town Council
196 HISTORY OF U.P. CONGREGATIONS
of Newburgh, which also claimed the patronage, issued a counter presenta
tion in Mr Jeffrey's favour. After four years of litigation the Court of Session
decided in Balfour's favour, and in May 1785 the General Assembly ap
pointed the Presbytery to proceed to Mr Stewart's settlement with all
convenient speed. The ordination was carried through on ist September,
with soldiers within reach by way of precaution. As the counterpart, six
men from about Newburgh were tried at the Circuit Court, Perth, in May
1785, for "violent riot and tumult on the Lord's Day." It appears that when
a neighbouring minister was on his way to preach, and intimate the modera
tion, he was met by a crowd of people, who obstructed and maltreated him.
The stroke came heavy on three of the ringleaders. Pitcairly's foreman
was transported to the plantations for seven years ; a Newburgh weaver was
banished from Scotland for the same period ; and one of Pitcairly's tenants
got six months' imprisonment, and had to pay a fine of 500 merks.
On i8th July 1785 an application came from Newburgh to the Burgher
Presbytery of Perth for supply of sermon, and a probationer was appointed
to preach there on the last Sabbath of the month. Thus a beginning was
made among material drawn from the Established Church, but strengthen
ing came through the accession of Burgher families in the place belonging
to the East Church, Auchtermuchty. These, with an elder at their head,
obtained disjunctions from their own session in March 1786, and a fortnight
later a paper of adherence to the new cause at Newburgh was given in to
the Presbytery with 93 signatures. The church appears to have been
already taken possession of, and in June a moderation was applied for. The
Secession had got footing in this parish at an early period, and now it passed
into organised existence. On 22nd July 1740 an accession was given in to
the Associate Presbytery from Newburgh and Abdie. The parish minister,
the Rev. Robert Laing, who survived till 1749, though he kept by the
Established Church, was an evangelical preacher and an upholder of
popular rights, and his ecclesiastical bearings may have led to fuller de
velopments. It is certain that Abernethy congregation, two and a half miles
off, drew a considerable number of members from Newburgh almost from the
beginning.
First Minister.— DAVID HEPBURN, from Perth (Wilson Church). The
stipend promised was only ,£50, with ^5 for house rent, and yet when the call
came up it had 228 names appended. But with most of them the system of
contributing for the support of the gospel was a new thing, and they had also
to meet the expenses of building a church. Mr Hepburn was ordained, 7th
November 1786. A year and a half before this he had been on the point of
breaking away from the Burgher connection. " He could not see that what
was said in our Confession of Faith about the magistrate's power in Church
matters was consistent with the spiritual nature of Christ's New Testament
Kingdom " ; neither did he find that " the Presbyterian form of Church
government was founded on the Word of God." The Synod, to whom his
letter was referred, recommended the Presbytery to deal with him, and at an
early meeting Mr Hepburn avowed that his sentiments were much changed
since he wrote that letter, and he was freer now to subscribe the questions of
the Formula than when he got licence.
In September 1817 the Synod allowed the congregation ,£12, 125. to
enable them to provide pulpit supply, Mr Hepburn being unable to preach.
It was the end drawing on, though he was only in the sixtieth year of his age
and thirty-first of his ministry. He died, 3rd January 1818, but his name
urvives among us in his great-grandson, the Rev. David Hepburn Lawrence,
of Queen Street Church, Broughty-Ferry. In a memoir of Mr Hepburn in
the Christian Repository it is stated that Mr Stewart, whose settlement led
PRESBYTERY OF CUPAR 197
to the formation of Newburgh Secession Church, came to be much respected
by all classes of his parishioners. But the additional statement in Scott's
Fasti that at Mr Hepburn's death the people applied to him for advice about
the choice of a successor may be set down as sheer absurdity. The first
they fixed on at this time was Mr Alex. Waugh, son of the Rev. Ur Waugh,
London, and they went in for him with great heartiness, no fewer than 275
members signing his call. But calls followed from Hamilton (now Avon
Place), Lochwinnoch, and Girvan, and last of all from Miles Lane, London,
to which, in keeping with the fitness of things, he was unanimously appointed
by the Synod. He died, 2nd August 1824, in the thirtieth year of his age and
fifth of his ministry. A volume of his discourses and communion addresses,
with memoir by his father, was published the year after his death.
Second Minister. — JOHN J. JOHNSTON, son of the Rev. James Johnston,
Rathillet. Ordained, iith April 1821. The call was signed by 172 members,
and the stipend was to be ^120, including expenses and house rent. It is
understood that the congregation was strengthened at this time by a number
of Antiburgher families breaking off from Abernethy, as the result of the
recent union, and joining Newburgh. In 1836 the meeting-house was en
larged* and improved at an expense of nearly ,£300. Had coming events
been foreseen the former accommodation would have been thought ample
enough. First of all, the congregation suffered through Mr Johnston being
unable to officiate, and several times when Sabbath came there was no one
to take his place. After a rest of three months this was put so far to rights,
but towards the end of 1840 a crisis came, which was not to be got over. It
originated in a request by the Chartist Association of Newburgh to have the
use of the church for a political meeting, to which the managers, by a majority
of two, agreed. But an outcry was raised against granting the place of
worship for any such purpose, and the question was laid before a congrega
tional meeting, when it carried, by a majority of three, to undo what the
managers had done. Resignations followed, the preses, whose motion on
the other side was defeated, taking the lead. The ill-judged affair led to the
formation of a Relief Church in Newburgh. We read now in the treasurer's
books of deficiencies in the ordinary income, the seat rents, which had
averaged ,£100 a year, coming down to ,£63. Mr Johnston's difficulties closed
with his death on 2gth December 1848, in the fifty-second year of his age
and twenty-eighth of his ministry. He married a daughter of his predecessor,
and one of their daughters was the wife, and afterwards the widow, of the
Rev. Archibald Russell, Newburgh (Second), and New Zealand.
Third Minister. — JOHN YOUNG, a son of the Rev. Alexander Young,
Logiealmond. Mr Young entered the Hall along with his brother William,
afterwards of Ceres, but, though some years older, he fell behind, and was
much later in being settled. After two years of preacher life he declined
West Linton, and after other two years he declined Huntly. When his fifth
year had ended Largo and Newburgh called him on the same day, and the
latter became his choice. Ordained, 26th December 1849. The call was
signed by 205 members and 115 adherents, and the stipend was to be ,£110,
with manse and garden. The debt of ,£677 had been reduced in 1845 to
,£350, with the aid of ,£77 from the Liquidation Board. But with a rival
church on the other side of the street, and the population on the decline, it
was not to be supposed that the congregation would continue self-supporting.
In 1868 a supplement of ^30 was required to make the stipend ^150. In
1882 the membership was 178, and the people gave ,£127, ios., and the Board
,£32, ios. There was also the manse and a share of the surplus. Mr Young
died, 8th June 1883, in the sixty-sixth year of his age and thirty-fourth of his
ministry.
198 HISTORY OF U.P. CONGREGATIONS
Fourth Minister. — ALEXANDER C. HENDERSON, B.D., from Erskine
Church, Glasgow. Ordained, i6th April 1884. In the seventh year of Mr
Henderson's ministry the funds of the congregation afforded ,£137, IDS.,
though the membership was lower than when he went. But in the course of
another year prospects of a bulkier kind opened out before him. On gth
February 1892 he intimated to the Presbytery the demission of his charge,
that he might become assistant to the Rev. David M'Rae of the Gilfillan
Memorial Church, Dundee. At a meeting on the preceding evening the
congregation resolved to acquiesce, and the Presbytery, after a committee
had conferred with him to no purpose, accepted his resignation, and declared
him to be " no longer in connection with this Church." After occupying his
new sphere of labour for two years he emigrated to Australia in a state of
ripeness to take the pastoral oversight of a Unitarian church in Melbourne.
Other two years passed, and, having returned home, he held the post of
lecturer under the M'Quaker Trust till the beginning of 1900, in the service
of the same liberal cause. Then from January to June of that year he was
minister of Clerk's Lane Church, Kilmarnock, which, under his predecessor,
the Rev. James Forrest, had sunk to the same level. Next October he was
received into the membership of the Church of Scotland at Partick, with a
view, we may believe, to a more intimate relationship.
Fifth Minister. — JOHN D. BROWN, from Montrose (John Street).
Ordained, 22nd September 1892. The congregation for two years was
rather on the increase, but after an interval of over fifty years it was again
to be the scene of disaster. On i3th October 1894 a pro re nata meeting
of Presbytery was held in connection with the resignation of four elders —
the entire session except one. The ordination of others had been fixed
for Sabbath first, but assessors were needed if the service was to go on.
This matter was easily arranged, but after a pause of eight weeks 108
members petitioned the Presbytery to inquire into the circumstances of
the congregation, while 70 expressed full confidence in their minister.
Meetings followed with the elders who had resigned, with the session, and
with the congregation, and we gather from certain side references that a
temperance sermon preached by Mr Brown had given serious offence to
a large section of his people. It happened, also, that the Presbytery were
at sixes and sevens on the merits of the case, but the majority did not
see that there was warrant for advising resignation. But angry feeling
was stirred, and by the end of next year the communion roll came down
from 179 to 121, there being 32 accessions and 90 removals. The
membership at the close of 1899 was 113, and the stipend from the people
IOS.
NEWBURGH (RELIEF)
ON i gth January 1841 the dissentients in Newburgh Secession Church
were received by the Relief Presbytery of Perth as a forming congregation,
and on Sabbath week they had sermon in the town hall from the Rev.
William Lindsay of Perth. The Secession Presbytery saw reason now
to appoint a committee to visit Newburgh, but it was too late. Had
they stepped in earlier it might have been different, but when a paper
of grievances was laid on their table first of all they dismissed it on the
plea that it was not transmitted by the session. Thus the quarrel was
allowed to run its course, and it ended in the formation of a rival church.
On 25th April two members of the Relief Presbytery met with the separating
party, and constituted them into a congregation, with a membership of
PRESBYTERY OF CUPAR 199
102. At next meeting they wished a gratis Sabbath from each of the
members, and before the end of the year they were seeking aid from the
Home Mission Fund, as "they were getting embarrassed in their pecuniary
circumstances," but the Presbytery advised them, instead, "to continue
their praiseworthy exertions."
First Minister. — ALEXANDER WATSON, who had been in Dron for
three years without the prospect of making headway. Inducted, i8th May
1842, on a stipend of £70. The thought of the people may have been
that with novelty in their favour, and the flag of out-and-out liberalism
above their heads, they only required a minister of attractive pulpit gifts
to gather in additions from all sides, and put the mother church into the
second place, or, mayhap, swamp it altogether. But, unfortunately, before
Mr Watson had been three years in Newburgh he had to bring before
the Presbytery a report which had got into circulation, fitted to injure his
ministerial standing. He had been through at Kettle one day with a
brother minister, and had not been sufficiently careful to avoid the appear
ance of evil. There may not have been much wrong, but there was enough
to cost him his slender hold of Newburgh, and on I5th April 1845 Mr
Watson resigned, and, with the acquiescence of the congregation, was
loosed from his charge. The Presbytery, which had rested in reproof
and admonition, now expressed grief at parting with him, and furnished
him with ample testimonials. He was to set out immediately for America,
but instead of this he remained in Scotland, and applied to the General
Assembly in 1846 for admission to the Established Church. The Com
mission was empowered to receive him at their August meeting, if his
certificates of character were satisfactory. On 2ist January 1847 he was
inducted into the quoad sacra church, Auldfield, Eastwood parish, where
he died of cholera, 24th January 1849.
Second Minister. — ARCHIBALD RUSSELL, from Falkirk (West). Or
dained, 3rd February 1847. Mr Russell when a divinity student was
the author of a prize essay on the Sabbath, and raised expectations which
he never quite fulfilled, though he did faithful work at Newburgh. Being
a man of literary tastes he made his influence felt, specially among young
men, by week-night lectures, and in similar ways. But the congregation
was far down when he went, there being only 56 members at the close
of 1848, and the stipend was ,£80 in all, ,£40 of which came from the
Synod Fund the first year, ,£30 the second, and ,£20 the third. In 1850
the congregation removed from the town hall to their new church, with
400 sittings, built very much through the exertions of their young minister.
As time passed there was as much increase as could be looked for, the
membership rising to 118 in 1859, though the amount of stipend paid by
the people was never above ,£85, and the sum total ^110. After struggling
with the drawbacks of his situation for seventeen years, during the last
six of which he was Presbytery clerk, Mr Russell resolved, amidst growing
family burdens, to seek a less circumscribed field of labour. On I2th April
1864 he was loosed from Newburgh, and at the Synod a few weeks later
old friends bade him adieu on his way for New Zealand. After ministering
for a few years at Blenheim, Marlborough, he died, 2nd June 1868, in
the forty-ninth year of his age, leaving a widow and a young family, the
youngest only three weeks old.
An effort was now made by the Presbytery and the Home Mission Board
to effect a union with the old congregation, but the people declared firmly
and unanimously against any such proposal. They would give ,£85, they
said, and this, with ^25 from the Board, would make up ^uo, a stipend
which they considered entitled them to have a minister of their own. The
200 HISTORY OF* U.P. CONGREGATIONS
first they turned to was Mr James Allison, now minister-emeritus of
Alexandria, but he waited on till a sphere opened for him in the heart of
mighty London.
Third Minister. — JAMES H. CAMERON, from Muirton. The call was
signed by 92 members and 62 adherents, and the ordination took place on
ist August 1865. Next year the people raised their part of the stipend .£10,
and at the end of three years there was a membership of 155. The stipend
from the people was now .£100, which the supplement raised first to ,£150
and then to ,£160. At this point the tide turned, and on 3ist October 1871
Mr Cameron's resignation was tabled and accepted, the congregation
yielding to the inevitable, though with much regret. Mr Cameron had
received an appointment from the Colonial Committee of the Free Church
to Lawrence, Otago, whence, after labouring for a number of years, he was
translated to another charge at Waiareka. From this he withdrew in 1891,
with the view of returning to Scotland. Being fully certified by the
Presbytery of Dunedin " to the brethren in the home country," he was
received back into the U.P. Church by the Synod of 1892, and now resides
in Perth in full ministerial status.
Again attempts were made to effect a union at Newburgh, and that year
the Synod resolved that in such cases, if union efforts fail, neither moderation
nor supplement shall be granted without the special sanction of the Supreme
Court. This resolution was now brought to the front, and the result was
that, on loth December 1872, Perth Presbytery received notice that Newburgh
(Second) wished no further supply of preachers. The e\-;~i.\ nation was that,
finding their hopes of continued support reduced to a minimum, and their
existence as a distinct society discouraged, the people had resolved to try
their fortunes elsewhere. There was talk in the Presbytery about the title-
deeds of the property, but all that followed was the removal of the name
from the roll of churches under their inspection. The Mission Committee had
previously expressed their sense of " the ungrateful return which the con
gregation had made for the kindness and assistance rendered to them
during a long course of years."
It was to the Evangelical Union that Newburgh (Second) now betook
itself with all its belongings. In that connection they had four ministers
between 1874 and 1892. Then the name appears in the Church list as
vacant, and in that state it is entered five successive years, but in 1897 they
had a minister once more, and they now form part of the widened-out
Congregational Union. It is like a return to days long gone by, when the
Rev. Alexander Pirie presided over a little society of Independents at
Newburgh. Two years ago they had another young man ordained over
them, and thus the effects of a dispute about granting the use of the United
Secession meeting-house for a political or Chartist meeting remain fresh as
ever. The majority carried matters with a high hand, and the minority
acted as if they had been robbed of their Christian privileges.
FREUCHIE (BURGHER)
THE Associate Presbytery received accessions from praying societies in
Falkland, the parish to which Freuchie belongs, so early as 1738, and in
common with the Seceders in the parishes of Leslie, Markinch, and
King-lassie, they found their centre in the town of Leslie, and obtained Mi-
John Erskine for their minister. At the Breach a section withdrew from
his ministry, and joined the Burgher congregation at Auchtermuchty, which
obtained a large hold of that district. At a later time, as we find from the
PRESBYTERY OF CUPAR 201
session minutes, they had one elder in Freuchie, another in Falkland,
and a third in the parish of Kettle — material here for the formation of a
Burgher church in that locality in due time. Accordingly, on i6th December
1794, a petition was presented to the Burgher Presbytery of Perth from
sixteen persons in and about Freuchie, " setting forth the great need they
have of the gospel," and requesting supply of sermon. The applicants were
probably outsiders, the system generally adopted being to put such into the
front, the Seceders about the place helping on the movement from behind
the curtain. On 6th February 1795 notice of "cheerful concurrence" was
received from Auchtermuchty, and the meeting-house was finished in the
end of 1796 at a cost of under ^200. A little before this 22 members
of Auchtermuchty congregation received disjunctions, that they might
connect themselves with Freuchie. A number to the east and south must
have come from the Burgher congregation in Leslie, four miles off, and
there were also a few from Kennoway church. As the first call was
signed by 98 members the entire number must have been considerably
over 100.
First Minister. — JOHN RICHARDSON, from Biggar (North). Freuchie
being preferred to Newbigging by the Synod, he was ordained, 251!! July
1798. The stipend offered was ,£60, with ^5 for house rent and ^5 for
communion expenses. The Presbytery were of opinion that this " was not
a competency," but the people insisted that it was as much as their funds
warranted. After considerable delay the commissioners hoped that the
congregation would give other ^5, and the moderation was granted. In
1804 a manse was built at a cost of ,£160 or ^170, and in the following year
the stipend was raised to ^90. This step may have been prompted by a
call which Mr Richardson received to Crossgates, where the stipend was
^80, with house and garden, and the prospect of an early increase to ^100.
He wavered for a time, but at last elected to remain at Freuchie, and the
Presbytery decided accordingly. The stipend remained at ,£90 till after Mi-
Richardson's ministry closed. But, over against this, let it be remembered
that the parish minister of Falkland had only ^73, and a glebe, in the last
decade of the century. The funds of Freuchie congregation were greatly
kept down by the failure of members to pay for their sittings, an evil for
which the slender earnings of the people furnish an excuse. The Old
Statistical History gives 337 tradesmen in the parish, of whom 231 were
engaged in the weaving of a coarse kind of linen. The total income of
husband and wife — that is, of the weaver and the winder — was calculated at
55. gd. a week, or ^15 a year, and the average wage of other tradesmen was
lower still. This left little margin for religious purposes.
Mr Richardson died, i8th January 1837, in the seventy-first year of his
age and thirty-ninth of his ministry. He presided that evening at a soiree,
the first which had ever been held in his church. He had the feeling that
such a gathering was a secularising of a sacred edifice, and not for some
time did he consent to act as chairman. However, he enjoyed the meeting,
received a cordial vote of thanks, spoke his farewell, and set out for the
manse. On his way home he was struck down with paralysis, and died
within half-an-hour. A daughter of Mr Richardson's in her widowhood
became Dr John Taylor's second wife, after his return from Canada. His
youngest son, Alexander, entered the Secession Hall in 1838, but did not
prosecute his theological studies, and afterwards joined the Established
Church. In the Union negotiations of 1863-73 he took unfriendly interest,
and published several booklets under the name of " Free Lance," containing
a large amount of miscellaneous information, not always very reliable. He
died in London, ist August 1878, aged fifty-seven.
202 HISTORY OF U.P. CONGREGATIONS
Second Minister. — JOHN GRAY, from Bridge -of- Teith. They had
previously called Mr John Russell, but "he preferred Hexham to Rousay,
Freuchie to Hexham, and, finally, Buchlyvie to Freuchie." Mr Gray was
ordained, iyth January 1838. The stipend, as before, was .£90, with manse
and garden, and the membership was over 250, of whom 74 were from
the parishes of Kettle, Collessie, and Markinch. In 1845 the debt of ^242
which rested on the building was reduced to ,£50 by the aid of ,£75 from
the Liquidation Board. In 1852 one of the elders made the offer of ^15 if
the congregation would make up the other ^35, and thus, after so long a
time, Freuchie congregation got rid of all its burdens. On ist November
1868 a new church, seated for 520, was opened, the cost being ,£1600, of
which all, except ^460, was already paid, and this was reduced to ^300 in
1871. As a stimulus to further effort Mr William Foote, Glasgow, a native
of Cupar, agreed to give £7$ if the people would raise double that sum.
This was done, and by the proceeds of a bazaar in 1875 tne residue was can
celled, the church painted, and other improvements made. Care was taken
to keep the old building from passing into the hands of the Established
Church, and " Free Lance " gives the following account of how the matter
ended: — " As the village has nearly doubled its population since 1832, and
as the parish church is about two miles distant, some friends of the Establish
ment offered to buy the old building for a place of worship, but the offer was
obstinately refused. Within the last three months (this was written in 1870)
a lady in the neighbourhood died, bequeathing a sum of money adequate
to the erection of a handsome church for the adherents of the Church of
Scotland.1' So the deserted edifice was secularised.
In 1879 a colleague was required, and Mr Matthew Dickie, M.A., was
called, but he preferred Sanquhar (South). Mr Gray was to have ^50 of
retiring allowance, and was to retain the manse and garden. The colleague
was to have ,£125 from the congregation, and this, it was expected, would
be made up to ,£200 by supplement and surplus, besides £20 for a house.
Third Minister- — JOHN POLLOCK, who was originally from Free St
James', Glasgow, but joined the U.P. Church when a student. Ordained as
colleague to Mr Gray, 7th January 1880. The membership at this time was
247, of whom 228 signed the call. There was now a stirring up of activity,
and in the second and third years of Mr Pollock's ministry the income
averaged ,£370. On 3rd February 1885 he accepted a call to Merchiston,
Edinburgh.
Fourth Minister. — JAMES MlLROY, from Kirkcudbright, who had been
called to South Ronaldshay at an earlier stage of his probationership, and to
Blairlogie a few weeks before Freuchie came in. Ordained, 6th January 1886.
To make way for his new colleague Mr Gray removed at this time from the
manse, and went to reside in Cupar, where he died, loth December 1887, in
the seventy-seventh year of his age and the fiftieth of his ministry. The
congregation now passed into the self-supporting state, the stipend being
raised to ^200, with the manse, and .£12, 125. for expenses. On 24th April
1894 Mr Milroy, like his predecessor, was transferred to Edinburgh, having
received a call to the Pleasance Church. During his ministry at Freuchie
an addition was made to the manse, at a cost of £200, which was entirely
defrayed within a very few years.
Fifth Minister. — GEORGE LOWE, B.D., from Bridge Street, Musselburgh.
Ordained, 5th December 1894. The membership at the close of 1899 was
263, and the stipend ,£200, with the manse.
PRESBYTERY OF CUPAR 203
KILCONQUHAR (BURGHER)
ON 6th December 1791 a number of persons in and about Kilconquhar craved
supply of sermon from the Burgher Presbytery of Perth owing to their
distance from any congregation of their own communion, and the station
was opened on the third Sabbath of that month. On 8th October 1794
38 persons were recognised as a congregation, and five of their
number were soon after ordained to the eldership. Next year the church
was built. Colinsburgh, which is about a mile to the north, had been a
stronghold of the Relief, but the congregation there was now in a broken
state, and under deep decline. Still, the " sectaries," young and old, within
the parish were given in the Old Statistical History as 700 strong in 1793.
First Minister. — JAMES DICK, from Perth (Wilson Church). Ordained
on i6th March 1796, and next day Mr John Paton was ordained at
Colinsburgh, as successor to the Rev. James Cowan of the Old Relief Church
there. Mr Dick's call was signed by 53 members and 54 adherents.
The stipend was ^65, with a house, and ^5 for a horse, the defraying, of
family expenses at communion times being left to the discretion of the
office-bearers. From a memoir of Mr Dick we learn that the congregation
seldom had a membership of more than 120. One interesting feature about
it was the number of eminent Burgher ministers, such as Professors Balmer
and Brown, who had been under Mr Dick's ministry in student days, there
being two side schools within the bounds, the one in Kilconquhar, the
other in Elie. Mr Dick died, 22nd December 1823, in the fifty-fourth year
of his age and twenty-eighth of his ministry.
Second Minister. — GEORGE KENNEDY, from Sanquhar (North), but a
native of Leadhills. Ordained, igth October 1825. The people could not
promise more than ,£70 of stipend, with ^5 for sacramental expenses, but
the Presbytery told them to provide a house besides. For some time before
Mr Dick's death they had been in receipt of ^10 annually from the Synod
Fund, having been weakened, as they stated, by the removal of some
important families. In 1837 there was a membership of 99. The stipend
was ,£70, but some years before this a manse had been built, and to aid
them in the work they were allowed ,£20 from the Synod Fund. As they
had no debt in 1837 the effort must have been successfully surmounted. In
1846 they applied to the Home Board for assistance, but the Presbytery in
transmitting the petition notified that they did not concur with the petitioners
in the opinion that " seat rents are at variance with the voluntary principle."
They also entertained serious doubts as to the expediency of the new de
parture. In September 1853 Mr Kennedy announced to Cupar Presbytery
that he intended to resign his charge, explaining that the utmost cordiality
had existed between him and his people all along, and that, though the bond
were dissolved, he would still seek to promote their welfare. After half a
year's delay, from circumstances which remain to be narrated, the Presbytery
on 28th March 1854 accepted his resignation, while expressing their apprecia
tion of his character and their sense of the sacrifices he had made by
remaining so long in that sphere of labour. Arrangements were made to
preach the pulpit vacant, but in reality the close was reached. For a few
years Kilconquhar remained on the Presbytery and Synod Roll, with
Mr Henderson of Lathones as moderator of session, but otherwise the
whole machinery was at a stand. On 4th May 1858 the congregation was
formally dissolved by deed of Cupar Presbytery, and Mr Henderson in
structed to give certificates to members who might apply for them. Trustees
for the retention of the property had been previously appointed, partly by
2o4 HISTORY OF U.P. CONGREGATIONS
the congregation and partly by the Presbytery, and the old church still
stands a marked object in the village of Barnyards.
To account for some unpleasantness which marked the winding-up at
Kilconquhar, we go back to the Union of 1847. Colinsburgh congregation
was vacant at that time. They had recently taken possession of their new
church, and under Mr Dickie's brief ministry the cause began to revive.
An attempt was now made by a Synodical Committee to effect a union with
Kilconquhar, the two churches being within a mile of each other. The
simple course would have been to invite Mr Kennedy to the occupancy of
the vacant pulpit at Colinsburgh and his people to take their places in the
thinly-tenanted pews ; but an arrangement on this footing was found to be
impracticable, and the negotiations deepened the feeling of estrangement
between the two congregations. A moderation, which had been held back
for the time, was now granted to Colinsburgh, with the promise of ,£20 a
year for supplement, while Kilconquhar was left outside. When Mr
Kennedy intimated his resignation the Presbytery of Cupar strongly recom
mended the Mission Board to receive Kilconquhar into the list of supple
mented churches, but the application was refused on the plea that it would
be improper to aid two small congregations so near each other. They
would, however, allow them £20 for the current year, but with the distinct
intimation that "unless the circumstances of the congregation be greatly
improved by the close of that period, further aid would not be afforded
them." On this return being received Mr Kennedy pressed the acceptance
of his resignation, and Kilconquhar people declined to take the ,£20 on the
terms specified. A committee was then appointed to confer with them, but
the convener got notice that they were not prepared to receive the visit. An
occasional service on Sabbath evenings by a neighbouring minister, or by
their own minister, is understood to have been all that was ever attempted
after this in the old place of worship at Barnyards. The treatment received
from the Supplementing Board, when contrasted with the support given to
Colinsburgh, was fitted to- impress the people with a sense of wrong.
In 1856 Mr Kennedy removed from Kilconquhar to Edinburgh, where
he connected himself with Bristo Church, and was elected to the eldership.
During this period he visited Canada oftener than once, his elder brother,
the Rev. Andrew Kennedy, formerly of Keith, having been for many years
one of our ministers in that colony. He died at Edinburgh, loth April
1863, in the sixty-fifth year of his age. Mr Henderson of Lathones improved
the event by preaching a sermon in Barnyards church, from the text :
" Blessed are the dead which die in the Lord." In outlining the character of
the departed he made special mention of his transparent integrity, his large-
hearted generosity, his urbanity to all, but especially to the poor, " his piety
so unobtrusive yet so consistent, so earnest and yet so free from everything
repulsive." Such was the estimate formed of Mr Kennedy by one who had
been long his nearest co-presbyter, and who never sought either to bepraise
the dead or to flatter the living.
Mr Kennedy came early out in the line of unsectarian action. On a
communion Saturday in 1829 he went up to worship in the Relief church at
Colinsburgh, and consented to preach on Sabbath evening, as Mr Marshall,
the minister, was unable to take his part in the service. The elder from
Ferry-Port-on-Craig, backed by his minister, complained of this to the
Presbytery, and Mr Forsyth of Auchtermuchty, who was conservative in his
leanings, took pen in hand on the subject, and some warm correspondence
followed in the columns of the Theological Magazine. Ultimately the
complaining elder was to be satisfied if it were entered in the minutes " that
it is unconstitutional for ministers to exchange pulpits at uncanonical hours
PRESBYTERY OF CUPAR 205
with ministers of other denominations," but the majority of the Presbytery
deemed it inexpedient to pronounce on the principle which this proposal
involved. In the course of the discussion union with the Relief church was
suggested, — it was a forecast of coming events.
STRATH KINNES (RELIEF)
IN the absence of Presbytery and congregational records no definite account
can be given of this congregation's origin. We only know that the place of
worship, with 300 sittings, was built in 1801 at a cost of .£160 or .£170. The
village is three miles west of St Andrews, and, the nearest church being
distant an hour's walk, the erection was probably a matter of convenience
more than of principle.
First Minister. — GEORGE BUCHANAN, described in the minutes of the
Relief Synod for 1797 as "a student of divinity who thoroughly understands
the Gaelic language." Licensed by Perth Presbytery, and employed two
seasons in the Highland Mission to Argyleshire. With the view of being
ordained at Strathkinnes he was certified to Dysart Presbytery on I2th April
1800. In July 1808 he demitted his charge, but, the congregation having
promised to be more regular in paying up his stipend, he agreed to remain.
On 1 8th May 1809 he resigned a second time. After parties had been
heard, the Presbytery blamed the people for having proved undutiful to
their minister, but it carried to accept the resignation and grant an ample
certificate of ministerial and moral character. Mr Buchanan now acted as a
preacher for a number of years, but in 1816 a sphere of labour opened for
him at Kirkcaldy. \Vhen Thomas Nairn left the Associate Presbytery, and
joined John M'Millan, a few of his people built a place of worship for him in
Linktovvn. For forty-four years this straggling remnant had for their
minister Mr James Kirkcaldy. In 1816 they were vacant, and Mr Buchanan
was without a church, and in some way the parties were brought together.
The Cameronian Presbytery found that Kirkcaldy congregation had been
admitting "a number of vagrant preachers to their pulpit," and had also
subscribed a call to one of these preachers without their concurrence. This
was the Rev. George Buchanan, who, without ecclesiastical recognition,
became minister of this little society of Cameronians. For renouncing their
authority the Relief Presbytery of Dysart cut him off from their connection,
and when he applied for readmission in 1819 they found it inexpedient to
receive him.
He is now lost sight of till the spring of 1822, when we meet him on
the wing for America. An application had come from Beckwith in Upper
Canada to some members of Edinburgh Secession Presbytery for a mis
sionary who could preach both in Gaelic and English, and they had made
choice of Mr Buchanan. His testimonials were highly satisfactory, and as
he possessed medical skill, this with the gift of the two languages was fitted
to make him a triple blessing to his countrymen in the far West. The
difficulty lay in providing the passage-money and an adequate outfit for him
and his family, twelve in all, but this was in course of being got over. Mi-
Buchanan settled down in Beckwith, where " the people received him and
his numerous family with joy, built him a house, and did all in their power
to render him comfortable." He died there in 1835. A relative of Mr
Buchanan's remembers hearing a letter from Canada read, stating that he
passed away after a severe illness of ten months. His son, David P.
Buchanan, was a catechist in Jamaica under the Secession Synod, but he
died at Port Maria, 3rd March 1842, when on trials for licence.
206 HISTORY OF U.P. CONGREGATIONS
Second Minister. — WILLIAM BOAG, who had been loosed from Castle-
Douglas some time before. Having preached in Strathkinnes four successive
Sabbaths he became the people's choice, and was inducted, i7th October
1811. In less than three years the elders and managers came to the
Presbytery for pecuniary aid to enable them to pay up their deficiencies
to Mr Boag, and they were recommended to raise the seat rents in
proportion to the congregation's necessities. Had the people been in
structed to exercise the grace of liberality each first day of the week, as
the Lord had prospered them, the advice might have been more effective,
but in those days church-door collections were of little account in the
financial life of Secession and Relief churches. On 8th February 1816
Mr Boag accepted a call to Dunning (Relief), and furnished the congregation
with an outlet into non-existence. Their first minister had been so ill-
advised as to remind them from the pulpit, on more occasions than one,
that, if they failed in meeting their money engagements, he had the legal
bond to fall back on. The threat may have given rise to uneasy appre
hensions, and prepared the way for the winding-up. The Presbytery on
dissolving Mr Boag's connection with Strathkinnes made some arrange
ments for supply to the vacant pulpit, and with this the name disappears
from the records. The building was occupied for a time by the Wesleyan
Methodists, but they never got naturalised in the village, their regular
adherents consisting chiefly of old soldiers who walked out from St
Andrews.
In 1818 ground was broken at Strathkinnes by the Original Burgher
Presbytery of Perth in answer to a petition from 12 persons in St
Andrews and its neighbourhood, but it was not till 1823 that a congregation
was organised. The building was then purchased for ^90 by eight
individuals, and on 24th July 1827 Mr Ralph Robb, an Original Burgher
preacher from Alloa, was ordained. Of the old Relief congregation, some
would keep by the old pews ; a few joined the Burgher congregation at
St Andrews ; and others would likely find their way back to the parish
church. Mr Robb with his people joined the Establishment in 1839, and
left with the Evangelicals in 1843. He emigrated to Canada soon after,
and the congregation is now the Free Church congregation of Strathkinnes.
LATHONES (UNITED SECESSION)
LATHONES is a hamlet midway between St Andrews and Largo, which
are twelve miles apart. It is in the parish of Cameron, but near the
boundaries of Carnbee and Kilconquhar. That was a district which
supplied adherents to the Secession from an early period. A Carnbee
elder was admitted to a seat in the session of the East of Fife at their
second meeting, and the schoolmaster in Cameron was put out of his
office for acceding to the Associate Presbytery. The cause was helped
by an unacceptable settlement in Carnbee parish in the year 1742. But
it was at Radernie that the first attempt was made to form a congregation.
This was in May 1789, and supply was kept up there, year after year, on
something like alternate Sabbaths. The meeting-place was a barn, which
stood long by the wayside some six miles from St Andrews. On 26th
January 1790 the people were congregated, and those of their number who
were in membership with St Andrews obtained disjunctions five days
afterwards. Other three years passed without further progress, and then
a preaching station was opened at Kilconquhar, four miles to the south,
and for a time the two places had supply divided between them. The
PRESBYTERY OF CUPAR 207
outcome was that the cause at Radernie was abandoned for more than a
generation, the members being left to join the Burgher congregations of
St Andrews or Kilconquhar, as convenience might dictate.
It was not till after the Union of 1820 that the Secession cause began
to assume visibility in this locality again. On 23rd March 1824 a petition
for supply of sermon was presented to the Secession Presbytery of Cupar
from Largo ward, a village a little way south from Lathones. It was
subscribed by 70 persons, and Mr Scott of Leslie was appointed to open
the station, but not till the third Sabbath of May. In July it was reported
that the people had secured a site, and were raising funds to build a place
of worship. The work went rapidly on, and the meeting-house is said to
have been roofed in before winter. It is a plain church, with sittings for
250, and behind it are the manse and garden in the midst of a clump of
stately trees. The congregating took place on Monday, 25th March 1825,
when two of the Presbytery conversed with applicants for admission to
Church fellowship, and received seven certificates from St Andrews.
Kilconquhar session had previously intimated to the Presbytery that they
would offer no opposition to the erection at Lathones, " though they felt
much at the thought of losing a twelfth part of their small number." This
would give nine or ten members, and we may calculate that there were
at least as many from Ceres. There was also one very respectable family
from the Relief church, Pittenweem. Such was the nucleus of Lathones
congregation, but we may believe that at least one-half of the original
membership came in from the Established Church.
In October 1825 there was a meeting of the congregation for the choice
of a minister, but the preacher they had in view was now under call to
London, and they agreed to proceed no further. This was Mr James Gray,
from Peebles (East), who was ordained over Albion Chapel, London, on
24th January 1826, but died on 4th May 1828. As a preacher he is said
to have been energetic even to violence, and to have done himself material
harm by unnecessary exertion. Had he begun in Lathones, with its little
church and peaceful surroundings, he might have had longer days. A
volume of Mr Gray's sermons, with a memoir by Dr M'Kelvie, then
a probationer, was published after his death.
First Minister. — DAVID M'RAE, M.A., from Saughieburn, Kincardine-
shire, where his father had been minister of an Independent church. The
call was signed by 29 members and 26 adherents, and, though the building
of a church and manse had brought them into difficulties, they promised a
stipend of ^80, with house and garden. On 6th March 1827 the ordination
was gone through in memorable circumstances. Mr Forsyth of Auchter-
muchty was to preach, and Mr Johnston of Leslie to preside, but owing to
a heavy snowstorm neither of them appeared. After an hour's delay as
many members of Presbytery got forward as made a quorum. Mr Halley
of St Andrews, who had compassed the journey of six miles on horseback,
was fixed on to preach, and Mr Kennedy of Kilconquhar to ordain and give
the addresses, while the third minister present, Mr Thorn of Anstruther, acted
as Presbytery clerk. But difficulties of another kind had to be faced. The
increase in number was slow, and increase in liberality may have been
slower still, a grace in which a section of the people would require training.
Aid was needed from the Synod in 1831, and rendered at different times,
as the funds allowed. To make matters worse, an Extension Chapel was
erected at the neighbouring village of Largoward in 1835. On 5th February
1838 Mr M'Rae accepted a call to Oban, but, says the Synod's report for
the following year : "Though their minister was, in the providence of God,
removed to another sphere, not one of them has left the society."
208 HISTORY OF U.P. CONGREGATIONS
Second Minister. — ARCHIBALD HENDERSON, from Bridge- of- Teith.
Ordained, i7th March 1840. The callers were now 67 instead of 29, but
the stipend promised was .£10 less than they originally undertook, when
perhaps they were over sanguine. During the vacancy an effort was put
forth to have the debt of ,6350 reduced. The Liquidation Board offered
^150 over against ^100, but the people did not think they could raise any
part of the sum required, their ability being taxed to meet the ordinary ex
penditure. A deputation met with them, and suggested a division into
shares, with payment by instalments. There was no response, but at last
one of the members engaged to give ^20 if the others would co-operate.
The strongest opposer subscribed ^5, and before they parted half the sum they
required was down upon paper. This, with the proportionate ,£75 from the
Board, reduced the debt by ,£125, and a few years later through their o\vn
exertions they were left with only ,£100 to trouble them. Largo ward was
in course of time promoted to the rank of a quoad sacra parish, but Lathones
succeeded in holding its own, and in 1848 there were 114 names on the com
munion roll. This year the stipend was supplemented ^20, making it ,£90
in all, with the manse. The preacher in charge of the adjoining chapel had
at first only ^75, "raised by subscription from among the heritors and
neighbouring ministers."
During forty-eight years Mr Henderson kept the even tenor of his way, the
congregation gradually improving and becoming well compacted. In 1875
the membership was nearing 140. About this time the manse was greatly
improved at a cost of ,£320, of which the people raised ,£130. In the spring
of 1888 Mr Henderson required sick supply from the Presbytery by reason
of failing strength. In September of that year the writer went over and
took Lathones pulpit for a day, and did a slight service to an old and much-
valued friend. Intimation was made at the close that their own minister
intended to resume work, so far, on the following Sabbath. But a brief
attempt sufficed to test inability, and on i6th October Mr Henderson retired
to make way for another. At a farewell meeting in the church on i7th
April 1889 he was presented with a gift of ,£360, contributed as a mark of
respect by his own congregation, members of Cupar Presbytery, and other
friends. He then removed to the neighbourhood of Kilmalcolm, but the
twilight was to be brief. He died, 8th September 1890, in the eighty-second
year of his age and fifty-first of his ministry, and was buried in Cameron
Churchyard, where his wife, a sister of Dr Finlayson, of Rose Street, Edin
burgh, had been laid nearly thirty years before.
Third Minister. — ALEXANDER HORNE, from Leven. Ordained, 22nd
May 1889. The membership is now between i6oand 170, and of the stipend
the people pay ^100 from their own resources.
PITLESSIE (UNITED SECESSION)
THE parish of Cults, to which Pitlessie belongs, fell vacant in November
1833 by the translation of the Rev. John Cook to Haddington. Without
waiting to see what would emerge the upholders of popular rights, to the
number of 102, petitioned the Secession Presbytery of Cupar for sermon.
This was on 2ist January 1834, and the application was cordially granted.
At next meeting one of the members, who had preached at Pitlessie in the
interim, reported that the people were about to take measures for the building
of a place of worship. The Presbytery had previously kept up Sabbath
evening services, but there was now a fuller development. In August
1835 the communion was observed, six elders having been ordained on the
PRESBYTERY OF CUPAR 20J
Fast Day the week before. A month later a moderation was applied for,
with the promise of ^70 for stipend, with house rent.
First Minister. — JOHN LAWSON, from West Linton, a nephew of Professor
Lawson of Selkirk. Mr Lawson had been called to Campbeltown (now
extinct) and Maybole, and had even accepted the latter place, but drew back.
Here, now, was a quiet sphere for him, if conscious inability to bear up under
a heavy burden entered into his calculations. Ordained, 23rd February 1836.
The call was signed by 51 members and 33 adherents. Care had been taken
by the Presbytery to keep the communion roll from being loosely made up,
the applicants for admission, most of whom were from the Established
Church, being subjected to examination. This circumstance, to say nothing
of money demands, may have told unfavourably on the numerical strength
of the new cause. But more than this, Patronage had in the interval done
its best for the parish of Cults. The Senatus of St Andrews University
presented Mr Thomas J. Crawford to the benefice. He was the son of a
former Professor, and his licence was hastened that he might be put into the
vacant place. The Senatus looked on Cults as one of their own preserves ;
but Dr George Cook, in vindicating their hurried action on this occasion
before the Commissioners on Patronage, represented the presentee as "a
man of splendid talents, who will do honour to the Church, or any society."
Cults in his case was only a stepping-stone to higher things, and he was ulti
mately known as the Rev. Ur Crawford, Professor of Divinity in Edinburgh
University, and the author of a masterly work on "The Fatherhood of God."
The appointment may have drawn a good many back to the parish church.
In the summer of 1841 Mr Lawson required sympathy and assistance,
but he held on till May 1846, when, despairing of timeous recovery, he felt
compelled to resign. It was at this crisis that he published a little volume,
entitled " Excursions through my Paradise," consisting of verses and reflections
composed "during a somewhat protracted illness, when he often wended his
way from the narrow confinement and the gloom of a chamber of affliction
into the unlimited regions of thought." The congregation, by a petition with
141 names, urged delay, in the hope that he would soon be able to resume
his labours. This led to a pause, but on 5th March 1847 the resignation
was accepted, and the hope expressed by the Presbytery that Mr Lawson
would yet be restored to public usefulness. For his few remaining years he
was allowed ,£20 by the Synod, and in April 1852 the Presbytery of Cupar
recommended a continuance of the grant. This was agreed to, but Mr
Lawson died at Selkirk on ist June thereafter.
Second Minister. — ANDREW W. SMITH, who had been ordained at Cam-
buslang in 1844, but resigned in two years owing to no fault of his. Inducted
to Pitlessie, 29th September 1847. The call was signed by 91 members, and
the stipend was to be ,£70 in all. This sum was to be raised to ^90 by the
Home Board, and under the workings of the Augmentation Scheme the
totality rose by successive stages till in 1869 it reached ^140, one-half from
the congregation and the other half from the Central Fund. In a few years
more there was a further addition of ^30 from the Surplus Fund, and ^10 in
name of house rent. But meanwhile the membership, which reached 150 in
1849, had come down to little over 100, and the population of Cults parish,
and specially of Pitlessie village, had declined in like proportion. In 1865 it
was arranged that the old building, which had a cheerless look, should be
superseded by another of more attractive aspect, and on a better site. The
new church was opened on the Synod Sabbath in May 1866 by Dr George
Jeffrey of Glasgow, to whom the function and the honour fitly belonged.
He and his brother Robert had been intimate with Mr Smith in their early
days, and when he required to draw on the liberality of the west, knowing
O
210 HISTORY OF U.P. CONGREGATIONS
the merits of the case and the unobtrusive excellence of the man, they
befriended him with an amount of warm-hearted energy which deserves this
passing commemoration. Owing largely to them, the church, built at a
cheap time and on an economical scale, was opened free of debt. The cost
was not over ,£800, and it is seated for 400.
On nth September 1888 Mr Smith retired from the active duties of the
ministry, and passed into the emeritus position. Pitlessie was then wrought
as a preaching station under a succession of students or probationers, but
at the Synod in 1899 the people petitioned to be restored to the position of
a regularly-equipped congregation. As the membership was only 60, and
all the stipend they could raise was ^50, there was hesitancy about agreeing,
but the motion to grant was carried.
Third Minister. — JOHN CARMICHAEL, who had been ordained over Duns
(West) in 1885, but resigned in 1895 to make way for union. Inducted to
Pitlessie, 8th August 1899, where he had been located three and a half years.
The entire stipend arranged for is ,£130, but there may be participation in
the surplus besides. Mr Smith removed to Edinburgh in 1892. (He died,
25th August 1902, aged eighty-nine.)
GUARDBRIDGE (UNITED PRESBYTERIAN)
THIS village is situated at the mouth of the Eden, four miles west of St
Andrews, on the Cupar road. It had a population of 320 in 1881, which
came up other 200 within the next ten years, and there was no church nearer
than Leuchars or Strathkinnes, about two miles off. Early in 1882 the Rev.
James Kidd of St Andrews called the attention of Cupar Presbytery to Guard-
bridge as a place suitable for home mission work. On the second Sabbath
of September a hall, built with the assistance of ^125 from the Home Mission
Board, was opened free of debt, and the services of Mr James M'Nee.
preacher, secured. On I3th November 1883 the station, which had been
affiliated for a twelvemonth with St Andrews church, was congregated in
answer to a petition from 57 members and 45 ordinary hearers.
First Minister. — JAMES M'NEE, from Sydney Place, Glasgow, who had
been previously called to Blairhill, Coatbridge, but was unwilling to leave
Guardbridge. Ordained, 3ist January 1884, and a session of three elders
had been previously constituted. The stipend undertaken by the people was
£70, but at the close of the year they made it ^80. In 1886 it was ^85, and
in 1890, when the membership reached 102, it was ^90, so that there was
progress in keeping with the capabilities of the place. In the last-named
year the minister received ^200 in all. On i6th March 1892 Mr M'Nee,
believing, perhaps, that his work at Guardbridge was done — he had laid
the foundation, and would leave another to build thereon — was loosed from
his charge, having accepted an appointment to go out as a missionary to
Jamaica. On arriving there he acted for a time as locum tenens at Lucea,
and then entered on the full pastorate. That is still his field of labour.
Second Minister. — JOHN E. DOBSON, who had resigned Nelson Street,
Aberdeen, five years before, and was now on the probationer list. Inducted,
26th July 1892. The membership at the close of 1899 was 9T> and the stipend
from the people ,£90, which the supplement raises to fully double that sum.
PRESBYTERY OF DUMBARTON 211
PRESBYTERY OF DUMBARTON
HOLM OF BALFRON (ANTIBURGHER)
THIS congregation is transferred from the Presbytery of Stirling, and it
heads the Dumbarton list on the ground of seniority. Holm of Balfron was
the mother church of the Secession in Strathendrick, and it sprung from an
obnoxious settlement in Balfron parish, which took place two years before
the Associate Presbytery was in existence. The charge fell vacant in 1729,
and three candidates were on the field — Messrs William Buchanan, David
Brown, and George Sinclair — each of whom had a party in his support,
headed by certain heritors. Before an election could be carried through a
presentation in favour of the last named was handed in from the patron, the
Earl of Kinnoul, and, whatever Mr Sinclair may have been before, this was
likely to make him the least acceptable of the three. At the General
Assembly of 1730 no appearance was made on behalf of Mr Brown, who
seems to have been the popular candidate, and the claims of the other two
were left very much in the hands of the Presbytery. They decided in favour
of Mr Buchanan, on the ground that he had the larger number of heritors,
elders, and heads of families on his side ; but the case went before the
Commission in September, which sustained Mr Sinclair's call, and ordered
his ordination to be proceeded with. The Presbytery unanimously refused
to obtemper the sentence " in regard the great majority of the heritors, the
whole eldership, and the whole heads of families except thirteen were against
the settlement." But a " Riding Committee" had been appointed to expedite
proceedings, and by them the presentee's trials were sustained, and the edict
ordered to be served. On the morning of the ordination day three members
of the committee, with another minister, and a single member of Dumbarton
Presbytery, met at the kirk of Balfron, when some heritors and elders
objected to the settlement, and tabled specific charges against Mr Sinclair.
The day was occupied with the examination of witnesses, and at six in the
evening the service began under the protection of a company of soldiers,
very few of the parishioners remaining. At next Assembly the Commission
was blamed for going on in the face of Presbytery and Synod, but the
ordination was allowed to carry validity. The feeling which these pro
ceedings stirred in other parishes may be brought out by a quotation from
Wodrow's Analecta : " Mr Sinclair of Balfron was invited to the Sacrament
by Mr Edmistoun of Cardross, and preached on the Fast Day. When he
came up most of the people went away and left the place. He was to have
assisted the whole time, but next day the elders came in a body to Mr
Edmistoun and told him that if Mr Sinclair were employed on that occasion
they would by no means serve at the tables. Upon which he thought it
advisable voluntarily to withdraw and go home."
On 1 2th July 1773 tne Praying Societies in Balfron presented a paper to
the Associate Presbytery, stating their clamant circumstances, and, in reply
to a petition for a Fast, Messrs Ebenezer and Ralph Erskine preached to
them on I2th October, and after sermon held session with seven or eight
elders. A year later they were bent on calling Mr John Hunter, the only
Secession licentiate as yet, but the drag was put on, that Morebattle might
get the benefit. At last, in the end of April 1740, a moderation was granted
them, which issued in a call to Mr David Smyton, but the people of
Kilmaurs pressed forward, craving delay till they could get abreast. In the
end the latter call was preferred. The year before this a church was built
212 HISTORY OF U.P. CONGREGATIONS
at " The Holm," a retired spot three miles to the east of Balfron village,
and four and a half south of Buchlyvie, from which it drew a large branch
of its membership.
First Minister. — JOHN CLELAND, who had been a schoolmaster in
Cambuskenneth, and acceded to the Associate Presbytery in March 1739.
Having obtained licence in 1741 he was called to Annandale, but pleaded
that the congregation there was too far scattered for his strength, and, as
he was now beyond middle life, the Presbytery did not insist on his accep
tance. Balfron followed, where he was ordained, 8th June 1742. At the
Breach of 1747 he went to the Antiburgher side, and took the JDulk of his
people with him. In 1752 the congregation divided — Buchlyvie people
having built a church for themselves — and on ist May of that year Mr
Cleland was transferred by his own choice to that new centre, and " The
Holm " was preached vacant. On I7th June they gave a unanimous call to
Mr William Brown, afterwards of Craigdam, but without effect.
Second Minister. — JAMES MITCHELL, of whose family connection we
have ascertained nothing. Ordained, 2ist August 1753. Of Mr Mitchell
we read : " He was a man of patriarchal dignity and engaging manners,
esteemed by the old, revered by the young, and beloved by all. Under his
attractive care and fostering ministrations religion flourished exceedingly,
and the congregation increased greatly." We know, besides, that he was one
of the ministers appointed by the Synod to preach as a candidate in the
North Church, Perth. In 1783 the stipend was ,£50 a year, and Mr Mitchell
had been obliged to take a new tack of the house and ground in his own
name. He died, i6th November 1786, in the sixty-second year of his age
and thirty-fourth of his ministry.
Third Minister. — WILLIAM PULLER, from Moneydie parish and Methven
congregation. Ordained, 29th November 1787. In the third year of Mr
Puller's ministry the second church was built, with accommodation for 500.
The expense seems to have been met by the people at the time, and instead
of a money feu the superior held a right to eight sittings in the church. Of
the minister himself we have some interesting notices in the Life and Letters
of Dr Heugh. After a communion at Balfron he wrote : "We had a most
elaborate sermon by Mr Puller, and truly an excellent one." Then he gives
it as his opinion that, if his friend had only a little more skill in using his
materials, and some briskness in his delivery, he would be one of the first
stars in their little sky. Another testifies that he was a man of profound
piety, kind affections, and retiring habits, and that " some of his discourses
will be long remembered by those who could estimate their excellence, for
depth of research as well as accuracy and originality of view." On Sabbath,
loth February 1811, he had to abridge his pulpit services, and on his way
home, accompanied by one of his elders, he dropped down dead. " I have
never felt so deeply affected," wrote Dr Heugh, "with the death of one who
was not related to me by blood." He was in the fiftieth year of his age and
twenty-fourth of his ministry.
Fourth -Minister. — JAMES THOMSON, who had been loosed from the
Antiburgher Church, Bo'ness, in April 1812. The call to Holm of Balfron
was signed by 62 (male) members and 28 adherents, and the induction
took place on loth September of the same year. The total number of
Antiburghers in Balfron parish was returned in 1792 at 459, but the con
gregation suffered before the close of Mr Puller's ministry by a number of
families going over to the Constitutional Presbytery, though the cause never
came to much. In 1837 the communicants numbered nearly 200, of whom
about one-third were from the parishes of Killearn and Fintry. The stipend
at this time was ,£100, but the minister stated that he received valuable
PRESBYTERY OF DUMBARTON 213
presents in addition from his people, and had his fuel driven free. He had
neither manse nor glebe, but he rented twelve acres of ground, and occupied
the house connected with this little farm, paying the rent out of his own
pocket, the farmers tilling it for him, so that it was wrought at little expense.
It was an arrangement which occasioned trouble to Mr Puller thirty years
before. The ground he had at first, as we read in the Christian Magazine,
was too small for the expense incurred in labouring it, and, though he would
have been content to be quit of it altogether, he had to retain it to secure the
house, which belonged not to the congregation but to the proprietor. Hence,
by the advice of the managers, he got an enlargement of his farm, so as to
employ a man and a pair of horses. Some malcontents among his people
thereupon charged him before the Presbytery with depriving other families
of their farms, but the charges were shown to be baseless by the testimony
of their own witnesses, and the accusers were found censurable. It was
probably the bitterness engendered by this case that prompted an application
soon after to the Constitutional Presbytery for sermon, more than "dissatis
faction with the Testimony adopted by the General Synod."
In 1851 Mr Thomson had the degree of D.D. conferred upon him by the
University of Glasgow, along with his nephew, the Rev. Andrew Thomson
of Broughton Place, Edinburgh. In June 1857, when he was about to enter
on his eightieth year, Dr Thomson brought his increasing infirmities and
the state of his congregation under the notice of the Presbytery. A visit of
inquiry brought out that Holm of Balfron had still a membership of 140,
that it had always been self-supporting, and that the aged minister was
desirous that the congregation should be kept up. The Mission Board
hesitated about committing themselves to a permanent supplement,
especially as a considerable number of the members, it was calculated, would
drop away at the close of Dr Thomson's ministry, and not more than 77
were expected to continue. Still, the people were in good spirits, and instead
of contemplating a break up they set about raising money among themselves
with the view of removing their place of worship to a better situation. In
1859 they called Mr George Barclay, who, after balancing between the two
for a little, accepted Dunscore.
Fifth Minister. — ROBERT MUIR, M.A., from Ayr (Darlington Place).
The stipend of the colleague was to be £80 in all from the congregation, and
Dr Thomson was to have ,£15 in money, ^10 in agricultural labour, and £6
from a bequest, with an additional ^20 from the Mission Board. A new
church, with 300 sittings, was opened on Sabbath, I5th January 1860, by
Dr Thomson. A manse was also built under the same roof. The total
cost of .£1400 exceeded the estimate a good way, and left the people, not
withstanding their abounding liberality, under a debt of ^370. Mr Muir
was ordained on ist May 1860, and that evening Dr Thomson's jubilee was
celebrated, two years behind its time, and he was presented with a gift of 142
sovereigns. Mr Muir accepted a call to Hawick (Allars), 7th June 1864, and
on 1 3th November Dr Thomson died, in the eighty-seventh year of his age
and fifty-seventh of his ministry. A tribute to his memory appeared in the
U.P. Magazine from the graceful pen of Dr Edmond, who had been baptised
and brought up in the congregation.
After a pause of a year Holm congregation called Mr John M'Kerrow, who
accepted, but Penicuik came in, and the acceptance was withdrawn. With
the aid of ,£20 from the Supplementing Fund the stipend was now to be
.£110, along with the manse, and the membership was exactly 100. To
reduce the debt of ^370 the Manse Committee allowed a grant of ^150.
Sixth Minister. — CHARLES COOPER, M.A., from Midmar. Ordained
on 23rd January 1866. Demitted his charge, 3rd November 1868, on
2i4 HISTORY OF U.P. CONGREGATIONS
accepting an academical appointment to India. In 1898 Mr Cooper
obtained the degree of LL.D. from Aberdeen University, when it was stated
that for thirty years he had been in the service of the Free Church, and was
now Principal of the Christian College, Madras, and Professor of Mental and
Moral Science.
Seventh Minister. — JAMES PATON, from Partick (Newton Place). The
Mission Board was beginning to urge union with Balfron, but Mr Paton
was ordained, 2ist December 1869, and for ten years he held the fort. The
stipend from the people was now £20 lower than before, and when his
resignation was accepted, on 2ist October 1879, the communion roll was
reduced to 60. Mr Paton emigrated to New South Wales, where he has
ministered for many years at Petersham in the Presbytery of Sydney.
All was in ripeness now for union with Balfron. The reduction in
membership which Holm congregation experienced is not to be wondered at,
when we consider that the population of the parish had declined nearly a
third during the last thirty years. The terms of union reported to Dum
barton Presbytery on 24th February 1880 were as follows : — The name to be
Balfron and Holm U.P. Church ; the existing sessions and managers to
form the united session and board of management ; public worship to be
conducted in Holm church at least once a month, and the communion to be
observed there once a year, and other services as suits the convenience of
the minister. But for the consummation of the union it was necessary that
the Synod should transfer Holm congregation from the Presbytery of Stirling
to the Presbytery of Dumbarton, and this was done at the meeting in May.
On loth August Dumbarton Presbytery declared the union formally com
pleted, and one of the ministers was to preach in the two churches on the
following Sabbath, and intimate the same.
BALFRON (RELIEF)
THIS village rose into importance about the year 1792, and on 8th January
1793 a respectable number of the inhabitants petitioned the Relief Presbytery
of Glasgow for sermon, which was begun on the third Sabbath of March.
The congregation was for six months under the care of the Rev. William
Wright, formerly of Ford, who was to receive ,£20 in return. The church
was built in 1793, with sittings for 320, and the Rev. Robert Paterson of
Largo was called soon after, but preferred to remain where he was.
First Minister— JAMES LoGAX, M.A., from Anderston, Glasgow. Or
dained, 8th March 1798, on a unanimous call. The stipend was to be £70,
with carriage of twelve carts of coal from Baldernock, or a like distance, and
after two years he was to have other £\o fora dwelling-house, and sacra
mental expenses. In Mr Logan Balfron congregation was favoured with a
good beginning, but he was loosed on ist November 1803 on accepting a
call to St Ninians.
Second Minister. — DECISION LAING, who had been seven years in
Wamphray. Inducted, igth July 1804. Prior to this he published a dis
course on missions, the only one by which he is known, entitled " Zion
Travailing." Mr Laing required sick supply in the beginning of July 1830,
and died at Glasgow on the 3Oth of that month in the thirty-fourth year of
his ministry. The congregation then called Mr James Hamilton, a preacher
whom it was difficult to get hold of, and equally difficult to retain, as Largo
people experienced. At the first meeting of Presbytery he wished time to
consider, and at next meeting he refused to accept.
Third Minister. — HUGH BROWN, from Hutchesontown, Glasgow.
PRESBYTERY OF DUMBARTON 215
Ordained, 23rd August 1832. Five years afterwards there were 200 com
municants, a considerable number of them from Killearn parish, and a few
from Fintry, Kippen, and Kilmadock. The stipend was £75, with a house
and garden and a park of about an acre. Of the families seventeen came
from over four miles. A volume of Mr Brown's sermons, published after
his death, shows him to have been a man of more than average pulpit gifts ;
but there was a spoiler at work, which led to his suspension, sine die, on 5th
December 1854. In the memorial notice of his life, prefixed to the above
volume, this fact is stated without any attempt at concealment. The appetite
for stimulants, liquid and solid, is brought up as the weak point in his char
acter, proving the occasion of grief and trouble both to himself and others.
It appears that on leaving Balfron he resided some years in Glasgow, but
in 1 86 1 he emigrated to America. Two years after this he was inducted into
Greensboro', Alabama, where he remained till 1867. He then settled down in
Dekorra and Caledonia for eight years. The writer adds : "It is a pleasure
to be able to say that the later experiences of his life were most unexception
able, and that his individual and public pledges were honoured." He died,
1 5th May 1876, in the seventieth year of his age and forty-fourth of his
ministry.
Fourth Minister. — JAMES ROBERTSON, from Crieff (South). Called also
to Drymen and Eyemouth, and ordained at Balfron, 3oth December 1856.
The stipend was now ^80 from the people, with manse and garden as before.
Called almost simultaneously to Dundee (James' Church), and Edinburgh,
Bread Street (now Viewforth). Accepted the latter, and was loosed, 28th
February 1866. The first the congregation now called was Mr James
Mather, who preferred the young congregation of Langbank. During Mr
Robertson's ministry the debt on the church was liquidated, and a new
manse built at a cost of ^1000. The congregation also raised their part of
the stipend ^20.
Fifth Minister. — THOMAS DUNLOP, from Kilmarnock (Portland Road),
a brother of the Rev. James Dunlop, Kilmaronock. Ordained, 23rd July 1867,
and loosed, 2nd May 1871, on accepting a call to Bristo Church, Edinburgh,
to be colleague to Dr Peddie.
Sixth Minister. — JAMES LINDSAY, M.A., from Dundee (Tay Square).
Ordained, I7th October 1871. At the close of 1879, when the negotiations
for union with Holm church were going on, Balfron had a membership of
144, and Holm a membership of 60. The united congregation raised the
stipend at once from ,£125 to ^150, and, as showing how thoroughly the
union was gone into, it may be added that the return for 1880 gave 200
names on the communion roll. A new church, with sittings for 380, was
opened on Sabbath, 7th May 1882, by Dr Edmond of London. The cost
was ^2300, and the building was almost free of debt — a liberal member
having given ,£1000. The stipend had been previously raised to ,£200
through the generosity of a Wellington Church elder, who had come from
Glasgow to Balfron, and was giving a yearly donation of ,£50. At this figure
it still continues, and at the close of 1899 there was a membership of 202.
Thus in the face of a still declining population the united congregation
keeps its ground.
BALFRON (BURGHER)
IN the Old Statistical History it is stated that in 1792 there were only
nine persons of the Burgher persuasion in Balfron, but at Whitsunday 1793
about 200 work-people were imported to the village for the print work and
2i6 HISTORY OF U.P. CONGREGATIONS
the bleach-field, raising the population to nearly 1200, and that most of
the new-comers were either Burghers or Relievers. It is added that the few
families of Burghers in the place before this had adhered to the Established
Church, but now each of the two parties set up a tent for themselves, and
"had ever since been contending with much animosity for the honour of
making proselytes." This was the parish minister's version of the affair.
On turning to their own records we find the Relief Presbytery of Glasgow
granted sermon to Balfron in January 1793, and the Burgher Presbytery
followed on I4th June of the same year. In the latter case supply was kept
up about two Sabbaths each month for some years. On the first Sabbath of
September 1797 three elders were ordained and one inducted, and, as an
after-thought, an equal number of deacons were superadded.
First Minister. — JOHN COOPER, from Aberdeen (Nether Kirkgate).
Ordained as minister of Balfron and Fintry, 4th June 1799. A stipend of
^60 was to be attempted, with a free house, and a promised advance of ^10
as soon as possible. The call was signed by 48 members and 44 adherents,
and the minister was to preach every third Sabbath at Fintry, five miles off.
The church was built in 1800, with 250 sittings, and the cost was given in to
the Presbytery as ,£240, of which the people raised ,£78, which with a dona
tion of ^20 from the Synod left a debt of ,£142 on the building. In 1802
burdens began to press, and the Presbytery found that the stipend was
^33 in arrears. Fintry people had honourably fulfilled their obligations,
though they had only forty-two seats let, 23 of their number not paying.
Still, though two dissenting congregations were more than sufficient to
occupy the ground, and one of them was among the straits, that did not
prevent an accession from Balfron to the Original Burgher Presbytery of
Glasgow in October 1804, and the setting up of a new cause. But, though
sermon was granted them about once a month, this congregation, never got
fully organised, and in 1816 the name dropped from the Almanac list. On
the other hand, some people in Balfron, dissatisfied with the New Testimony,
applied for sermon in 1808 to the Constitutional Presbytery, or Original
Antiburghers, and they were to be conversed with, and "a report brought up
as to the prospect of steadiness." At next meeting Mr M'Crie of Edinburgh
expressed his belief that the petitioners were resolved to adhere to the Old
Light cause, and supply went on from this additional source for nearly
twenty years. Thus in Balfron, including the Holm, five classes of dis
senters struggled with each other for a foothold. The Original Burghers, as
we have seen, were the first to succumb, and two others were to follow,
though not till after a lengthened period.
Mr Cooper died, i3th September 1821, in the fifty-ninth year of his age
and twenty-third of his ministry. The congregation, which had required
drafts of ,£10 from the Synod Fund again and again, were now to be satis
fied with preachers every second Sabbath, till arrears of stipend were made
up to the ministers widow. The propriety of attempting a union with the
Holm church, two miles distant, was pressed upon them by the Presby
tery. The members, it was found, were reduced to 78, and of these 10
in the neighbourhood of Buchlyvie, and 9 in the neighbourhood of Fintry,
were not likely to continue. There was at the same time a debt on the
property of ^145, but in the face of these considerations the people were
almost unanimously in favour of continuing as a distinct congregation. In
this state the machinery moved slowly on till April 1829, when a protest by
a minority of Glasgow Presbytery came up to the Synod against a deed of
the majority granting a moderation to Balfron. The Synod without any
discussion sustained the protest, on the ground of inadequate stipend and
the fact of there being another Secession congregation in the neighbourhood.
PRESBYTERY OF DUMBARTON 217
In October the congregation sent in a remonstrance to the Presbytery
against the Synod's deed, and renewed their request for a moderation. As
this could not be granted, notice was given at next meeting, on 3rd
November, that the congregation had resolved to renounce connection with
the United Secession Church, and make application to another body for
sermon. The Presbytery expressed regret that a congregation which had
profited so much by the liberality of the Church should have acted so un
gratefully, but the irrevocable step was already taken. That same day a
petition to be received under their inspection was presented from Balfron to
the Original Burgher Presbytery of Glasgow, and admission followed without
difficulty. A party, however, claiming the rights of the congregation ad
hered to their old connection, and retained the property, necessitating the
disruptionists to build another place of worship. Though this was more
than enough to crush their feeble energies, the Old Light party brought out
an unsuccessful call, signed by 30 members and 5 adherents, in February
1831, promising £60 of stipend, with sacramental expenses. Unity had soon
after to be inculcated, and the last notice in the Original Burgher records
occurs in 1835, and bears on the willingness of certain parties to take over
the church at a valuation. It was turned, in the first instance, into a
school.
The little party which adhered to the United Synod held on, and in 1831
they represented to the Presbytery that, though they had not applied for
sermon for some time, they still considered themselves a congregation, and
wished supply when they were able to pay for it. Matters continued in this
state till August 1835, when the Presbytery sanctioned union with Holm of
Balfron. Mr Thomson, the minister of Holm, represented in 1837 that the
united congregation had two places of worship, and that he conducted a
service on the evening of every fourth Sabbath in Balfron, and also preached
there six days in the year, leaving his own pulpit vacant. Thus did the
little remnant of the Burgher congregation at Balfron retain some traces of
what had been in its better days.
KILMARONOCK (RELIEF)
AN appeal by certain heritors and heads of families in Kilmaronock came up
to the General Assembly in 1770 against a deed of the Presbytery of Dum
barton, sustaining a call to the patron's nominee, Mr James Addie, but the
Presbytery's decision was confirmed by a majority of ninety-nine to twenty-
two. In October the case was brought before the Synod of Glasgow and
Ayr in an altered form. Mr Addie's other trial discourses had been passed ;
but an exercise on James i. 29, " Pure religion and undefiled," etc., was
rejected on the ground that it wanted the Evangelical element, and that it
seemed to rest our acceptance with God on the merits of a charitable and
holy life. The meeting was held at Irvine, where the presentee read the
discourse to a crowded audience, and also gave reasons for handling the
subject as he did. The Synod sustained the exercise by thirty-five to twenty-
three, and ordered the edict to be served on the following Sabbath. Against
this decision appeals were taken, and when the Presbytery met they decided
to sist procedure till next Assembly. When the case came anew before the
Supreme Court it was decided that unless the parishioners raised other
objections the settlement should go on, and accordingly Mr Addie was
ordained, 24th July 1771. At next Assembly a complaint came up against
the Presbytery for proceeding with the ordination in the face of a libel
tabled against the presentee, but, the parties not appearing, it was declared
to be fallen from.
2i8 HISTORY OF U.P. CONGREGATIONS
About this time, or perhaps earlier, the people of Kilmaronock almost in a
body placed themselves under the inspection of the Relief Presbytery of
Glasgow. The first church, with 450 sittings, was erected in 1772, but at
this time, and for years afterwards, the Presbytery had scarcely a single
probationer at command, and Kilmaronock had to be content with an occa
sional Sabbath from members of Presbytery. This may account for no
moderation being applied for till April 1775, and also for the first call being
addressed to an ordained minister, the Rev. Robert Paterson of Largo.
Twelve months of slow movement followed, and then the call was declined.
First Minister. — JOHN KING, a licentiate of Dalkeith Established Presby
tery, who had been parish teacher at Lasswade, and of whom we learn from
a newspaper notice that that Presbytery in April 1775 declared his licence
null and void because he had gone over to the Relief. Mr King no sooner
came within the bounds as a preacher than he was fixed on by Kilmaronock
congregation, and he was ordained, 26th March 1777. He was also author
ised to constitute 5 of their number, who had been elders in the Established
Church, into a session. Some differences about money matters having arisen
between minister and people, the Presbytery held a meeting at Kilmaronock
in April 1779, witn tne view of having harmony restored. It ended with the
congregation declaring their willingness to allow Mr King ^3 at each com
munion, and to pay his stipend punctually four times a year. But this had
slight effect in smoothing down matters, and at a meeting in Edinburgh on
25th May Mr King demitted his charge. Commissioners being forward,
the case was referred to the Synod, which on the 27th declared the connec
tion dissolved. Accounts were ultimately squared to the satisfaction of all
parties, and after being a minister at large for nearly two years Mr King
was inducted into Kettle.
In the continued dearth of preachers Kilmaronock congregation now
crossed the English border, and invited the Rev. James Sommerville of
Ravenstonedale to become their minister. This was the congregation from
which Colinsburgh had brought the Rev. Thomas Colier, one of the founders
of the Relief Presbytery, twenty years before. Mr Sommerville presented
his credentials to the Relief Presbytery of Glasgow, and after preaching
before them he had the call sustained and put into his hands. He wished
a little time to consider, but month after month passed, and no explicit answer
to the question of acceptance was returned. The patience of the Presbytery
being at last exhausted, they declared the call null and void, and Mr
Sommerville was forbidden to preach within their bounds till he should make
satisfaction for his conduct. The Relief denomination was much beholden
to Dissenting churches in the north of England for the filling up of their
vacancies in those days, and in this connection we may linger briefly over
Mr Sommerville's character and history. He was a native of the Merse,
and a licentiate of Lauder Established Presbytery, and was ordained at
Ravenstonedale, 27th September 1775. On 2ist March 1784, a year after
letting Kilmaronock go, he preached his farewell sermon to his congregation
from Paul's words : " And now, brethren, I commend you to God and the
word of His grace," etc. " It was a mournful day," says his biographer, " to
him, and to many who esteemed him highly for his work's sake." He then
removed to Brampton in Northumberland, where he laboured till his death,
on 8th July 1808, in his sixty-fifth year. The Evangelical Magazine in an
appreciative notice describes him as "a plain, bold, animated preacher."
Such was the man whom Kilmaronock seemed at one time on the point of
obtaining.
Second Minister.— ARCHIBALD MURDOCH, from the parish of Lecropt
and the congregation of St Ninians. After the call was out a bond was
PRESBYTERY OF DUMBARTON 219
signed by 100 of the congregation, 5 of them women, in which the parties
engaged to pay their equal proportion of the minister's salary unless they
removed more than five miles away, and they gave as a reason the
mournful and distressed condition to which that part of the country was
reduced through want of the due administration of the gospel. Mr Murdoch
was ordained, loth March 1784. A glebe of twenty-four acres had been
bought in the early part of Mr King's ministry at the cost of ^135, and he
was to possess this along with a manse and office-houses in addition to the
stipend. There followed a long period of unobtrusive labour for the minister,
and of solid prosperity for the congregation. The extent of Mr Murdoch's
territories in the earlier part of his ministry is brought out at an election of
elders, when two were required for the district around the church, two for
Bonhill, one for Drymen, and one for the district beyond the Endrick. In
1839 the parish incumbent reported that he had 60 families under his
charge, while 100 belonged to the Relief, or attended Dissenting churches
outside the bounds. Mr Murdoch died, I7th March 1839, in the eightieth
year of his age, and had completed the fifty-fifth of his ministry a few days
before. The midnight hour was striking, and his last words were : " I will
sleep now." Mr Murdoch's nearest co-presbyter, the Rev. John R. Swan
of Bonhill, was also his son-in-law.
Third Minister. — JAMES MONTEITH, from Blairlogie, but a native of
Tillicoultry, and baptised in the parish church. Ordained, i8th November
1840. The stipend was to be .£90, with house and garden, or, if he preferred
it, .£70, with house, garden, and glebe. Mr Monteith died, ist December
1843, m hi3 father's house at Tillicoultry, in the thirty-first year of his age
and fourth of his ministry, after an illness of twenty months' duration. A
new manse had been built for the young minister the year after his ordination
at a cost of ,£220, the greater part of which was raised at the time. There
was now a debt on the property of about ,£300.
At a moderation which took place in July 1844 the votes were much
divided, there being 76 for Mr William Miller, 69 for Mr Russell, afterwards
of Newburgh, and 26 for Mr Milligan, who joined the Established Church.
There being no second vote allowed in the Relief, Mr Miller was declared
duly elected, but the call was signed by only 102 members out of a total of
297. By an anomalous arrangement four commissioners appeared as repre
sentatives of the congregation, two of whom were in favour of going forward,
and two against. After some discussion in the Presbytery Mr Miller ap
peared in court, and craved them to proceed no further, as he was resolved
not to accept. The call was accordingly laid aside, with the addendum that
none of the three candidates were to be eligible at next election. At the
General Assembly of 1845 Mr Miller was admitted into the Established
Church, and ultimately went to Canada. He was a brother of the Rev.
James A. Miller, Clackmannan.
Fourth Minister.— WILLIAM MORTON, from Old Kilpatrick. Ordained,
2/th May 1845. Some members of Presbytery were much dissatisfied with
the stipend offered. It was ,£90, with house and garden, and £6 for expenses,
or a park of equal value if he preferred it. The managers, it was complained,
had let the glebe, and, after deducting the rent it brought, the stipend they
gave was only ^73. Mr Morton died, I5th May 1850, in the thirty-sixth
year of his age and fifth of his ministry. His tombstone bears that he was
"a sound and able theologian, an amiable man, and a lucid, earnest, and
edifying preacher." Mr David Russell was chosen as Mr Morton's successor,
but Dunfermline (St Margaret's) was preferred.
Fifth Minister. — JAMES DUNLOP, from Kilmarnock (Portland Road).
The call was signed by 206 members and 22 adherents, and Mr Dunlop was
220 HISTORY OF U.P. CONGREGATIONS
ordained, 6th January 1852. The stipend was to be ^100, with two parks
valued at ^8, besides the manse and travelling expenses. Next year the
present church was erected on the old site, with sittings for 400, the cost
being ,£720, of which ,£500, including the sum received for old material, was
raised by the people at the time. In 1872 the manse was enlarged, the
people contributing nearly ,£300, and receiving ,£100 from the Board. In 1883
the entire debt of over ,£500 was cleared away by means of a bazaar, leaving
nearly as much over to be applied towards lessening yearly burdens and
meeting such requirements as might arise from repairs on the property. The
glebe advantages the funds some ,£40 a year, without counting five acres
possessed by the minister. With a rural population slowly declining, the
membership is much reduced from what it was fifty years ago, but in 1899
it numbered about 160, and the stipend from the people was ^129, zos. in
money.
OLD KILPATRICK, CRAIGS (BURGHER)
ON 26th August 1765 a petition, signed by ten heads of families and others
in the parish of Old Kilpatrick, for sermon two Sabbaths by way of experi
ment was presented to the Burgher Presbytery of Glasgow. In the paper
they set forth their mournful condition from want of the gospel in its purity,
and wished to have matters ripened for further supply, but owing, apparently,
to the dearth of preachers there were no appointments made. After a break
of eleven years a similar petition came up from Old and New Kilpatrick,
which was answered by Mr Henderson of Glasgow being appointed to preach
to the applicants on the second Sabbath of October 1776. On i8th March of
the following year a request for sermon was backed by the accession of
200 people, who were at once received under the Presbytery's inspection.
But so early as August 1740 a commissioner from Glasgow had petitioned,
" in name of their correspondents in Kilpatrick," for the observance of a Fast,
and in November following week-day services were conducted among them
by Mr Mair of Orwell on his way back from the ordination of Mr Smyton at
Kilmaurs. The parish minister at that time was Mr Yeats, an Englishman,
who was ordained in 1738, and deposed in 1744 for profaning the Sabbath,
and other offences. The low moral standing of this man may partly account
for the early uprise of adherents to the Associate Presbytery in Old Kil
patrick, but they were too few to be congregated, and they had to place
themselves under Mr Fisher's ministry in Glasgow, ten miles off. Though
not numerous, their accession to the new cause a generation later would help
to give it stability. The church, which served the congregation all on, was
built in 1781, with sittings for 500.
The first call was addressed to Mr William Taylor, whom Glasgow
Presbytery appointed to Renton. His own preference was for Kilpatrick,
but he did not give it expression. The stipend promised at this time was
^56, with a glebe worth ^5, and a house. In their next call the people were
very unfortunate. Mr James Osborne, who had newly got licence from
Glasgow Presbytery, was so acceptable that he supplanted another for
whom a moderation had been obtained, and became the congregation's
unanimous choice. But when on trials for ordination he had two of his
exercises rejected, and another discourse had been similarly dealt with at an
earlier stage. Two of the Presbytery even disapproved of giving him licence
at all, assigning as the reason that " they are convinced he is not possessed
of abilities for the ministry." Mr Osborne now requested to be released from
the call to Kilpatrick, and the commissioners were afraid that after what had
PRESBYTERY OF DUMBARTON 221
happened "anything else would not be very agreeable." Directions were
given to bring the matter before a congregational meeting, when a majority
declared in favour of allowing the call to drop, which, at Mr Osborne's
reiterated desire, the Presbytery agreed to. He remained on the probationer
list till September 1791, when the Synod decided to give him no more ap
pointments. At next meeting they were informed that he had been in great
affliction as well as poverty, and Glasgow session were allowed to draw on
the Synod Fund for his relief. We have the authority of Dr George Brown
for saying that he settled down as a teacher in Glasgow.
First Minister. — ARCHIBALD WOOD, from Kirkintilloch. Ordained,
28th August 1787, and died of fever on 29th December following, in the
twenty-eighth year of his age. The congregation within three months called
the Rev. George Hill of Cumbernauld, but the translation was not sanc
tioned by the Presbytery. The call was signed by 115 members and
294 adherents.
Second Minister. — WILLIAM WATSON, translated from Largs, and in
ducted, 1 8th March 1789. When the question of the magistrate's power
came on for discussion in the Burgher Synod, and throughout the Church,
Mr Watson and his session took the Old Light side, deprecating interference
with the Formula. Immediately after the rupture he sent in his declinature
to the Presbytery, and next day, 2nd October 1799, he took part in the
formation of the Original Burgher Presbytery. The majority of the con
gregation adhered to their minister, but a number withdrew, and an
application of theirs for an interdict to keep the other party from meanwhile
letting the seats came before the Court of Session soon after, but was with
drawn on the following week, with ten guineas of expenses. The case was
then taken by Mr Watson and his adherents into the Inner House, and
while matters were in this state he was called to E. Campbell Street, Glasgow,
a congregation of about 800 members. The translation was agreed to by
the Presbytery on a second call, and Kilpatrick became vacant, 23rd Feb
ruary 1802. He died on roth March 181 1, in the fifty-fourth year of his age
and the twenty-ninth of his ministry. Two of Mr Watson's daughters were
married to Original Burgher ministers — the Rev. Alexander Turnbull, his
successor, and the Rev. Finlay Stewart of Pollokshaws.
Third Minister. — JAMES GARDINER, from Biggar (now Moat Park).
After attending three sessions at Selkirk he joined the Old Light congrega
tion of Shotts, and was received by the Original Burgher Presbytery of
Glasgow as a student of divinity in August 1801. Ordained at Kilpatrick,
23rd November 1802, having been appointed to that place in preference to
Carluke. When the Synod to which he belonged began to negotiate for
union with the Church of Scotland, Kilpatrick session sent up a petition
against the proposal, in which they were understood "sweepingly to con
demn all State Endowments for the support of true religion," a principle
which the Presbytery declared to be utterly opposed to the standards of the
Original Burgher Synod. We have insight into the state of the congregation
at the time these negotiations were going on. The communicants numbered
250, of whom nearly two-fifths resided in the parish of New Kilpatrick. The
stipend was ,£89, with a glebe of five or six acres, besides manse and garden,
and there was a debt of .£560 upon the property. Of the families under the
minister's care nearly fifty were over two miles from the place of worship, and
a few came from beyond six miles. Altogether, the report the minister gave
in to the Commissioners on Religious Instruction was not over-coloured.
The half-isolated state of the congregation almost necessitated decline, but
they were by-and-by to get out into larger bounds. At the consummation of
the Union with the Established Church in 1839 minister and people stood
222 HISTORY OF U.P. CONGREGATIONS
aloof, and on i4th July 1840 they applied to Glasgow Presbytery for admis
sion to the United Associate Synod, and were cordially welcomed. The
resolution of which this was the outcome had been adopted almost unani
mously at a congregational meeting. In September 1848 a moderation was
applied for in order to provide Mr Gardiner with a colleague.
Fourth Minister. — ROBERT MITCHELL, from Kirkintilloch. Called to
Drymen shortly before, but declined, and was ordained at Craigs, Kilpatrick,
30th January 1849. The old minister was to retain the manse, garden, and
glebe, to which the Synod added an annuity of ^20, and Mr Mitchell was to
have ^95 while the collegiate relation lasted. Mr Gardiner, who was never
again able to appear either in the pulpit or the pew, vacated the manse, and
removed to Glasgow in December of that year, where he died, 28th October
1851, in the seventy-sixth year of his age and forty-ninth of his ministry.
A year before this Mr Mitchell was invited to Bridge-of-Allan, but owing to
want of harmony he wrote the Presbytery at once, forbidding them to go any
further. Kilpatrick thus became the scene of his life work, and the con
gregation kept up well till towards the close, when trade came to a stand with
results that were inevitable. Mr Mitchell had been suffering from inbreaks
on his health for some time, and he died, 6th January 1869, in the forty-ninth
year of his age and twentieth of his ministry. Union, after a severance of
almost seventy years, was now felt by both parties to be imperative. From
this point the history of the congregation merges in that of " Craigs and
Duntocher."
DUNTOCHER (BURGHER)
THIS congregation consisted at first of a large party in Craigs church, who
withdrew from attendance on Mr Watson's ministry, when he took part in
the formation of the Old Light Presbytery. This was on 2nd October 1799,
and on Saturday, roth December, Mr Hall of Rose Street, Edinburgh, met
with the dissentients, and agreed to preach to them next day. They
worshipped at first in the loft of a meal-mill in Duntocher, and after that
they built a small church on the other side of the road from Craigs, which
was turned at last into a dwelling-house. The civil action for possession
of the property did not take full form till 1809. In their papers and plead
ings both parties claimed to have a majority of trustees and managers, which
implies that the congregation was not very unequally divided. The " New
Lights," who were the pursuers, urged that, according to the decision of the
Court of Session in the Perth Case in 1805, the property ought to be adjudged
to them, the other party having forfeited their rights by breaking away from
the Synod. It appeared, however, that in the title-deeds of Kilpatrick church
there was no mention of subjection to any ecclesiastical judicatory. The
trustees were merely bound to hold the subjects for behoof of the con
tributors, and hence inquiry would have to be made as to which side had
the majority. Such was the Interlocutor upheld by three judges against two,
the minority, including the Lord President, being of opinion that the Perth
Case ought to rule, and that hence judgment ought to go in favour of
the " New Lights." The pursuers would fain have appealed to the House of
Lords, but the expenses were already more than enough to overtax their
energies.
For a quarter of a century the New Light congregation of Kilpatrick was
supplied as a vacancy by Glasgow Presbytery, and it is surprising that in
this state the congregation not only survived but actually prospered. In
1824 they built a church in Duntocher, with 600 sittings, at a cost of nearly
PRESBYTERY OF DUMBARTON 223
^1200. The litigation over the old property was not yet decided, but in
1829 the Old Light party handed over ^200 to the pursuers in satisfaction
of their claims. It is stated that this sum was only an eighth part of what
the process before the law courts had cost them, but we cannot make out
how that burden was ever borne. Duntocher congregation, four years
before this consummation was reached, was one of six vacancies which
called Mr William Nicol, but the Synod gave Jedburgh the preference by
an absolute majority.
First Minister. — HUGH CRICHTON, from Cumnock. Ordained, I7th
January 1826. The call was signed by 139 members and 86 adherents, and
the stipend was to be ,£150, with expenses. There was steady progress now,
and a gradual surmounting of difficulties. In 1837 there were 400 com
municants, and the debt was reduced to ,£300. About a score of families
came from East Kilpatrick, and twelve were from beyond four miles. At
the same time the congregation was raising between ^60 and ^70 a year
for mission purposes at home and abroad. But Mr Crichton was now on
the eve of being removed to a more important sphere of labour. Being
appointed to moderate in a call for one to be colleague to the Rev. Dr
Stewart of Mount Pleasant, Liverpool, he was himself elected unanimously,
and on I3th March 1838 he was loosed from Duntocher. In his new
charge the work devolved almost entirely upon him from the first, and he
became sole pastor in October 1840 by the death of his colleague. In 1842
Glasgow University conferred on him the degree of D.D., and in less than
eight years after his induction Mr William Graham, from Abbey Close,
Paisley, was ordained as his colleague. Dr Crichton died, I4th January
1871, in the seventy-fourth year of his age and forty-fifth of his ministry.
Duntocher congregation, after losing their first minister, called Mr William
Marshall, who accepted Kirkgate, Leith.
Second Minister. — ANDREW R. JOHNSTON, son of the Rev. Robert
Johnston, formerly of Rosehearty. Ordained, 2nd May 1839. During the
ten years of Mr Johnston's ministry in Duntocher the former level of
prosperity was not maintained, and in March 1849 ne gave in his demission.
The stipend was in arrears, and when a committee of Presbytery met with
the congregation two motions were made, each of them expressing apprecia
tion of their minister's labours, but the one proposing that his resignation
be refused, and the other in favour of offering no opposition to its accept
ance. The voting gave 38 on each side. At the Presbytery on loth April
Mr Johnston adhered to his resignation, and the tie was severed. He now
returned to the preachers' list. It was while supplying the vacant pulpit
of Kinross (West), in this capacity, that he set about mastering the key to
Dr Hay's system of shorthand. Thus with care and labour were the dis
courses deciphered which appear in the volume of the Doctor's "Sermons
and Addresses." In June 1850 Mr Johnston was inducted into Letham.
Third Minister. — JAMES HENDERSON, from Tollcross. Ordained, 26th
March 1850, having declined Drymen. The call was signed by 182 members
and 46 adherents, but the stipend was reduced from .£150 to ,£120. The
claims of Australia having been pressed upon him, Mr Henderson was
loosed on I4th December 1858, with the view of leaving for that colony.
He arrived in Victoria when the Union with the Free Church was about to
be consummated, and he made common cause with Messrs Ramsay and
Hamilton, who refused to take part, alleging that voluntaryism was set aside
by the Basis of Union. In this little connection he was inducted to Geelong,
but in May 1886 he asked the counsel of his brethren regarding a crisis in
his congregation, and they solved the matter by severing the pastoral tie.
In March following he wrote from South Australia, wishing to be transferred
224 HISTORY OF U.P. CONGREGATIONS
thither. He soon afterwards settled down in Port Adelaide, where he was
minister of St Andrew's Church in 1880. The charge was vacant at the
close of the following year.
During this vacancy Duntocher congregation called Mr James M'Owan,
who accepted Bannockburn, and they made inquiries at Arbroath Presbytery
about Mr John Pettigrew, whose gifts of oratory must have captivated some
of them.
Fourth Minister. — JOHN STARK, from Glasgow (now St. Vincent Street).
Ordained, iyth April 1860. The membership was 194, and the stipend
^120, as before, and no manse. Next year ,£200 of debt was liquidated,
no doubt under an impulse derived from their minister. We pass on now
to 1869, when a union was effected with the mother congregation of Craigs,
Old Kilpatrick.
CRAIGS AND DUNTOCHER (UNITED)
THE death of Mr Mitchell of Craigs was announced to Glasgow Presby
tery on 1 2th January 1869, and at their next meeting, on gth February, the
congregation of Craigs requested the appointment of a committee to advise
with them in their peculiar circumstances. The trade of the district was in
a languid state, and the membership much reduced from what it had been
seven years before. The neighbouring congregation of Duntocher had
suffered similarly, though not, perhaps, to the same extent, and union was
felt by both parties to be most desirable. On I3th April the committee
reported that coalescence had been unanimously agreed to on both sides,
that the united congregation was to meet in the two churches alternately,
under the ministry of Mr Stark, the present elders and managers to form
the joint session and board of management, and Craigs congregation had
stipulated that the widow and family of their late minister should have the
occupancy, or the value, of the manse for ten years. On these terms the
union was declared to be completed, intimation to this effect to be made
from Craigs pulpit in the forenoon of the fourth Sabbath, and from Duntocher
pulpit in the afternoon. The membership of the united congregation at this
time was 197, Duntocher furnishing 126, and Craigs 71. The total number
was only three more than Mr Stark had at the time of his ordination. Of
the eleven elders seven were from Duntocher session and four from Craigs.
Ten years after this the names on the communion roll were returned at 171,
and the stipend from the people was ^150, with the manse.
Services were kept up in the churches of Craigs and Duntocher till
September 1874, but by this time important changes were in the wind. The
manse was to be improved or replaced at the moderate figure of .£800, of
which the Board undertook to pay a third, but, somehow, extravagance grew
with the debt it fed on, and in the end the congregation reported a total
expenditure of ^3852. The Board kept by their original offer, leaving other
parties to conduct operations on their own responsibility. The property at
Craigs was disposed of, the church, which still stands with its outside appear
ance unchanged, being converted into dwelling-houses. The proceeds
amounted to ,£891, but this goodly sum, like a great deal else, disappeared
in the witches' cauldron. Mr Stark appears to have done wonders in the
way of collecting money, but he had a steep ascent to climb, with a heavy,
self-imposed burden on his back. For him the end came suddenly, on the
afternoon of i8th October 1889, when "a severe spasm of the heart carried
him off in a few minutes." He was in the sixty-second year of his age and
thirtieth of his ministry. He left ,£500 to help with the reduction of the debt.
PRESBYTERY OF DUMBARTON 225
The congregation had a membership now of fully 200, but it was weighted
almost beyond recovery. In addition to the money laid out on the manse
and its surroundings, the church had been renovated in 1884, and this, with
other improvements which followed, cost ^2614. The wonder is that the
debt had been reduced in the interim to not more than ,£3000. But clearly
aid was needed in view of a moderation. In April 1890 a call was addressed
to Mr James Macmillan, who accepted Nairn. The stipend was to be ,£150,
with the manse, and a committee was appointed by the Presbytery to aid the
congregation in the reducing of their debt.
Second Minister. — ALEXANDER WHYTE, B.D., B.Sc., from Busby.
Ordained, I5th July 1890. Next year the managers reported to the Home
Mission Board that their debt of ,£3000 had been reduced to little more than
half that sum during the past eighteen months. In the summer of 1893 Mr
Whyte was ailing, and occupied the station of Algiers for three months of
the following winter. On 26th June 1894 he accepted a call to Kelvinside,
Glasgow, the congregation regretting to lose their minister so soon.
Third Minister. — JAMES R. CAMERON, M.A., son of the Rev. Robert
Cameron, Cambridge Street, Glasgow. Ordained, igth February 1895.
The stipend was to be ^150, and the manse, exclusive of a grant from the
Ferguson Bequest. The membership at this time was 194, the same as at
Mr Stark's ordination thirty-five years before. On loth May 1898 Mr
Cameron accepted a call to Kilcreggan.
Fourth Minister. — JOHN M'CALLUM ROBERTSON, M.A., from Queens-
ferry. Ordained, 9th November 1898. The membership at the close of
1899 was 175, and the stipend was continued at ^150, with the manse. The
burdensome heritage of debt was now reduced to ^1000, with the prospect
of it being cleared away in the course of a very few years.
RENTON (BURGHER)
THE first petition for sermon from this place to the Burgher Presbytery of
Glasgow was on 4th February 1783, and it purported to be from some people
about Levenside. Afterwards Cordale was entered instead, and then Bridge
of Bonhill. It is not till 1792 that Renton comes up, the name given ten
years before to this newly-formed village, in honour of a daughter-in-law of
Mrs Smollett, the proprietrix. It had now risen to prosperity through the
print works introduced into the Vale of Leven. Their own parish church
was at Cardross, three miles distant, and now, after receiving sermon
for some time, 39 persons gave in their accession to the Presbytery on
i6th March 1784. They wished, also, to know whether they could expect a
moderation, though they had only a tack of their place of worship for fifteen
years, a point on which the Presbytery told them to keep their minds easy.
They now secured a site, and proceeded with the erection of a church to
accommodate 500. The next point was gained in August of that year by
the ordination of four elders. At the same service they elected Mr Robert
Hall for their minister, promising him ^55, but another call followed from
Eaglesham, and Mr Hall had no clearness to accept of either. The Presby
tery appointed him to Bonhill, as they called it, and the case went to the
Synod, but without effect. The congregation then asked to have their call
returned, which was done, and, while expressing disapproval of Mr Hall's
conduct, they allowed him to go without formal censure. This was the well-
known Robert Hall of Kelso.
First Minister. — WILLIAM TAYLOR, from Falkirk (now Erskine Church).
Another call was brought up at the same time to Mr Taylor, from Old Kil-
226 HISTORY OF U.P. CONGREGATIONS
patrick, but the Synod appointed him to Levenside, where he was ordained,
3rd January 1786. The service was held in a drying-shed in the midst of a
snowstorm, but he wrote very soon after : " We expect to have sermon in
our new church on the second Sabbath of next month." For ten years
vigorous work was carried on, and solid progress made, but at the end of
that period Mr Taylor got absorbed in controversy on the subject of the
magistrate's power. Some years before this he published an anonymous
pamphlet, entitled " Liberty without Licentiousness," in which he advocated
New Light views in a strong form. But now he threw himself in fiery
earnest into the other side, and in his pamphlet, "The Effectual Remedy,"
he urged drastic measures to be taken with the advocates of change. Though
he was the last of the Old Light party to break away it was not that he
halted between two opinions. His son explains that it was love for peace
and harmony that detained him, but he might rather have said it was un
willingness to quit the heated atmosphere of strife and debate. At last, on
3rd September 1800, he read his declinature to the Synod, and on the i6th he
united with the Original Burghers. The bulk of his congregation, including
seven elders and three deacons, went with him.
It was to be expected that all would go on smoothly with Mr Taylor now,
but, though among like-minded associates, he kept up the controversial
spirit, and before long his brethren inserted the following testimony to his
idiosyncrasies in their minutes : — "The members of the court are determined
that they will not put themselves to the trouble and expense of coming to
the meetings of Presbytery to have their time consumed, and their minds
grieved and disgusted, as they have been since the protestor came among
them." None the less, Mr Taylor's gifts as a preacher came to be earnestly
coveted in important Old Light vacancies, and within four years he was
called three times to Edinburgh, once to Aberdeen, and thrice to Perth, but
the Presbytery persistently refused to translate. However, when a fourth
call came out from Perth they yielded, and on 7th May 1805 he was set free
for troubled work in that congregation, where we meet with him again. A
few of his former people in Renton, headed by at least one elder, got occa
sional sermon from the New Light Presbytery of Glasgow for a couple of
years, but it had to be discontinued. The congregation itself obtained a
second minister, Mr John M'Kinlay, in 1806, the call being subscribed by
266 members and 102 adherents. When the great majority of the Original
Burgher Synod united with the Church of Scotland in 1839 Mr M'Kinlay
remained with the minority, and when they amalgamated with the Original
Secession Synod in 1842 he and his congregation stood alone for a few
months, but in 1843 they joined the Reformed Presbyterians. This new
connection is said to have brought in some families of that persuasion who
resided in or about the Vale of Leven. Mr M'Kinlay died, i;th November
1856, in the seventy-fifth year of his age and fifty-first of his ministry. In
1876 the congregation went with the Reformed Presbyterian Synod into
union with the Free Church, and it is now known by the old name of Leven
side.
RENTON (UNITED PRESBYTERIAN)
THIS was opened as a preaching station on Sabbath, I5th April 1883.
Dumbarton Presbytery had intimated some months before in answer to
inquiries from headquarters that Renton was one of two places in which
they intended to commence evangelistic work with a view to Church Exten
sion. The station was forthwith put under the care of a student, who was
PRESBYTERY OF DUMBARTON 227
just finishing his theological course, and who was not long in proving him
self the right man in the right place. Worship was kept up at first in a
hall, but this was exchanged in a short time for a wooden building pro
vided by the Home Mission Board. On 9th October a petition for continued
supply, and the obtaining of sealing ordinances in connection with some
neighbouring congregation, was presented to the Presbytery, signed by 161
persons, 74 of these being Church members. But by this time two conflicting
currents of opinion had emerged in relation to the entire movement. It was
contended, on the one hand, that in the village of Renton, with a population
of not more than 5000, there were already four Presbyterian churches, three
of them belonging to the Free Church, and that to form a fifth would be
inexpedient and certain to provoke unfriendly feeling. It is not surprising
that, confronted with this view of the case, the Home Board pressed the
question : " Is there real need for a U.P. congregation in Renton ?"
It happened that on the merits of this question Dumbarton Presbytery
was divided, though a majority were in favour of going on. They explained
that one of the Free churches was Gaelic, and had but a slender hold of the
community, and that Renton had a large non-church-going population. But
the best argument in their favour was the success which had attended the
Presbytery's evangelistic operations in the place, and, though the contest in
a side form found its way to the Synod, barriers were surmounted, and on
1 3th April 1886 a petition from 165 members and 65 adherents to be con
gregated was agreed to.
First Minister. — DAVID SUTHERLAND, from Penicuik. Ordained, 24th
May 1887. It was he who undertook the work at first, and, having laid the
foundation with zeal and energy, he was now to see the building advance
under his hands. The stipend promised from the people at first was ,£80,
but they were to grow in resources, and by the end of that year they
numbered 250. They took possession of a church of their own on ist
November 1891. The building had been occupied by the Established
Church, but the congregation vacated it, owing to the walls giving way, and
then disposed of it to the new-comers for ^400. The renovation required
raised the entire expenditure to ^1050, for which the Board allowed ^150,
all else being made up by the people, or rather by the exertions of the
minister. Mr Sutherland resigned, and was loosed from his charge, 26th
December 1893, the reason he assigned being that he wished to be free to
undertake pioneer work in some other locality. A door opened before long
at Straiton and Loanhead, where he still labours.
Second Minister. — ARCHIBALD MARR, from West Calder. Ordained, ist
May 1894. As was to be expected, there was a marked shrinking up in
membership when the minister left under whom the congregation had been
gathered, and another took his place, to work probably on altered lines.
The consequence is that at the close of 1899 there were only 197 names on
the communion roll, but, on the other hand, the stipend from the people had
risen from ^80 to ,£100.
DUMBARTON, BRIDGEND (RELIEF)
ON 25th June 1792 a respectable body of people in the parishes of
Dumbarton, Cardross, and Bonhill appeared by commissioners before the
Relief Presbytery of Glasgow, craving to be received as a forming congrega
tion. The petition was granted, and Mr Murdoch of Kilmaronock was ap
pointed to preach to them on Sabbath week. The Rev. Alexander MacAulay
of Strathblane, the nominee of the Crown, had been inducted into Cardross
228 HISTORY OF U.P. CONGREGATIONS
parish on I2th May 1791. Delay had been occasioned by a competing
presentation issued by a local magnate, Sir James Colquhoun of Luss, in
favour of a more acceptable candidate, which led to litigation in which the
rights of the Crown prevailed. Thus the way was prepared for the formation
of what was originally known as the Relief congregation of Cardross. The
church begun in 1792 was within the bounds of that parish, though not out
side what was spoken of as the village of Dumbarton. With the erection
there was slow progress made, owing to the stagnation of trade, but it
appears from the congregational records that it was nearly finished, with
roofing, doors, and windows, at New Year 1794, and services had been
twice conducted within its walls. It accommodated 900 people, and cost
^uoo, most of that sum consisting of borrowed money.
First Minister. — DANIEL M'NAUGHT, from Southend, Kintyre. Or
dained, ist January 1795. He had been introduced for licence to Glasgow
Presbytery six months before by Mr Bell of Dovehill, and it appears from
some references in a pamphlet by Neil Douglas that he had been a
carpenter in Campbeltown before going to college. The people received him
with " the utmost satisfaction," and having popular gifts he was not long in
seeing the big church well filled. But prosperity thus far did not remove
the pressure of debt, or keep the congregation out of financial difficulties,
and on 2nd March 1802 MrM'Naught accepted a call to Riccarton, now
Kilmarnock (King Street). During his ministry, and till long afterwards,
the meetings of session and managers were held regularly at Renton, which
indicates that the congregation drew its strength from the Vale of Leven.
This agrees with the testimony of the Old Statistical History that it con
sisted chiefly of people employed about the print works.
Second Minister. — JAMES GRIMMOND, translated from Coupar-Angus,
where he had laboured for over twelve years. Inducted in the face of
objections on 2oth January 1803. Some members of Presbytery alleged
that their brethren in Perth had acted irregularly in loosing Mr Grimmond
from his former charge in the absence of clerical commissioners from
Glasgow, and so keenly did they feel on the matter that they carried the
case to the Synod, where the induction was ratified, and Perth Presbytery
found censurable. The non-appearance of representatives from Glasgow
Presbytery would have been a poor reason for not disposing of the call,
but the Relief Synod was not given to the slighting of little technicalities.
Mr Grimmond's stipend was to be ^100, with manse, garden, and communion
expenses, but the people in addition to other burdens had a debt of ^600 to
struggle with, and in 1813 the managers, disheartened by difficulties, with
drew from office with one consent. In a disabled state the congregation
held on till November 1819, when they represented to the Presbytery their
need for pecuniary aid, which led to an examination into the state of their
affairs. After other two years they found it necessary to ask for the dis
solution of the pastoral bond, undertaking to allow Mr Grimmond ,£30 a
year, with the ominous proviso, "while we exist as a Christian society." It
was as if they looked on a break up as a near possibility, but to meet the
objections of the Presbytery the expression was expunged. Mr Grimmond
accepted the terms, and the Presbytery, finding that he was unable to dis
charge the duties of the pastoral office, loosed him from his charge on i6th
November 1821. In addition to the allowance from the congregation he
afterwards received ^15 a year from the Synod. Mr Grimmond removed to
Renton, where he died suddenly, 26th October 1825, in the seventieth year
of his age and thirty-sixth of his ministerial life.
Third Minister. — JOHN M'FARLANE, from Kilbarchan. The congrega
tion was to undertake a stipend of ^100, with £\ for each communion, and
PRESBYTERY OF DUMBARTON 229
the manse, which Mr Grimmond gave up very reluctantly. Ordained, 22nd
October 1822. Under the young minister there was a speedy inflow of
prosperity, as was shown by an addition of .£30 to the stipend. But on ist
February 1831 Mr M'Farlane accepted a call to Hamilton (Auchingramont),
where he had disruption to face at the outset, and more serious troubles
later on.
Fourth Minister. — JAMES BOYD, from Paisley (Canal Street). Ordained
27th December 1831. The stipend was now reduced from the former figure
to ^110, with the manse and garden. Within six years a call enforced by
weighty considerations was addressed to Mr Boyd from Campbeltown, which
he accepted on 4th September 1837.
Fifth Minister. — WYVILLE S. THOMSON, son of the Rev. Thomas
Thomson of St James' Place, Edinburgh. Ordained, 22nd May 1838. The
attendance some time after was put down at 600, and the stipend at ,£125,
with a house. A new church, with 800 sittings, was opened on Sabbath,
3oth December 1860. The cost was ^2150, and in 1865 a new manse was
added at a cost of ^946, of which ^200 came from the Board. In a few
years the whole property was free of debt. In 1873 Mr Thomson manifested
tokens of failing health, and a meeting of the congregation was about to be
held to arrange, with his entire concurrence, for a colleague, but he was
already close to the descending curtain. Next Sabbath he was seized with
paralysis in the pulpit, and, asking the people to excuse him, he sat down.
Unconsciousness followed, and he died on Tuesday evening, loth June 1873,
in the sixty-first year of his age and the thirty-sixth of his ministry. Mr
Thomson was a son-in-law of the Rev. David Lindsay of Clackmannan, and
his son, of the same name with himself, was minister at Ford.
Sixth Minister. — WALTER DUNCAN, M.A., son of the Rev. Walter
Duncan, Parliamentary Road, Glasgow (now Bath Street). Ordained, loth
February 1874, after declining calls to Coupar-Angus and Stranraer (West).
The stipend was raised to .£300 before the ordination, besides the manse,
and the membership was 267. At the moderation the voting lay between
Mr Duncan and Mr James Orr, now Professor Orr, D.D. On 5th August
1879 Mr Duncan accepted a call to Junction Road, Leith, and was loosed
from Bridgend, leaving a membership of 402 behind him.
Seventh Minister. — WILLIAM WATSON, M.A., from Partick (Newton
Place). Ordained, 24th February 1880, the stipend to be ,£320, with the
manse. The present church, with sittings for 1000, was opened by Dr
Brown of Paisley on the evening of Thursday, 23rd February 1888. The
entire cost was ^6500, and the collections that evening and next Sabbath
reached ^1200, so that the hope of opening the new building free of debt
was very nearly realised. The old church close by was to be utilised for
congregational purposes. In 1889 Mr Watson declined Grange Road,
Edinburgh, but on I4th April 1891 he accepted a call to succeed Dr
Alexander MacLeod in Trinity Church, Birkenhead, where, though the
membership is not oppressively large, there is a stipend of ,£900. Bridgend
had now 520 names on the communion roll.
Eighth Minister. — JAMES G. GOOLD, M.A., son of the Rev. Marshall
N. Goold, Dumfries. Ordained, I2th January 1892. After being five years
in Bridgend Mr Goold declined Bridge-of-Allan, and that year his stipend
was raised to ^350. In December 1898 he declined St Nicholas' Church,
Aberdeen, and he soon afterwards intercepted another call from Bristo,
Edinburgh. But a second time the claims of Liverpool prevailed at
Bridgend, and on 7th November 1899 Mf Goold accepted a call to Egremont,
to be colleague to Dr James Muir.
Ninth Minister. — JAMES G. BURNS, B.D., from Larkhall. Ordained,
23o HISTORY OF U.P. CONGREGATIONS
2ist March 1900. The stipend was now made .£320, with the manse, and
the membership was 621.
DUMBARTON, HIGH STREET (UNITED SECESSION)
THE Secession cause got footing in Dumbarton so early as November
1739, when several from that parish acceded to the Associate Presbytery,
but there is no trace in the old records of either Sabbath or week-day
services having been appointed to any part of Leven Vale. The name is not
met with again till 1761, when the Antiburgher session of Balfron petitioned
Glasgow Presbytery for occasional sermon at Dumbarton, a corner of that
congregation, "in respect of their great distance," which was little under
twenty miles, and as there was "some appearance of a gathering there."
In 1764, the time at which the extant minutes of that Presbytery begin,
Dumbarton and Cardross were getting supply on rare occasions, and in 1767
the little group of Antiburghers in these parishes petitioned to be annexed
to Paisley. The disjunction was agreed to, the minister of Balfron having
written to say that the transference would be "for the interests of religion
in that corner." This involved a walk of about half the former distance,
with the Clyde to cross. The coalescence took effect, and we find that
three years afterwards an elder was chosen by Paisley congregation for the
district of Dumbarton. Whether, with a Burgher congregation at Renton,
and a Relief congregation at Bridgend, the Antiburgher cause in this place
managed to outlive the century we cannot say, but, if so, it must have been
reduced to a few decaying embers.
Now, guided for the most part by a historical sketch of High Street
Church, carefully drawn up from original sources by Andrew Paul, Esq.,
we can advance with -confidence. In the spring of 1819 sermon was begun
in a schoolroom at Renton by the Rev. William Bruce (see Bathgate, Anti
burgher) at the request of some members of the denomination residing in
the district. The Burgher congregation in that village had gone with the
Old Lights, and there was no other Secession church within convenient reach.
In November 1820 the meeting-place was changed to Dumbarton, Mr Bruce
still favouring them with his services, but, as he superintended an academy
during the week, this could not be done with strict regularity. On the
fourth Sabbath of October 1821 supply began to be provided by Glasgow-
Presbytery, but it was not till 23rd January 1827 that the adherents were
formed into a congregation. They numbered 74, of whom 68 were certified
from other congregations, and a paper in support of the step now taken was
also given in from 42 persons not of our communion. In a few months the
Rev. William Bruce and another were inducted to the eldership, and a third
was ordained. In October of the same year a call was addressed to Mr
Walter Duncan, but after his trials should have been finished, and the
ordination day fixed, a competing call came in from Duke Street, Glasgow,
which the Synod preferred. A church had been built the year before, with
sittings for nearly 500, at a cost of ^1600. The congregation in its early
stages owed very much to Patrick Mitchell, Esq., the proprietor of Milton
print works, brother of Dr Mitchell, Glasgow, and "an ardent reformer and
devoted voluntary."
First Minister. — ANDREW SOMMERVILLE, from Milnathort. Ordained,
gth November 1830. The call was signed by 144 members and 41 adherents,
and the stipend was to be at least .£130. The debt on the property at this
time was ^880, but it was reduced to little over ,£700 within three years,
and to ^500 in 1840. At Mr Sommerville's first communion there were 24
PRESBYTERY OF DUMBARTON 231
accessions, and in 1837 there were 229 names on the communion roll, of
whom scarcely more than one-third were parishioners. The congregation
drew its membership largely from the print works in the Vale of Leven, and
of 310 in attendance above twelve years of age Mr Sommerville calculated
that 99 were from Cardross parish (including Renton), 93 from Bonhill
(including Alexandria), and 34 from Old Kilpatrick. In 1845 the church
became vacant through the minister being chosen by the Synod for Mission
Secretary. The proposal to have a salaried agent had been long talked of,
and now the scheme was carried into effect. In the cause of missions Mr
Sommerville was known to take deep interest, and as a forecast of what
awaited him his first sermon as an ordained minister was from the text :
" Go ye into all the world, and preach the gospel to every creature." In 1840
he also published a discourse, entitled. "The Conversion of the World the
grand Enterprise committed to the Church." Accordingly, when the day of
election came, Mr Sommerville was carried over the Rev. James Robertson
of Portsburgh, Edinburgh, by 90 against 86. On I2th August he intimated
his acceptance to Glasgow Presbytery, and, the congregation regretfully
acquiescing, the pastoral tie was dissolved.
The year before leaving Dumbarton Mr Sommerville wrote a substantial
Memoir of Dr Jamieson of Edinburgh, under whose ministry he sat when a
student. It was prefixed to the Doctor's work on "The Holy Spirit." He
had also entered with much earnestness into the question of social reform,
pleading specially for the abolition of the Corn Laws, his own early experiences
enlisting his sympathies on the side of the working classes. In 1855 he
received the degree of D.D., from Princeton College, New Jersey. In his new
situation as Mission Secretary his salary at first was ^250 and a house, but
in 1858, when the Home and Foreign departments were separated, the
salary of each was fixed at ,£400. This rise in the working expenditure led
to some murmuring throughout the Church, and at next Synod a letter was
read from Dr Sommerville, expressing his wish to abide by the old terms,
but the Synod refused to depart from its former decision. Dr Sommerville
carried on his work with unwearied devotedness till 1868, when under the
pressure of years he felt constrained to resign. The Synod fixed his retiring
allowance at ,£250, a sum which he firmly and earnestly asked them to
reduce to .£120, as that was the utmost he could accept ; but they kept by
the sum they had named, the result being that at least ^100 a year found its
way back to the Church Funds. In 1874 L)r Sommerville published his
" Lectures on Missions and Evangelism," which had been delivered to our
theological students on several successive sessions. He died at Dollar on
1 5th September 1877, in the seventy-seventh year of his age. His auto
biography, set in a graceful framework by Professor Graham of the English
Presbyterian Church, was published in 1880, — a deeply interesting volume,
especially in its graphic disclosures of the hardships through which he and
his kindred passed in his early days.
Second Minister. — WILLIAM M. HALLEY, translated from Markinch,
where he had laboured eleven years. Inducted, 25th March 1847. The call
was signed by 133 members and 65 adherents, and the stipend was ^130,
including allowance for house rent ; but in 1852 the ^500 of debt which
still rested on the property when Mr Halley came was cleared away, and
the stipend rose in a few years to ^170. Better than this, in 1858 a motion
to ask a grant from the Ferguson Fund was rejected at a congregational
meeting, and the stipend fixed at ^200 from their own resources. In 1865 a
manse was acquired at the price of .£950, of which .£200 came from the
Manse Board, and in 1873 the present church, built on the former site at
a cost of ^2700, was opened, with sittings for nearly 600. By subscriptions
232 HISTORY OF U.P. CONGREGATIONS
and the opening collections the debt was reduced to ^500, and next year it
was entirely extinguished, and the stipend raised to ^300. In 1878 Mr
Halley received the degree of D.D. from Union University, New York. In
other two years his health, which had failed him more than once already,
completely broke down, and a colleague was found after a time to be
indispensable.
Third Minister. — JOHN JARDINE, M.A., from Castle-Douglas. Ordained,
22nd November 1881, having previously declined a call to Stromness. On
Tuesday, 3rd April 1885, Dr Halley's jubilee was celebrated, when, amidst
addresses of congratulation, he was presented with a cheque for ,£1000 from
the congregation and other friends. Dr Halley had divided the work with
his colleague until now, but at a meeting of Presbytery that month his
proposal to withdraw from active service was sanctioned, his retiring allow
ance to be ,£100 a year, with the manse. There was a membership now of
470. In the beginning of next year the young minister caught smallpox,
when visiting at the local hospital, and the disease came rapidly to a fatal
issue. He conducted his class on the first Sabbath of January 1886, and
died on Friday, the 8th, in the thirty-first year of his age and fifth of his
ministry.
Fourth Minister. — HUGH MORTON, from Eglinton Street, Glasgow.
Ordained as Dr Halley's second colleague, 23rd November 1886. When
Mr Morton was a schoolboy of twelve his brother James, a divinity student,
died, and on his death-bed he expressed the wish and the hope that Hugh
would study for the ministry. In due time, and under a sense of inner
preparedness, the end was gained ; but his course was to be brief, as he died,
30th January 1888, in the thirty-fourth year of his age and the fourteenth
month of his ministry. Thus did Dr Halley see one colleague after another
cut down, while he himself was spared. In the mode of their removal the
two were unlike. The one died in his full strength ; the other after wearing
illness and gradual decline. The congregation now called an ordained
minister of thirteen years' experience — the Rev. William Steedman of Eagles-
ham — but he set aside the tempting offer, and remained in his rural charge.
Fifth Minister. — ADAM S. MATHESON, who had been loosed from Clare-
mont Church, Glasgow, five months before. Inducted, 27th November
1888. Two years after this Mr Matheson published an able and suggestive
book, entitled "The Gospel and Modern Substitutes." On 6th March 1893
he became sole pastor by the death of Dr Halley, in the seventy-ninth year
of his age and fifty-eighth of his ministry. The membership of the congre
gation at the close of 1899 was 537, and the stipend .£300 with the manse.
OLD KILPATRICK (RELIEF)
ON 5th November 1793 tne Relief Presbytery of Glasgow received a petition
for sermon from a respectable body of people in Old Kilpatrick, and Mr
Dun of East Campbell Street, Glasgow, was appointed to preach to them on
" Sabbath week." At a meeting on New Year's Day they were taken under
the Presbytery's inspection, and recognised as a forming congregation.
Their own records explain the origin of the movement. The parish having
fallen vacant on igth May 1793 by tne death of the aged minister, a number
of the inhabitants took steps to prevent an intrusion. This possibility was
foreseen and, believing that "ministers thrust into pulpits by patronage
failed, as a rule, to preach the gospel in its purity," they resolved, if better
could not be, to betake themselves for sermon to the Relief Presbytery. By-
and-by a preacher was presented whom the people had neither seen nor
PRESBYTERY OF DUMBARTON 233
heard, and, the presentation being accepted, the above application was made,
and an old granary secured as a temporary meeting-place. The vacancy in
the parish church was filled up by the ordination of Mr William Macartney,
the patron's nominee, on loth April 1794. The Relief church, with sittings
for 580, was opened towards the close of 1795. The cost was .£527, besides
the gratis labour of the members. Of this sum ,£200 was lent by 18 of the
members, apparently on the proprietor system, and a session of five elders
was formed. The congregation had already called the Rev. William Thomson
of Beith, afterwards of Hutchesontown, Glasgow, but he declined.
First Minister. — JAMES SMITH, who had been loosed from East Kilbride
a twelvemonth before. Inducted, 28th April 1796. The stipend was to be
^80 and ^2, I os. at each communion, with a house, or ^7, IDS. a year if that
were preferred. In 1799 a manse was built, which cost ,£279. In 1808 the
stipend was raised to ^120, perhaps in view of coming events. If so, the
object was not gained, as Mr Smith on 6th September of that year accepted
a call to College Street, Edinburgh, and was loosed from Kilpatrick.
Second Minister. — JOHN WATT, who had been ordained at Blairlogie
fourteen years before, and in the interval had twice refused to remove to
Glasgow. He now accepted a quieter place and was inducted to Kilpatrick,
3oth March 1809. In this sphere of labour Mr Watt appears to have been
abundant in pastoral labours, in which his ministrations to the sick were
aided by his medical skill. In September 1832 the Presbytery sanctioned
the arrangements of the congregation to provide Mr Watt with a colleague.
Third Minister. — JAMES RUSSELL, from Strathaven. Ordained, 2Oth
February 1834. At the moderation 179 voted for Mr Russell, and 152 for
Mr Tudhope, afterwards of Annan, but the minority came largely forward
and signed the call, making it virtually unanimous. In 1837 the congregation
had a membership of nearly 400. Mr Russell's stipend was ^95, with house
and garden, and the senior colleague, who shared in the work, received ^50.
There was a debt of ^475 resting on the property. Mr \Vatt died, ist
September 1840, after a protracted illness, involving acute suffering, in the
seventieth year of his age and forty-sixth of his ministry. While yet a
divinity student Mr Russell wrote a pamphlet on the Organ Controversy, in
which he joined issue with his minister, the Rev. William Anderson of
Glasgow, who championed the proposed innovation both by speech and pen.
He was far from happy in another anonymous pamphlet : " Irenicum
Ecclesiasticum," published in 1836, when the Voluntary Controversy was at
its height. He pleaded for union between the Established and Dissenting
Churches of our land on the basis of State support, but to accomplish this
he argued, that the independence of the Church should be secured ; the King's
commissioner cease to dissolve and call the General Assembly ; the law of
patronage be abolished ; and clergymen be made to depend partly on the
freewill offerings of the people. Ezekiel's prediction about the tribe of Judah
and the ten tribes of Israel becoming one stick in Jehovah's hand he believed
bore on the nation of Britain, and was to have its fulfilment in ten or fifteen
years, the Established churches being represented by Judah and the Dis
senting churches by Ephraim or the ten tribes. This paradoxical production
was dealt with at great length, and with little ceremony, in the Relief Magazine
at the time. In 1866 a colleague was required, Mr Russell, whose health
had never been robust, finding himself unable to go on with the whole work.
Fourth Minister. — JAMES LAMB, from Perth (North). Ordained, 5th
February 1867, having declined a call to Bishop-Auckland a considerable
time before. The stipend was meanwhile to be ^100, with ^10 for house
rent, the senior minister to have ,£30, which was afterwards raised to ,£50,
and to retain the manse. Mr Russell seldom appeared in the pulpit after
234 HISTORY OF U.P. CONGREGATIONS
this. He died, 4th October 1876, in the seventy-fifth year of his age and the
forty-third of his ministry. At the close of 1899 Old Kilpatrick had a mem
bership of 162, and the stipend from the people was ,£140, with the manse,
which had been renovated and enlarged after Mr Russell's death, at a cost
of over ^600.
DRYMEN (ANTIBURGHER)
THE Holm of Balfron in the early days of the Secession drew families from
all down the Vale of Leven, but in 1767 those in the parishes of Dumbarton
and Cardross were disjoined and annexed to Paisley (Oakshaw Street). In
1772 the Antiburghers in Kilmaronock parish represented to Glasgow Pres
bytery the inconvenience their distance from Balfron entailed. They had,
therefore, erected a meeting-house for themselves, and had some prospect of
gathering a congregation. A year before this a violent settlement in that
parish had given the Relief cause a strong beginning, and may have tempted
the Seceders to expect reinforcements from the same source. The Presbytery,
however, considered them too weak to sustain a fixed ministry, but agreed to
grant them occasional supply as a remote branch of Balfron congregation.
In this state matters continued for nearly half-a-century, sermon being kept
up at Kilmaronock every third or fourth Sabbath. But on 3rd March 1818
appointments began to be shifted, and by the end of the year it is entered
that the place of meeting was now changed from Duncroine, near Kilmaronock,
to Drymen, and the people were recommended to petition the Presbytery to
be congregated. Elders were chosen soon after, and from this time sermon
was continued with almost unbroken regularity. A church, with sittings for
280, was built in the following year at a cost of ,£370. Mr J. Guthrie Smith
in his " Strathendrick" has stated that the pulpit and internal fittings were
brought from an old Cameronian chapel in Kilmaronock, of which no trace
remained. The author had not mastered the distinction between the
Cameronians and the Antiburghers.
First Minister. — JOHN BLAIR, son of the Rev. John Blair, Colmonell. Or
dained, 1 6th July 1822. The call was signed by 32 members and 24 adherents,
and the stipend was to be ^80 and a free house. In 1840 there were about
a hundred names on the communion roll ; but the church had been repaired
at an expense of £170, and the debt had accumulated to ,£622. A strong-
effort was now made to have this burden removed, and, aided by two suc
cessive grants of ^100, the end was gained within two years. Still, assist
ance was required from the Synod Fund, and on I4th March 1848 Mr Blair
demitted his charge. He had changed his views, he said, as to the practical
workings of Voluntaryism in small congregations and thinly-peopled dis
tricts. The resignation was accepted in an ungracious way, and at next
Assembly he was received without any demur into the Established Church.
In the following year he became minister of the quoad sacra church, Fisher-
ton, near Ayr, where he died, 2oth October 1872, in the seventy-eighth year
of his age and fifty-first of his ministry.
During this vacancy at Drymen the congregation called Mr Robert
Mitchell, who declined, and that same day had another call sustained to
Craigs, Old Kilpatrick, which he accepted. A second was addressed to Mr
John Kechie, afterwards of Earlston (West), and a third to Mr James
Henderson, afterwards of Duntocher, but both without success.
Second Minister. — PETER MERCER, who had retired from Mainsriddell
after ministering there for two and a half years. Inducted, 24th December
1850. The stipend was to be ^60 from the people, with ^25 of supplement,
235
and the manse. Mr Mercer was loosed from Drymen on I2th December
1854, with the view of proceeding to Australia. Fort Adelaide became his
'destination, where, in the following July, he took the place of the Rev. Ralph
Drummond, who had gone out from Crail sixteen years before. Mr Mercer
continued in that situation till 1861, and we also read of him labouring for a
considerable time in the " bush " and " travelling over a district as large as all
Scotland south of the Grampians." We next find him in Victoria, where he
gave his services to several churches in rapid succession. In 1863 he was
appointed to train the students in Greek, Hebrew, and Critical Exposition,
but passed within a twelvemonth to take charge of a congregation in New
South Wales. Having returned to Melbourne he was elected Secretary to
the Home Mission Committee, besides performing other functions, and in
1875 he ceased preaching, "in consequence of engagements at the Theo
logical Hall," where he had been appointed interim successor to the Rev.
Peter Brown, as Professor of Exegetical Theology. Next year he published
a Catechism of Hebrew Grammar, and in 1878 he obtained the degree of
D.D. from St Andrews University. But somehow Ur Mercer never seems
to have been quite a fixture in office, and owing to some changes in profes
sorial arrangements he withdrew in 1883, to the regret of his brethren, both
from connection with the Theological Hall and from his place in the courts
of the Church. His eldest daughter became the wife of Sir M. H. Davis,
Speaker of the Legislative Assembly of Victoria. (Dr Mercer's death was
announced in October 1902.)
During the ensuing vacancy of nearly three years Drymen congregation
called Mr Peter Whyte, afterwards of Denny, who declined, and Mr James
Robertson, who preferred Balfron. The people were to contribute ,£75
of stipend, and ^30 of supplement was expected, and there was also the
manse.
Third Minister. — ANDREW WILSON, M.A., from Limekilns. Ordained,
6th October 1857. The membership at the close of 1899 was 69, and the
stipend from the people ,£90, with the manse. Mr Wilson's son, the Rev.
Adam Wilson, is minister at Bridge-of-Weir.
BONHILL (RELIEF)
ON ist February 1831 two commissioners from a number of people in Bon-
hill and neighbourhood gave in a petition to the Relief Presbytery of Paisley
to be received as a forming congregation. They had built a house for public
worship, and at their request Mr Murdoch of Kilmaronock was appointed to
open it on the fourth Sabbath of that month. Among the petitioners there
were several from his congregation, and others from Briclgend, Dumbarton,
but the great majority were from the Established Church. The church is a
commodious building, with sittings at first for 670, and the cause made a
hopeful beginning. Trouble, however, arose with the election of a minister
in January 1832. The final vote gave Mr Alexander M'Coll 167 and Mr
Archibald Tudhope, who originally stood first, 159. The Presbytery sus
tained the call, and it was accepted, but there was no approach to acquies
cence on the part of the minority. So far from this they resolved to set up
for themselves over in Alexandria, and in April petitioned the Presbytery to
that effect. As was to be be expected, such a proposal met with opposition
from Bonhill, and, to end the matter, Mr M'Coll at next meeting, after parties
were heard, rose and "gave up with the call." The Presbytery in the cir
cumstances welcomed the declinature as the only way to allay the ferment
that had arisen, and expressed approval of his manly and self-denying con-
236 HISTORY OF U.P. CONGREGATIONS
duct. They also declared that to prevent a renewal of the contest neither of
the candidates should be brought forward a second time. Mr Tudhope's
friends presented him soon after with a gold watch in testimony of their
appreciation of his gifts as a preacher, and of his honourable conduct during
the late election. He was ordained two years afterwards at Annan, and Mr
M'Coll got Bankhill, Berwick, somewhat later.
First Minister. — JOHN R. SWAN, from Paisley (Thread Street). Though
there was not perfect unanimity at the moderation there was a great majority
for Mr Swan, and he was ordained, 25th April 1833. Authority was given
at the close of the service to take steps for the election and ordination of
elders, and the communion roll, we may believe, was not yet made up. The
stipend was to be ^115, with expenses, and it was afterwards raised to ^128.
The number of adults in Bonhill parish connected with the Relief was given
at 254 in 1840. In August 1861 Mr Swan was laid aside by severe indis
position, and soon after the Presbytery was asked to sanction the calling of
a colleague. The design was to pay Mr Swan ^70 a year, to which the
allowance of at least ^50 from the Aged and Infirm Ministers' Fund would
be added, the junior minister to have ^120. On this footing a call to Mr
Robert Hall, now of Ualmarnock Road, Glasgow, was brought out with
much enthusiasm, the signatures amounting to 291 out of a membership of
305 ; but a declinature came without reason assigned, and, believing that Mr
Swan had come between them and the object of their choice, the people resolved
that they would make no further attempt to obtain another minister until he
should resign. They also carried by a large majority to make his retiring
allowance ^40 a year instead of £70. Attempts to effect a reconciliation
failed, and on the Presbytery not seeing their way to acquiesce in the re
solutions arrived at eight of the nine elders gave in their resignation. Mr
Swan was meanwhile pressing to be loosed from his charge, and on 23rd
September 1862 this was agreed to amidst expressions of sympathy from his
brethren. He soon after withdrew from Bonhill, and died, 3Oth June 1865,
in the sixty-third year of his age and thirty-third of his ministerial life. Mr
Swan was a son-in-law of his near neighbour, the Rev. Archibald Murdoch
of Kilmaronock.
Second Minister. — WILLIAM SMITH, from Cupar (now Bonnygate), the
congregation of the Rev. John Rankine, whose son-in-law he became. Or
dained, 24th March 1863. The stipend while Mr Swan lived continued as
had been previously arranged for, but a grant from the Ferguson Fund
raised it to ^150, and after three years a manse was built at the cost of
^1000, of which slightly more than one-third came from the Manse Board.
Though churches have sprung up around since then the population has also
increased, and this congregation has far more than held its own. At the
Union there was a membership of over 400, and the stipend was ,£270, with
the manse.
HELENSBURGH (UNITED SECESSION)
THIS large high-class congregation dates its origin no further back than
1843, the year of the Disruption. The Original Burghers had taken pos
session of the ground twenty years before — a little denomination which had
its strength in the west. They built a church, with 700 sittings, in 1824,
at the cost of ^1000, and in 1827 they obtained Mr John Anderson for
their minister — a man of very attractive pulpit gifts, who also acquired dis
tinction as an author. The population of Helensburgh at this time was
only about 1000, and this congregation absorbed the larger proportion of
PRESBYTERY OF DUMBARTON 237
the Seceding element in the place. But in 1839 Mr Anderson and his
people went with the majority of the Original Burgher Synod into the
Established Church, which must have raised a barrier between them and
new arrivals from United Secession congregations. Accordingly, on I4th
March 1843 application was made to the United Presbytery of Glasgow
for preachers to be sent to Helensburgh, but only on alternate Sabbaths, and
it was stated that they had kept up public worship in the town hall for
some time. On gth April of the following year 40 members, after being
conversed with, were formed into a congregation. The place of meeting
having become too strait for them, a new church was opened by Dr Heugh
of Glasgow on 22nd June 1845, with 450 sittings, the cost being about ^800.
First Minister. — ALEXANDER MACEWEN, M.A., son of the Rev. William
MacEwen of Howgate, and a nephew of John Henderson, Esq., of Park. Or
dained, 2nd September 1845. With Helensburgh it was still the day of small
things, the call being signed by only 52 members and 21 adherents, and the
stipend ^100, with expenses. In 1849 a manse was built at a cost of between
^600 and ,£700, and two years later a gallery, with 150 sittings, was erected
at an additional outlay of ^300. About this time Mr MacEwen contributed
to the Scottish Christian Journal sketches of several German professors
at whose feet he had sat, such as Tholuck and Neander, which we still re
call with lively interest. In the eleventh year of his ministry he was trans
lated to Glasgow, having accepted a call to Claremont Church on 3rd June
1856.
Second Minister. — DAVID DUFF, M.A., from Greenock (Sir Michael
Street). Called first to St Andrews, the calculation being that the preacher
and the old university town would fit each other, but Ayr (now Darlington
Place) and Helensburgh followed, of which the last was preferred. Or
dained, 1 6th December 1856. At the moderation the other candidate was
Mr Peter Davidson. It was evangelistic fervour set over against cultured
intellect. The stipend was now ^200, with expenses, and a manse and
grounds valued at ^50 a year. Mr Duff was for several years Rector of
Greenock Academy before taking licence, and in 1872 he got the degree
of LL.D. from Glasgow University in recognition of his scholarly attain
ments. At the Synod in 1876 he was transferred from the pulpit at Helens
burgh to the Chair of Church History in the Theological Hall at Edinburgh.
In this new position he received the degree of D.D. from the University of
Edinburgh in 1887, a city in which he did valuable public service for a course
of years as Chairman of the School Board. He died, ist September 1890, in
the sixty-seventh year of his age, the thirty-fourth of his ministry, and the
fifteenth of his professorship. A volume of Dr Duffs Lectures on the
History of the Christian Church during the first centuries was published in
1891 under the editorship of his son David, who had turned aside from
probationer life to the educational profession.
Third Minister. — ALEXANDER HISLOP, M.A., from Greenhead., Glasgow,
where he had been colleague to the Rev. John Edwards for two and a half
years. Inducted, loth April 1877. The membership at the close of 1879
was returned at 583, and the stipend at ,£600, with a manse valued at ^,"80
a year, while the total income reached the stately figure of ,£3000. But in
Mr Hislop Helensburgh was to furnish a second professor to the denomina
tion. He was elected to the Chair of Practical Training by the Synod on
5th May 1892, and in 1894 he received the degree of D.D. from Glasgow
University.
Fourth Minister. — ADAM C. WELCH, B.D., from Waterbeck, where he
had been ordained in November 1887. Inducted to Helensburgh, 2ist
December 1892. Called in 1897 to Belhaven to be colleague to Dr Drum-
238 HISTORY OF U.P. CONGREGATIONS
mond, but declined. At the close of 1899 the congregation had a member
ship of 707, and the stipend was ,£600, as before.
ALEXANDRIA (UNITED SECESSION)
THIS congregation owed its origin to a tumult in Bonhill Relief church. A
contest had arisen over the assumed right of the managers to grant the use
of the meeting-house for outside purposes without being exposed to a veto
from minister or session. Resistance to this claim was headed by the
minister, and straightway rebellion arose, so much so that on 6th December
1841 a petition signed by 164 members and adherents was laid before the
Relief Presbytery of Paisley, to be granted sermon as a forming congrega
tion. At next meeting papers were read, one from Bonhill session, ex
plaining the principle on which they had acted, and another from the
congregation, attesting the ability and usefulness of their minister, points
scarcely in the line of dispute. The decision unanimously arrived at was
to reject the prayer of the applicants, recommending at the same time con
ciliation to both parties, but doing nothing special to secure it. There was a
breaking away now from the Relief, and the resolve was formed to set up for
themselves. It was fortunate that at this critical time there was acceptable
supply for them within easy reach in the person of the Rev. Andrew Broom.
With him terms were arranged, and within two months he entered on
regular work at Alexandria. On 3oth May 1842 a brief paragraph appeared
in the Caledonian Mercury to the following effect : — " The Independent
Presbyterian congregation of Alexandria have given a unanimous call to
the Rev. Andrew Broom, late of North Sunderland, to be their minister.
In all probability the Vale of Leven will be the field of Mr Broom's future
labours, where he at present resides, and where his talents and piety are
much appreciated."
When a probationer Mr Broom was called to Hamilton (Blackswell) and
to Newcastle (afterwards Barras Bridge), to Sunderland (afterwards Smyrna
Chapel), and to North Sunderland. Having accepted the last of these he
was ordained, 9th April 1834, and next Sabbath, in the absence of his
minister, the Rev. David Laurie of Abernethy, he introduced himself by
preaching from the text : " I have a message from God unto thee." " Both
sermons," said the Magazine, "were delivered in a popular and eloquent
style, and from the nature and richness of the discourses, together with the
solemn and affectionate manner in which they were addressed to an attentive
audience, they could not fail to make deep impressions." It was a good
beginning; but in Mr Broom there was a want of "prudent, cautious self-
control," and this wrought him harm. In 1838 an Episcopal minister in
the place brought certain letters his clerical brother had written him under
the notice of the Presbytery. Finding that in a slight matter of dispute
he had used undignified language his brethren exhorted him " to give no
offence in anything, that the ministry be not blamed." His protest against
this sentence the Synod sustained, and the victory was his, had he but known
how to use it. A complaint was now brought up against minister and session
from certain parties in North Sunderland Church, and the case was remitted
to the Presbytery of Berwick and Coldstream, but before they had time
to enter on the merits Mr Broom wrote declaring himself out of connection
with the United Associate Synod. On igth June 1838 the Presbytery met
at North Sunderland to inquire into the state of the congregation ; but
access to the meeting-house was denied them, and Mr Broom, who had
gone out of the way, intimated to them by letter that they had no power
PRESBYTERY OF DUMBARTON 239
over him or his congregation. Suspension followed, and the church was
declared vacant.
The congregation now divided, 83 communicants adhering to the Synod,
and Mr Broom retaining possession of the pulpit. But the very day on '
which suspension was pronounced he and his congregation applied to the
Relief Presbytery of Kelso for admission to their communion, and the papers
were referred to the Synod in August, who dismissed the application. For
the next three years Mr Broom's name appeared on the list of the North-
West Northumberland Presbytery in connection with the Church of
Scotland. But litigation was going on between the two parties in the
congregation for possession of the property, and in December 1840 the
following notice occurs:— "The Court of Chancery gave judgment in the
suit of the Rev. Andrew Broom and the Trustees of North Sunderland
congregation. He and his adherents having left the Secession form no part
of the congregation contemplated by the trust-deed." The building had
now to be vacated, and next year Mr Broom's place is blank in the list of
Northumberland Presbytery, and the congregation which had kept by him
vacant, a state from which it passed into the non-existent. This was the
man whom the Independent Presbyterian congregation of Alexandria now
got for their minister.
It does not seem that there was any formal recognition of Mr Broom's
entrance on his new charge ; only, at the annual meeting of Alexandria con
gregation on 8th March 1843 he declared his acceptance of a call which they
had presented to him, and which they now confirmed by a unanimous vote.
The next step was the erection of a church, and this was accomplished at a
cost of ^320, of which more than one-half was met with borrowed money.
The stipend arranged for was ^80. After the connection had lasted two years
feeling stirred the people towards union with some denomination, and feeling
inclined Mr Broom to seek admission into the Established Church. At this
juncture a meeting of the membership was held, when 23 voted to retain
Mr Broom, and 28 to dispense with his services. Instead of making formal
application to be received at the ensuing General Assembly Mr Broom
removed to Newcastle, where he found a church in want of a minister. A
relationship was formed, akin to what had been at Alexandria, and it lasted
till 1862, when he withdrew, and the people resumed connection with the
Established Church. This was Caledonian Chapel, and one of Mr Broom's
successors states that he occasionally appeared in his old pulpit, and aided
also in communion work. He died, ist March 1882, in the eighty-second
year of his age and forty-eighth of his ministerial life.
The Independent Presbyterian congregation of Alexandria was now out
upon the open sea, but under the guidance of the Rev. Andrew Sommerville,
Dumbarton, they made for an available harbour. On loth June 1845 tne
Secession Presbytery of Glasgow received a petition from upwards of 170
persons "worshipping in Bridge Street Chapel" for supply of sermon. They
stated that they had a church capable of containing 400 persons, and with a
debt of only ^150. The petition was granted, and at a subsequent meeting
133 persons were recognised as the Secession congregation of Alexandria.
In a few months a moderation was applied for, the stipend promised being
£i 10 in all.
First Minister. — ALEXANDER WALLACE, from Paisley (Oakshaw Street).
Ordained, 25th February 1846, after declining calls to Avonbridge, Busby,
and Langholm (North). A new church, with sittings for 800, was opened on
Sabbath, i8th April 1847, when the collections amounted to fully ^100.
Under the ministry of Mr Wallace the congregation got the tide triumphantly
in its favour, and though his stay extended only to three years it gave them
24o HISTORY OF U.P. CONGREGATIONS
a bright beginning. On 6th March 1849 Mr Wallace accepted a call to
Bradford, Yorkshire, where he condensed valuable work into a yet shorter
period. Let special mention be made of his Sabbath services for the
operative classes, of which we have the outcome in the most widely useful of
all his books, " The Bible and the Working Classes." But trouble came,
as will be sketched later on, and an invitation to transfer his gifts to the
Potterrow, Edinburgh, was accepted, 22nd July 1851. Before obtaining a
successor to Mr Wallace, Alexandria issued two unsuccessful calls, the one
to Mr Andrew Morton, who accepted Greenock (Sir Michael Street), and
the other to the Rev. Robert T. Jeffrey, M.D., who remained in Denny.
Second Minister. — WILLIAM SPROTT, from Stranraer (Bridge Street).
Ordained, 22nd October 1850. The stipend was to be ,£142 in all, and
the membership was 258. The first translating call Mr Sprott received was
in 1859 from Kilmalcolm, which he declined, but another of greater weight
from Pollokshaws was accepted, 3rd September 1861. Next April a call to
Mr Joseph Corbett was brought up to the Presbytery from Alexandria,
signed by 390 members, along with another from Kilcreggan, signed by 20
members, and Mr Corbett preferred the latter.
Third Minister. — WILLIAM JOHNSTON, from Leslie (now Trinity), where
he had been minister for ten years, and where he was beloved both for his
own and for his father's sake. Inducted, I7th March 1863. The member
ship was now put at 400, and the stipend was to be ^190. At the close of
1865 a manse was bought for ^875, and the debt cleared off in the course of
a twelvemonth. The ultimate cost was ^950, of which the Board paid ,£200.
Mr Johnston laboured on for nine years, but the Vale of Leven told upon his
health, and induced him to try the effects of a few months' sojourn in
Canada. Finding himself still unable to resume full work he intimated his
resignation from the other side, which was accepted, I5th October 1872.
On returning to Scotland Mr Johnston took charge of Cobbinshaw station
for a time, and after that was located at Wamphray for several years. This
proving too much for his declining strength, he retired in 1893, and since
then has resided in London. In 1889 Mr Johnston published a finely-toned
little volume, entitled " Light from Peniel," a quiet memento of his gifts and
graces.
Fourth Minister. — JAMES DRUMMOND, from Alva. Like their first
minister, Mr Drummond had other three calls — London (Oxendon), Douglas,
and Ardrossan, but again Alexandria got the preference. Ordained, 6th
May 1873. At the moderation nearly a third of the votes went to Mr
Archibald B. Cameron, now Dr Cameron of College Street, Edinburgh. In
1875 Mr Drummond declined Pollok Street, Glasgow, but on loth April
1877 he accepted Ryehill, Dundee.
Fifth Minister. — JAMES ALLISON, from Boston Church, Cupar, into
which he had been inducted seven years before. Admitted to Alexandria,
8th January 1878. There was a membership now of 444, and the stipend
was ^275, with the manse. Increase had been favoured by the growth of
the town, the population having nearly doubled itself since the congregation
began. In view of the jubilee celebration in 1892 Mr Allison drew up
" Reminiscences " of the congregation's fortunes during these fifty years,
and to this comprehensive outline of facts the present sketch has been much
indebted. One attractive feature brought out was that instead of being
"selfishly confined" the people were raising annually not less than ^160 a
year for missionary and benevolent purposes. On i6th February 1897
Mr Allison retired into the emeritus position, owing mainly to failure of eye
sight. Instead of an annual allowance the congregation were to give him a
slump sum, which came to much less than might have been expected, and
PRESBYTERY OF DUMBARTON 241
he was admitted to the benefits of the Aged and Infirm Ministers' Fund.
He then removed to Ayr, where he cast in his lot with the forming congre
gation of Trinity, and became a member of the original session. His son,
the Rev. D. J. Allison, is minister of Galston.
Sixth Minister. — JOHN MANSIE, M.A., from Aberdeen (St Nicholas')-
Ordained, 28th September 1897. The membership at the close of 1899 was
566, and the stipend .£275, with the manse.
CLYDEBANK (UNITED PRESBYTERIAN)
ON loth February 1874 the Presbytery of Glasgow arranged to have a
preaching station opened in the Dalmuir district on as early a day as
possible, and the name was changed soon after to that of Clydebank Union
Mission Station. The site first fixed on was about midway between the two
places, but the sessions of Duntocher and Kilpatrick having suggested to
remove nearer Clydebank, this was agreed to. On 8th September a con
gregation was formed on petition from 65 members of our own or of other
churches, and 39 hearers. On 8th April 1876 the memorial stone of a new
church was laid, the estimated cost being ,£2800.
First Minister. — ANDREW H. M'GREGOR, from Cumbernauld. Ordained,
1 7th August 1876. The call was signed by 72 members and 35 adherents,
and the people undertook £i 10 of stipend, which was made up to ,£200 in all.
In the end of 1879 there was a membership of 200, but owing to other
demands the people were only raising ^10 more for stipend than at first.
The population, however, which was about 1000 at the opening of the
station, increased rapidly through the prosperity of the shipbuilding trade,
so that in 1884 the church required enlargement, and the congregational
funds afforded a stipend of ^300, with ^50 for house rent. Mr M'Gregor
died, 2oth January 1892, after a period of broken health, and in the Pres
bytery minutes we find a tribute paid to his " unobtrusive Christian character
and devotion to the service of Christ." He was in the forty-second year of
his age and the sixteenth of his ministry. At his death the congregation had
a communion roll of 600.
Second Minister. — COLIN M. NlCOL, who had been four years in
Banchory. Inducted, gth August 1892, the stipend to be ^305, including
everything. In the following year the church was required for railway
purposes, and a new erection had to be arranged for on a site in the immediate
neighbourhood. It was opened, with 1000 sittings, on 8th October 1895 by
Dr MacEwen of Claremont Church, Glasgow, Lord Overtoun giving the
opening address. The entire cost was ^8750, but, ^5500 being got for the
old building and ,£1050 raised at the opening, the debt was computed at not
more than ^2000. This was reduced to ,£300 by the proceeds of a bazaar
held in 1900, a few weeks before the Union, and, the site having been pur
chased, the property may be described as unburdened. The stipend is now
^355, and there is a membership of 724.
RADNOR PARK (UNITED PRESBYTERIAN)
AT the close of 1882 Clydebank was one of the places in which Dumbarton
Presbytery considered there was room for Church Extension, but nothing
definite was done in that direction for several years. It was not till the
summer of 1888, when the congregation already established there took up
the matter, that an active beginning was made. Mission operations were
Q
*42 HISTORY OF U.P. CONGREGATIONS
now begun under their superintendence at Radnor Park, described as a new
township between Dalmuir and Clydebank, with a population of 1500, of
whom not more than one-third had any Church connection. For several
years the work was carried on in a kitchen, but in 1889 a hall was opened,
with accommodation for 270. There was a Sabbath evening attendance of
over loo, and a Sabbath school of 120, and from what they saw Clydebank
session looked on Radnor Park as a most hopeful field. Dumbarton Presby
tery entered heartily into the movement, and agreed to have a probationer
located there with a salary of ^100 a year, the Board granting £50 to meet
initial expenses. On nth March 1890 Radnor Park was recognised as a
regular preaching station, sealing ordinances to be enjoyed through Clyde-
bank session. On i4th October 104 members and 75 adherents had their
petition granted to be formed into a congregation.
First Minister. — WILLIAM O. BROWN, from Kent Road, Glasgow, who
had been in charge of the station from the beginning. Ordained, 2gth
January 1891, the call being signed by 102 members and 53 adherents. The
stipend from the people was to be ^80 in all to begin with, the minister to
receive ^55 of supplement, with ^20 for house rent, and his share of the
surplus. The hall in which they worshipped, with the ^150 of debt which
it carried, was now made over to the congregation by the session and
managers of Clydebank. A new church, with sittings for 600, was opened
by Dr Oliver, Moderator of Synod, on i6th March 1895, of which the cost
was ^2425. The debt was only about ^100 in addition to ^500 from the
Loan Fund. At the close of 1899 there was a membership of 244, and the
stipend was ^120 from the people, ,£30 from the Ferguson Bequest, and £10
of Supplement, which a half share of the surplus and the allowance for house
rent raised to ^193 in all.
CLYDEBANK, BANK STREET (UNITED PRESBYTERIAN)
ON 6th June 1896 the Presbytery of Dumbarton sanctioned the formation of
a new congregation at Clydebank, hired The Dining Hall at Yoker, a little way
to the east, for the commencing of evangelistic operations, and engaged one
of their own licentiates, Mr George Stirling, for a year at a salary of ^100.
The ministers and sessions of Clydebank and Radnor Park had previously
agreed to form a committee of management, and the Board had made a
grant of ^50 for initial expenses. The attendance at first was about 50, and
at the communion, under the supervision of Clydebank session, in the
following December, the members were only 22, of whom 13 had been ad
mitted by certificate and 9 by examination. Though the hall at Yoker was
not central enough, the work was carried on there for two and a half years,
and in arranging to build in a better position financial difficulties arose.
The Presbytery fixed the cost of the new hall at .£1800, but the Board could
not promise more than ^500, and wished the plans reduced to ,£1400. To
this change the Presbytery refused to agree, and stated that unless they were
sure of ;£8oo from the Central Fund they would have to consider whether the
station could be continued. An adjustment was come to, the Board consenting
to allow ^800, provided the Presbytery undertook to raise ^600 for the same
object. The condition was accepted, and ,£530 came in from the several
congregations within the bounds, Helensburgh, as usual, taking the lead, and
contributing more than all the others put together. A friend, who did not
wish his name to be known, made up what was wanting of the sum required,
so that the Home Board and the Presbytery of Dumbarton relieved Bank
Street to the extent of ,£1400 between them. Orders were now given to
proceed with the erection, and on 7th February 1899 a congregation of 79
243
members and 35 adherents was formed. Next month the provisional session
was superseded by the ordination of 4 elders. Mr Stirling had now laboured
diligently in this field for nearly three years, and the rules forbade a renewal
of the engagement at the end of that period. This opens up a new chapter
in the history of the congregation.
First Minister. — WILLIAM A. THOMSON, from Pleasance, Edinburgh.
After hearing a number of probationers the congregation unanimously selected
Mr Thomson to take Mr Stirling's place, and remain for at least six months.
The hall for which so much had been done was opened on the first Sabbath
of December 1899 by Professor Hislop, with sittings for 350. It is situated
a mile to the east of the mother church, while that of Radnor Park is three-
quarters of a mile to the north. A moderation was then applied for, and
Mr Thomson's ordination followed on 3Oth January 1900. There was a
membership now of 115, and the stipend from the people was to be ^75,
besides what might be got from the Ferguson Bequest. The Home Board
on their part were to grant a supplement of ^110 for the first year, ^90 for
the second, and ^70 for the third. It was found when all was over that the
hall had cost ,£2062, and that a debt remained of ^500 to the Henderson
Loan Fund, and also .£106 borrowed from a private party. This latter sum
the Presbytery hoped would be met by the congregation before the end of
the year. Such was the position of Bank Street congregation at the time of
the recent Union. The three churches in or near Clydebank must have
told largely for good on that new and important centre of population.
PRESBYTERY OF DUMFRIES
SANQUHAR, SOUTH (ANTIBURGHER)
THIS congregation links itself in its origin with the name of John Hepburn,
whose personal history will come in under Urr. He was the head of a large
party of Old Dissenters, whose strength lay in Nithsdale, and who at his
death in 1723 were left as sheep without a shepherd. In contending for the
renewing of the national covenants, and in testifying against manifold
corruptions in Church and State, he occupied similar ground to that taken
up by the Associate Presbytery, and hence he has been looked back on as
"The morning star of the Secession." His followers kept together after his
death, and were known as " The Praying Societies of the South and West."
In 1730 a deputation of their number waited on Thomas Boston, and after
they left he wrote : " I found them to be men having a sense of religion
upon their spirits, much affected with their circumstances as destitute of a
minister, endowed with a good measure of Christian charity and love, and of
a very different temper from Mr M'Millan's followers." They wished
fellowship in sealing ordinances with Boston and his two friends, Wilson of
Maxton and Davidson of Galashiels, but Boston could not in conscience
approve of their separation, and no terms were arrived at. " So we parted,"
he said, " on the morrow after, but with much affection and much heaviness
•on both sides." It was different when a letter of 4th March 1736, in name of
several of these societies, craving sympathy in their desolate condition, was
read to the Associate Presbytery. It was followed by a representation
and petition for sermon dated at Ulzieside on 5th January 1737. This was
near Sanquhar, which came to be fixed on as the seat of the first Secession
congregation in Dumfriesshire, though for some years there was sermon at
various places throughout the bounds.
244 HISTORY OF U.P. CONGREGATIONS
First Minister. — THOMAS BALLANTYNE, of whose early history there is
nothing known. Ordained, 22nd September 1742. After the call came out
a commissioner from Leslie wished the sustaining delayed, as the people
there were intent on securing Mr Ballantyne for their minister, but instead
of complying the Presbytery ended the matter by appointing him to
Sanquhar. It has been stated that the first church, with 450 sittings, was
built in 1742, but a stone on its front bore the date 1745. Ori his ordination
day Mr Ballantyne, though designated minister of the Associate congrega
tion of Nithsdale, declared himself unable to preach at more places of
worship than one, and the Presbytery recommended accordingly. He may
not have been in robust health, and he died, 28th February 1744, in the
thirtieth year of his age and second of his ministry. The lines on his tomb
stone bear the impress of Ralph Erskine's hand :
" This sacred herald, whose sweet mouth spread gospel truth abroad,
Like Timothy was but a youth, and yet a man of God."
At the Breach three years after this the congregation was still vacant,
and a petition in their name, which came before the Antiburgher Presbytery
of Edinburgh on the 8th July 1747, makes manifest which side they took. It
ran thus : " They cannot, in consistency with the word of God and the
testimony they formerly espoused, make any further application to the
Burgher Presbytery of Glasgow." It was natural that John Hepburn's
followers and their descendants should take rigid ground, and for their con
firmation Adam Gib was appointed to preach to them on the last Wednesday
of that month.
Second Minister. — JOHN GOODLET, a licentiate of Edinburgh Presbytery.
Called also to the united congregation of Kilbride and Lesmahagow, but
Sanquhar was unanimously preferred. Ordained, 22nd March 1749. Died,
2nd February 1775, in the twenty-sixth year of his ministry. Mr Goodlet
published a sermon preached at the ordination of Mr Jamieson of Glasgow
in 1753, entitled "The Vanity of Dreams exposed," a very judicious perform
ance, though not much in keeping with the special work of the day. He
was also the author of a pamphlet in defence of the Antiburghers against
the Burghers and the Cameronians.
Third Minister. — ANDREW THOMSON, from Howgate. Ordained, 22nd
August 1776. The Synod preferred this call to another from Hamilton.
Died, 27th September 1815, in the seventy-second year of his age and
fortieth of his ministry. Mr Thomson was the father of the Rev. James
Thomson, Holm of Balfron, and the grandfather of Dr Andrew Thomson,
Broughton Place, Edinburgh. Dr Edmond has described Mr Thomson as
"an excellent preacher, with a singularly powerful and melodious voice."
He married a sister of the Rev. Patrick Comrie of Penicuik.
Fourth Minister. — JAMES REID, from Newmilns. Ordained, loth January
1816. Mr Reid had been called at intervals to Newmilns, Errol, Crieff, and
Moniaive, but he was hard to satisfy. The Synod having appointed him to
be ordained at Moniaive, he refused to obey, and while matters were in this
state he was about to be called to Lockerbie, but by the Presbytery's advice
the moderation was not proceeded with. In the end he was allowed to
accept Sanquhar, where he laboured long and to appearance successfully. In
April 1836 Mr Reid, though several years under sixty, tendered his demission,
a step which the Presbytery deprecated, preferring to see the charge made
collegiate. The congregation wished delay, and required constant supply
meanwhile. Then they agreed that Mr Reid should continue senior
minister, retaining the manse, garden, and field, with an allowance of .£20 a
PRESBYTERY OF DUMFRIES 245
year, and sacramental expenses, an arrangement with which he expressed
cheerful acquiescence. The stipend of the colleague was to be ^100, includ
ing everything.
Fifth Minister. — DAVID M. GROOM, from Perth (South). Ordained, loth
January 1838. The call was signed by 185 members and 16 adherents.
Mr Croom, who was exceptionally popular, had calls in 1841 to Broughton
Place, Edinburgh, and to Regent Place, Glasgow, but he remained in
Sanquhar, and that year the present church, with sittings for 500, was built.
Mr Reid died at Lanark, 9th February 1849, in the sixty-ninth year of his
age and thirty-fourth of his ministry. Mr Croom was loosed from his
charge on accepting a call to Portsburgh, Edinburgh, i8th May 1852. At
the time of the Atonement Controversy he published a pamphlet on the
" New View" side, entitled " Harmony and State of Doctrine in the Secession
Church," characterised by the vigorous directness of his spoken address.
In the early part of the following year the congregation called Mr W. M.
Taylor, afterwards Dr Taylor of New York, but he gave the preference to
Kilmaurs, assigning as a reason the want of a liberal spirit at Sanquhar —
the stipend promised being only ,£no, to which were added a manse and
garden, with glebe, and travelling as well as sacramental expenses. They
next called Mr James Hill, who accepted Scone. The stipend was then
raised to .£130, and in 1857 to ^150.
Sixth Minister. — FORBES K. Ross, from Stranraer (Bellevilla), a brother
of the Rev. William Ross, Embleton, Northumberland. The only rival call
in this case was from Swalwell, a place of little account. Mr Ross was
ordained, loth January 1854, but within three years he was laid aside from
all ministerial work owing to mental disease. The pastoral relation was
dissolved, 5th November 1856, the congregation agreeing to give him ^60
either at once or in three yearly payments of ^20. He died in Morningside
Asylum, 2ist February 1860, in the thirty-first year of his age.
In 1857 Mr Thomas Miller was called to Sanquhar (South), but he pre
ferred Wilson Church, Perth.
Seventh Minister. — MATTHEW CRAWFORD, from Kilbarchan, who had
been previously called to Alva, Lanark (Bloomgate), Haddington (East), and
Springburn. Ordained, 26th January 1858. Invitations to remove to other
spheres were declined — Pollokshaws in 1861, and Bradford, and Lothian
Road, Edinburgh, in 1865 — but on 2nd February 1869 he accepted Duke
Street, Glasgow (now Cathedral Square).
Eighth Minister. — JOHN SELLAR, from Keith, who, like his predecessor,
was in large request when a probationer, having been called to Barrow-in-
Furness, Leith (St Andrew's Place), and Stirling (View-field). Ordained, 26th
April 1870. Loosed, 3rd December 1878, on accepting a call to the newly-
formed congregation of Regent Street, Portobello.
Ninth Minister. — MATTHEW DICKIE, M.A., from Kilwinning, a nephew
of the Rev. Andrew Dickie, Aberdeen, and the Rev. Matthew Dickie, Bristol.
In this case also there had been a number of openings besides, these
being Freuchie, Banchory, Birkenhead (Grange Road), and Paisley (Oakshaw
Street). Ordained, 28th October 1879. Seven years after this the congre
gation received an important addition to its resources by an endowment of
over ^4000 — the bequest of an Australian gentleman, a native of Sanquhar.
He directed that the interest should go to the minister over and above the
stipend paid by the people, which was ,£200 with the manse. At the close
of 1899 the membership was 159.
246 HISTORY OF U.P. CONGREGATIONS
SANQUHAR, NORTH (BURGHER)
IN April 1815 the Burgher Synod allowed Lanark Presbytery ,£10 for the
conducting of evangelistic services in the counties of Lanark and Dumfries.
In this way the Rev. John Brown of Biggar preached a Sabbath at Sanquhar
that summer, and his father, the Rev. John Brown of Whitburn, also preached
at Leadhills. To these circumstances the origin of this congregation is to be
ascribed. On I7th October 1815 Mr Glen of Annan stated to the Presbytery
of Dumfries that he had officiated at Sanquhar on a particular Sabbath, and
found that continuance of sermon was anxiously desired. With this the
process began which ended in the formation of Sanquhar, North. Strangely
enough, a seemingly antagonistic movement was entered on about the same
time. On I4th November of that year a petition with 100 names was
presented to the Relief Presbytery of Dumfries to be recognised as a forming
congregation. Accordingly, Mr Paterson of Wamphray preached in San
quhar on the fourth Sabbath of that month, and along with another member
of Presbytery met with the applicants next day. In a few weeks managers
were chosen, and measures adopted for the erection of a place of worship.
Thus far it looked as if the Relievers had been shooting ahead of the
Burghers, and getting prior possession of any open ground there was. But
a sudden collapse came. Appointments were made for three Sabbaths in
July and August 1816, but the people declined supply for these days, and the
name occurs no more in the records of Dumfries Relief Presbytery. The
services of unacceptable preachers may have led to the enterprise being
abandoned. But the Burghers held on, and that year they were congregated
with a membership of 48, absorbing, probably, a fair proportion of the rival
party. In 1818 their first church was built at a cost of ,£354. In the follow
ing year they called Mr David M. Inglis, but the Synod appointed him to
Stockbridge, Berwickshire.
First Minister. — ROBERT SIMPSON, from Edinburgh (Bristo), but brought
up in the Established Church, and joined the Secession when a student. In
April 1820 the call from Sanquhar, which had lain over for nine months,
came before the Synod along with another from Duns (West). The young
congregation was now to be preferred, though it had the signatures of
only 90 members to show in contrast with 542, and though Mr Simpson
expressed by letter his sentiments in favour of Duns. The Synod pronounced
for Sanquhar, and he was ordained there, i6th May 1820. From the report
given in by Mr Simpson to the Commissioners on Religious Instruction
sixteen years afterwards it appears that he had not much reason to regret
the decision. The population had grown considerably during that period,
and the communicants numbered 240. More accommodation having been
required, a gallery, with accommodation for 200, had been erected in 1833,
making 500 sittings in all. The minister's stipend was ,£106, including
expenses, and a manse had been built for him in 1826 at an outlay of almost
/30o. The two Secession congregations had each about 90 persons, old
and young, from the parish of Kirkconnel at this time, and nearly half that
number from the parish of Durrisdeer. Mr Simpson had sixteen families
from beyond six miles. In 1848, when the church had been newly painted,
decorated, and freed from debt, disaster came. Cracks in the plaster were
followed by a rent in one of the walls. Coal workings had sealed the doom
of the house in which their fathers worshipped, and another, with 550 sittings,
was built next year at a cost of over ,£800, the burden of which had to be
borne by the congregation. As Mr Simpson's ministry advanced he became
widely known for his writings on the struggles of covenanting times. It
PRESBYTERY OF DUMFRIES 247
may be enough to specify his " Traditions of the Covenanters," which ap
peared in two volumes, the first in 1843 and the second in 1846, and there
are four or five others in the same line, and all inspired by the same spirit.
The author received the degree of D.D., from Princeton College, New Jersey,
in 1853. Dr Simpson took no part in the Atonement Controversy, but that
did not prevent several of the elders and members of the North Church
taking the lead in the setting up of an E.U. church in Sanquhar in 1863.
The Rev. James Ross states that the originators "were opposed to the
Calvinism preached by the ministers." Inquiry brings out that Dr Simpson
exchanged one Sabbath with the Free Church minister, who took for his
subject Ezekiel's Valley of Dry Bones. In his discourse the preacher may
not have gone beyond the Calvinism of the Apostle Paul when he wrote of
men being " dead in trespasses and sins," but what he said was too much for
some of his hearers, who rose and left. The building of a church, with 300
sittings, followed, and the Rev. George Gladstone was their first minister.
After he went to Glasgow they had four others within sixteen years, with one
or two big intervals between. Dr Simpson died, 8th July 1867, in the seventy-
sixth year of his age and forty-eighth of his ministry. Next year a granite
obelisk, costing about ,£100, was erected to his memory, and stands in front
of the church.
Second Minister. — JAMES HAY SCOTT, from Melrose. Called also to
Leeds, Wolverhampton, and Biggar (Moat Park). Ordained at Sanquhar,
2nd June 1868. The manse had been renovated and enlarged shortly before
this at an outlay of ^450, of which the Board paid one-third. The popu
lation of the parish, which in 1851 was over 4000, is now about 2300, and the
two U.P. congregations have suffered in proportion. The South, which had
fully 320 communicants in 1836, is now a unit under half that number, and the
North gives 154 instead of 240, while the Free church, with 450 in 1843, nas
decreased to 200. Mr Scott's stipend from the people in 1899 was ,£130,
with the manse. In February 1898 Mr Scott was gazetted as acting Chaplain
to the Queen's Own Scottish Borderers, an honour which befits an ecclesi
astical descendant of John Hepburn, and links itself with the Sanquhar of
a former day.
URR (ANTIBURGHER)
JOHN HEPBURN, already referred to under Sanquhar (South), entered on his
ministry at Urr in 1680, and continued as circumstances would allow during
the eight troubled years which followed. He had been privately ordained
over a Presbyterian congregation in London at an earlier time. After the
Revolution Settlement Urr became his stated field of labour. In 1693 he
gave in a paper of grievances to the Synod of Dumfries, and for his freedom
in condemning the backslidings of the Church, and for preaching and
baptising beyond his own parish, he was suspended from office in 1696, a
sentence which he disregarded. He was afterwards banished for three years
from Urr, but in 1699 he was allowed to return. In 1705 he was deposed
from the ministry by the Commission for refusing to take the Oath of
Allegiance to Queen Anne, but the sentence was removed in 1707. His
people kept by him all through, and no minister was thrust into his place.
He died on 23rd March 1723, being about seventy-four years of age. In the
spirit of the first Seceders he set himself to stem the defections of the times,
but Wodrow says that towards the end of his course he pleaded for unity and
peace. His son, of the same name, became minister of Torryburn in 1717,
and fraternised with the judicatories of the Church as his father never did.
He was translated to New Greyfriars, Edinburgh, in 1723. But others of
248 HISTORY OF U.P. CONGREGATIONS
Mr Hepburn's descendants were identified with the Secession. A grandson
of his, the Rev. William M'George, was the first minister of the Antiburgher
church, Midcalder, and a granddaughter, Emelia M'George, was Adam Gib's
second wife.
A large proportion of Urr people acceded early to the Associate Presby
tery. Supply of sermon they shared with other societies in Nithsdale from
1 738, and three years afterwards they were recognised as a regular congrega
tion. In 1743 their first church was built, and in 1745 they called Mr John
Swanston to be their minister. Presbytery and Synod did what they could
for them, but Mr Swanston was resolute against accepting. He was under
call to Stitchell, his native place, at the time, but his attitude towards Urr
does not seem to have been prompted by a wish to settle down among home
scenes. The case kept pending till after the breach of 1747, when con
gregation and preacher parted asunder, Urr adhering to the Antiburghers
and Mr Swanston to the Burghers.
First Minister. — JOHN MILLIGAN, from Sanquhar (South). Ordained,
1 6th September 1748. In his time the congregation must have drawn
largely from other parishes, as the Old Statistical History towards the close
of his ministry makes the number of Seceding families in Urr only about
thirty. We have the compiler's testimony to Mr Milligan, that he was " a
gentleman, equally venerable as a minister, and respectable as a citizen."
In November 1794 constant supply was needed, Mr Milligan being "frail
and unfit to perform ministerial functions as formerly." He died, 26th
January 1795, m the forty-seventh year of his ministry, and "aged about
eighty." He left two sons-in-law members of the Antiburgher Synod — the
Rev. Robert Colville, Lauder, and the Rev. Robert Forsyth, Craigend.
During the vacancy which followed dissension arose about the new
church which there was a proposal to build. The first had been superseded
in 1760, and now a third was required. But difficulties were got over, and
the work gone through in 1798 at a cost of ,£400. Before this the pulpit
was filled anew.
Second Minister. — JAMES BiGGAR, a native of Urr, who had been
ordained at Newtonards in preference to Wigtown and Auchtermuchty
(North), 1 3th April 1785, much against his will. He resigned, and was
loosed from his charge, I5th June 1797. Having returned to Scotland he was
forthwith invited to minister among his own people, and his induction to Urr
took place on I7th August. The stipend at first is not given, but in 1806
the congregation was prepared " to allow ^80, to pay the house and horse
tax, with manse, office-houses, and garden." Mr Biggar's ministry ended
in painful circumstances. In 1813 a woman who had been his servant
eleven years before set about blackmailing him by threats of ruining his
character. The Presbytery, judging from the papers read, pronounced the
charge " a groundless and malignant calumny," but, finding that his assailant,
a woman of notoriously bad character, had received money from him at
different times, they subjected him to admonition for imprudence, and hoped
they were thus ending the case. But commotion arose among his people,
and the session of Lockerbie struck in, declaring it would not be for edifica
tion to have Mr Biggar assisting at their approaching communion. He
now expressed to the Presbytery his willingness to resign owing to the state
of feeling in his own and neighbouring congregations. On aoth July 1814
two papers came up from Urr, the one from four elders, wishing Mr Biggar
retained among them, and the other from two elders and twenty members,
declaring themselves aggrieved by the way in which their pastor had acted.
The majority of the Presbytery were of opinion that it would be better for
him to resign, but he wished time for consideration.
PRESBYTERY OF DUMFRIES 249
At next meeting Mr Biggar read a paper, the purport of which was that
he found himself obliged to hold by his pulpit, at least for the time. He
further alleged that a combination against him, originating in prejudice and
malice, "was backed and supported by some members of court." On 7th
November two elders, friendly to Mr Biggar, admitted that, as near as they
could judge from the seat-letting, 108 members were attending church, and
167 absenting themselves. The Presbytery were unanimously of opinion
now that it was expedient to counsel resignation, and the clerk was to write
Mr Biggar to that effect, but for other six months he preached on to those
who were willing to hear him. In April 1815 the case came before the
Synod, and the decision arrived at was altogether in favour of the accused.
Nothing, they said, had appeared in the papers to affect his pastoral relation
to Urr. The woman was utterly unworthy of credit, and her allegations were
even self-contradictory, and it was the duty of the congregation to submit to
his ministry. All well thus far, but it did not go very far. On I5th June
it was suggested that Mr Biggar might demit, on condition of having all
arrears of stipend paid up to him, and the interest of ,£400 of mortified
money settled on him for life. With this proposal he expressed his satisfac
tion, and the matter being brought before the congregation they unani
mously agreed to the terms laid down. The pastoral tie was accordingly
dissolved on 2nd August 1815. Mr Biggar died on 4th November 1820, "at
his house near Haugh of Urr," in the seventy-third year of his age and
thirty-sixth of his ministry. The above particulars have been given on
account of what followed, and the lesson it teaches. The accuser, I have
been assured, confessed on her death-bed that the charge was a sheer
fabrication, but the bitter fruits had been reaped, and the injured party was
gone beyond recall.
Third Minister. — JAMES BLYTH, from Abernethy. Ordained, 2nd Sep
tember 1817. During his four years of preacher life Mr Blyth had note
worthy experiences. First he was called to Kinkell, but the call to settle
down there came to nothing. Rothesay followed, but his mind was unbend
ingly fixed against accepting, and after months of converse with him the
Presbytery allowed him to take his own way. In 1816 Moniaive came for
ward, and the same scene was enacted again, the congregation ending the
matter by applying for another moderation. Stranger still, Mr Blyth was
twice laid under suspension by different Presbyteries, though in neither case
was there more than friction with his ecclesiastical superiors. Thus, when
the call from Urr was brought before Dumfries Presbytery, he got notice to
attend next meeting, that he might intimate his acceptance, but he neither
obeyed nor sent an apology. Not till he had been three times written to did
he appear. Asked if he had received the several summonses sent him by
the clerk, he said he had received three letters, " and also made several
quibbling remarks respecting the nature of a summons." Asked further why
he did not answer the first letter, "his reply was that he considered such a
question unworthy to be put, or to receive any answer." He had done
nothing, he said, warranting the Presbytery to interrogate him as if he were
a culprit and evil-doer. Finding they could get nothing from Mr Blyth but
abusive, insolent language, they were unanimously of opinion that it was
vain to deal with him further. The question was now put whether to refer
the case to the Synod or suspend him on the spot, and the latter proposal
carried. The case, however, came before the Synod in May 1817, when the
offence was slurred over, and Mr Blyth was allowed to accept the call from
Urr. It is remarkable that something similar happened with Mr Blyth in
Stirling Presbytery two or three years before, when for self-willed behaviour
he was precluded from the exercise of his licence.
250 HISTORY OF U.P. CONGREGATIONS
The 6th of February 1823 was Mr Blyth's marriage-day, and this was for
him the beginning of sorrows. In 1830 Urr congregation found themselves
unable to pay the full stipend, which was 100 guineas, with manse, garden,
the payment of taxes, and the annual rate for the Widows' Fund. By-and-
by an evil which lay deep down in family life came formally before the
Presbytery. It was reported that Mr Blyth had expelled Mrs Blyth from his
manse, the dark catalogue of her offences being "habitual drunkenness,
habitual lying, violence to his person and property, and threatening to poison
him." After investigation the Presbytery found that on the whole Mr Blyth
was exonerated from blame in effecting a separation from his wife " even in
the painful way he had recourse to." But this decision neither repaired the
minister's shattered health nor restored him to public usefulness. In August
1831 Urr congregation was suffering through Mr Blyth's illness and his
absence from his flock. A year later he was still ailing. He had removed
to Perth before this, and on 4th February 1833 his resignation was accepted.
What provision was made for him by his people is not stated, but they were
to do what they could, alike for their own honour and Christian feeling, and
for his comfort. In 1835 Mr Blyth was stationed for some time at Balfour
station, within the bounds of Perth Presbytery, where, as the mission report
bears, he was highly acceptable. We only know further that he heired his
father, a joiner in Abernethy, in 1841, and Dr M'Kelvie states that he died
at Perth in 1844, in the sixtieth year of his age.
Fourth Minister. — WILLIAM PULLAR, from Barrhead, a brother of the
Rev. James Pullar, Glenluce. Ordained, loth July 1834. Had been pre
viously called to Carliol Street, Newcastle (afterwards Barras Bridge). Dis
comfort having speedily arisen, Mr Pullar resigned, 2nd November 1835, and
was loosed from his charge on the i8th of that month. He demitted,
according to the Minutes of Presbytery, on the ground of general dissatisfac
tion with his ministry, and the dissolving of the connection was "anxiously
and equally desired by both parties." In 1845 ^r Pullar applied to the
Established Church Assembly for admission, but was refused. During five
of the years which had intervened his name is found on the United Secession
list of probationers. He died at Edinburgh, 3rd April 1871, in the seventy-
seventh year of his age.
The congregation now called Mr James R. Dalrymple, who declined, and
became minister of Thornliebank.
Fifth Minister. — WILLIAM BURGESS, M.A., from Annan, a nephew of
the Rev. Dr John Stewart of Liverpool and the Rev. David Stewart of Stir
ling. Called also to Dumfries (Loreburn Street). Ordained, 24th November
1836. Accepted a call to Eglinton Street, Glasgow, i3th April 1842. At
the time of Mr Burgess' ordination the communicants were about 230, and
the stipend promised was ^90, with manse and garden. The debt on the
property was only ,£68.
Sixth Minister. — DAVID WILSON BAYNE, from Balbeggie. Ordained,
4th April 1843. When the call was announced in the public prints
Mr Bayne was described as Master of the Burgh Academy at Forfar. The
stipend was to be ^90, with house, garden, and sacramental expenses.
After Mr Bayne had been nine years in Urr rumours affecting his character
for sobriety, and otherwise, were brought before Dumfries Presbytery by
himself with a request for investigation. The case was taken up, and in
quiry went on amidst confusion and dust. A meeting was held in Un
church on 3rd August 1852, when five members of the congregation were
dealt with for having circulated reports prejudicial to their minister's good
name. It was a futile attempt to cork up infected air. When the case was
going on some of Mr Bayne's old fellow-students befriended him to the
PRESBYTERY OF DUMFRIES 251
utmost of their power, Dr James Taylor, in particular, appearing on the
scene, all eagerness, no doubt, to get at the facts and see justice done.
With difficulty a sentence of suspension was arrived at, and after conflicting
verdicts had been pronounced the case was referred to the Synod. On 5th
May 1853 a Synodical Committee in conjunction with Dumfries Presbytery
subjected Mr Bayne to rebuke for " sinful imprudence " on a particular night,
removed the sentence of suspension, and accepted his demission of his
charge. Without stating all this in the report given in to the Synod, they
recommended that his name should be placed on the list of probationers
whenever he should apply for it.
When Mr Bayne was in location at Kinkell, two and a half years after
this, Perth Presbytery had to take up some scandalous reports of misconduct
on his part very similar to those which went before. The accused had a
resolute defender in the Rev. William Marshall of Coupar-Angus, but it
was a desperate attempt to confuse moral issues in the face of the clearest
light. The Presbytery's verdict being hostile to Mr Bayne, both he and
his clerical advocate appealed to the Synod, who found the charge of
intemperance and lewdness proved in the main, and the Presbytery of
Perth on 3rd June 1856 declared him cut off from the office of the ministry
and from the communion of the U.P. Church. " Mr William Marshall
craved to have it marked that his views of Mr Bayne's case being unchanged
he has taken no part in the censure thereby inflicted." Mr Bayne was served
heir to his father, a farmer in Collace parish, three months after this. He had
now removed to Newcastle, where he died among stranger hands, 3 1 st July 1875,
in the seventy-first year of his age. A friend writes me : " Though not person
ally acquainted with him, I have a distinct recollection of seeing him going
about, reminding me of Bewick's picture, 'Waiting for Death.'"
Urr congregation during this vacancy called Mr James Hill, who pre
ferred Scone.
Seventh Minister. — JAMES BLACK, from Duns (West). Ordained, loth
October 1854. The stipend was to be ^105, with manse, garden, and other
premises. Mr Black accepted a call to St Andrews, 6th May 1857.
Eiglith Minister. — JOHN CLARK, from Kincardine-on-Forth. Got licence
in the Free Church, but applied in March 1858 to Edinburgh Presbytery to
be received as a probationer into the U.P. Church. "The letter expressed
the dissatisfaction of the applicant with the manner in which the claims
and privileges of preachers are treated in the body with which he has been
connected." On the same ground another Free Church probationer had
made a like transition the year before. The complaint was that, apart from
clerical recommendations, a preacher had very rarely a chance of being
heard in a Free Church vacancy. Edinburgh Presbytery on receiving de
cided testimony to Mr Clark's natural abilities, Christian deportment, and
acceptability as a preacher, recommended his application to the Synod, by
whom it was granted, and within five months he received a unanimous call
to Urr. Ordained, 23rd December 1858. The communion roll had recently
sustained a reduction by the loss of the families from about Dalbeattie, who
had gone to form a new congregation there, but the stipend was kept as
before. In 1865 the manse was rebuilt, at a cost of ^650, of which the
people raised ^405, and the Board granted ,£245. Mr Clark died, 26th
August 1886, after a painful and lingering illness, in the fifty-eighth year of
his age and twenty-eig'hth of his ministry. His son, the Rev. James G.
Clark, is minister at Gatehouse.
Ninth Minister. — WILLIAM STORRAR, from Bethelfield, Kirkcaldy.
Ordained, I5th February 1887. The membership was 127, but the popula
tion was on the steady decline. Mr Storrar's last winter was spent at the
252 HISTORY OF U.P. CONGREGATIONS
Canary Islands, from which he returned home to die. The end came on
20th April 1896, in the thirty-fourth year of his age and tenth of his ministry.
A discourse of his on " Christian Abstinence " was published by the Scottish
Temperance League.
7*enth Minister. — DAVID B. ALEXANDER, B.D., from Partick (Newton
Place). Ordained, 22nd September 1896. At the close of 1899 the member
ship was 108, and the stipend from the people was ,£80, with the manse.
DUMFRIES, LOREBURN STREET (ANTIBURGHER)
THE origin of the earliest Secession congregation in Dumfries is traced back
indirectly to an obnoxious settlement in the parish of Troqueer, which comes
close in to the provincial town. Mr James Purcell was presented by the
Crown to the vacant charge in September 1732, but the entire session and
a great part of the parishioners favoured Mr James Ritchie, who had been
assistant for four years to the former incumbent. The Presbytery intervened
on behalf of popular rights, but Mr Purcell was ordained by a " Riding-
Committee" on igth April 1734, under the authority of the Commission.
The General Assembly met a few weeks afterwards, and was in the reform
ing mood, but the presentee was already in full possession of the benefice,
and the people were in a state of dispersion. Some of their number, it is
understood, ultimately connected themselves with the congregation of
Lockerbie, where sermon was obtained from the Associate Presbytery in
1738.
The name of Dumfries is found nowhere in the old Secession records till
after the breach of 1747, and it was the Burghers who appeared first on the
ground. A few families had left the Antiburgher congregation of San-
quhar at that time, and applied for sympathy and sermon to the other
party. This led the Burgher Presbytery of Glasgow to send occasional
supply to Sanquhar and Dumfries from the beginning of 1753 till 1756, when
these places were handed over to the care of Edinburgh Presbytery, and
were to come in for sermon when preachers were sent to Ecclefechan. But
the Antiburgher cause now came to the front, and some time between 1757
and 1760 Loreburn congregation was formed, the first church having been
built, it is understood, in the latter of those years. The Burgher cause in
Dumfries now passed out of notice for half-a-century.
First Minister. — THOMAS HERBERTSON, of whose antecedents we know
nothing. Called also to Kilwinning, but appointed by the Synod to Dumfries,
where he was ordained, 29th September 1761. The call was signed by 28
(male) members and 27 adherents. Closeburn, twelve miles to the north, was
now joined to Dumfries, the minister to preach there every third Sabbath.
Mr Herbertson died, 6th August 1762, in the thirty-fifth year of his age and
first of his ministry.
Second Minister. — WILLIAM INGLIS, from Leslie (West), a congregation
in which the family name figured from the first. Ordained, I2th March
1765. In July of next year two societies about Dalton petitioned Lockerbie
session for a disjunction, that they might be annexed to Dumfries. The case
came before the Presbytery, and the request is certain to have been granted.
In 1806 Mr Inglis had a stipend of ^uo, with a dwelling-house, and in 1807
the congregation petitioned for a constant supply of young men. This issued
in a unanimous call to Mr William Bruce, whom the Synod appointed to
Bathgate, where we shall meet him again. The uprise of a Burgher congre
gation in Dumfries may have hastened the movement for a colleague.
Third Minister.— JAMES CLYDE, from Perth (North). Ordained, 2ist
PRESBYTERY OF DUMFRIES 253
June 1810. "The helper "was to have ^100, with the expectation of other
£10 when a house should be needed, and the income of the senior minister
was not to be reduced. Next year Mr Clyde married a daughter of Mr
Inglis, and thus the dangers incident to a collegiate charge were minimised.
The senior colleague took one of the three Sabbath services till 1823, but
after that date he withdrew from all pulpit work, except at communion times.
He died, loth May 1826, in the eighty-fifth year of his age and sixty-second of
his ministry. His son, the Rev. James Inglis, was minister of Midholm. The
tradition that the poet Burns frequently attended Loreburn Street Church
when residing in Dumfries, and gave as the reason that Mr Inglis preached
what he believed, and practised what he preached, is confirmed from so
many sides that we may venture to take it as substantially correct.
In 1829 a new church, with sittings for 577, was built at a cost of ^900.
Mr Clyde subscribed nearly a half-year's stipend for this purpose, and had
reason to regret that the example of liberality which he set was not better
followed by his people, so that the erection entailed a heavy burden of debt.
In 1836 he had a membership of 309, of whom nearly one half were
from other parishes, Troqueer taking the lead, followed by Torthorwald,
Terregles, Kirkmahoe, Holywood, and several others. About twenty-four
families came from beyond four miles. The stipend was ^120, with house
and garden. That year a colleague was resolved on, but the congregation
was twice disappointed — first, through Mr William Burgess accepting Urr,
and second, through Mr Robert Wardrop, whose health had compelled him
to decline Tay Square, Dundee, three years before, finding himself still
unable to undertake a pastoral charge.
Fourth Minister. — DAVID L. SCOTT, from Dalreoch. Called also to
Newtyle and to Cumbernauld. Ordained, 29th May 1838. Mr Clyde was
to have ^70 a year, with the manse, and his colleague ^100. It proved too
much, and in the early part of 1844 Mr Scott resigned, pleading imperative
necessity owing to the state of the funds. At next meeting the congregation
intimated that they would offer no opposition, as they were unable to support
two ministers. Mr Clyde thereupon expressed his willingness to submit to
any reduction of salary which might be found necessary, and in the end
it was agreed that he should have ^20 a year, with the manse as before.
He now left the work of the congregation in the hands of Mr Scott,
who withdrew his demission, only Mr Clyde reserved the right as senior
minister to preside at each alternate communion. He died, 7th March 1851,
in the seventy-fifth year of his age and forty-first of his ministry. From a
shaded, but well-put, biographical notice of Mr Clyde which appeared in the
U.P. Magazine we learn that he had all along to struggle with the dis
advantages of a blunted memory, — the effect of a fever through which he
passed in boyhood. This was a serious matter in days when there was no
tolerance for the manuscript, or even for notes, in the Secession pulpit.
Mr Clyde's son, Dr James Clyde, got licence in 1843, but after a year of
probationer life he turned to educational work, in which he reached dis
tinction. In 1856 he was appointed teacher of modern languages in Dollar
Academy, and next year he received the degree of LL.D. from Glasgow
University. In 1861 he was elected to a classical mastership in Edinburgh
Academy, where he remained till age came on. He still resides in
Edinburgh.
Fifth Minister. — GEORGE RAE, M.A., from Blackfriars, Jedburgh. Or
dained as colleague to Mr Scott, 4th June 1872. The call was signed by
205 members and 26 adherents. The stipend was to be ^195, with a manse,
the senior minister to have ,£70. On igth April 1880 Mr Rae accepted a
call to succeed the Rev. David M'Rae at Gourock.
254 HISTORY OF U.P CONGREGATIONS
Sixth Minister. — GEORGE W. URE, from Cumbernauld. Ordained, I7th
March 1881. The stipend was to be ,£200, with ^30 for a manse and ex
penses, and the membership was 285. Mr Scott died, 2nd April 1883, in
the seventy-sixth year of his age and forty-fifth of his ministry. His co-
presbyters made mention in their records of his " keen intellectual penetration,
his clear and forcible expression, and his thorough consecration to his
Master's service." At the close of 1899 Loreburn Street Church had a
membership of 323, and Mr Ure's stipend, which had been raised from ^230
to ,£280 at his colleague's death, was now ^300. The manse had been
disposed of 25 years before.
TOWNHEAU (RELIEF)
SERMON was appointed to Dumfries by the Relief Presbytery of Glasgow
in October 1787 for the first time. This was in answer to a petition from
a numerous body of people craving supply. Next year a church was built,
with accommodation for 800, on its front the inscription : " Christo et
ecclesiae liberte dicata" — Dedicated to Christ and an emancipated Church.
In January 1789 they called Mr Kirkwood, who had opened the station
fifteen months before, but he was not prepared to leave Strathaven.
First Minister. — JOHN LAWSON, originally a licentiate of the Church
of Scotland, who had been ordained at Spittal in 1781. The congregation
was described as " Protestant Dissenting," but in 1784 minister and people
were received into connection with the Relief. Mr Lawson was inducted
to Dumfries on i8th March 1790. His stipend was to be ^80, but if he
preached on Sabbath evenings he would receive other £10 for house rent.
Several of the members had been formerly in the eldership, so that a session
was formed at once. But though all looked fair at the beginning the re
lation came prematurely, and in notable circumstances, to an end. In
March 1807 the Presbytery of Dumfries was called to deal with intertangled
differences arising from the minister having persisted in wearing a pulpit
gown when conducting divine service. A committee of inquiry found that
both parties had discovered too much heat of spirit. They advised the
minister to lay aside "the cloak" and acknowledge faults of temper, but
he was not prepared for this. The case being referred to the Synod, that
court expressed regret that such an unhappy division and so much animosity
should have arisen from a very trifling circumstance. But Mr Lawson, they
held, had acted imprudently in attempting to prevent the managers and
congregation from holding a meeting in the church, and also in having ex
pressed himself with too much heat on several occasions. Then they turned
and dealt out blame to the opposition party with equal fulness. In February
1808 there was a further development by the appearing of commissioners
before the Presbytery, requesting a moderation for a colleague and successor
to Mr Lawson, as owing to infirm health he was unable to discharge the
duties of his office. A letter was also read from Mr Lawson intimating
that he intended to resign as soon as the call was accepted, the managers
having promised him ^60 a year so long as he was unprovided with another
church.
Second Minister. — ANDREW FYFE, translated from Biggar (South), where
he had been ordained less than a year before. Inducted, igth May 1808,
and Mr Lawson's demission was accepted at the close of the service. The
people promised well, the stipend named being ^180, with ^2, IDS. for each
communion, besides the allowance of ^60 to the former minister. The call
was signed by 14 elders and managers and by 36 communicants, the names
PRESBYTERY OF DUMFRIES 255
of prominent members sufficing under the Relief system, who were understood
to become responsible for the emoluments. Mr Lawson was for three years
a minister at large. In November 1809 he was appointed to preach at
Riccarton, Kilmarnock, for six months, where he did good work, and in 1811
he got uncomfortably settled at Dundee.
For a number of years Mr Fyfe's stipend, by his own account, kept at
^120, and there was also a manse, but the congregation was in a state of
decline, and for some years prior to 1835 all that remained for him, after
satisfying necessary demands, was ,£60 or ^70. Then the Presbytery of
Dumfries reported to the Synod " that the congregation of Dumfries, with
the consent of Mr Fyfe, are receiving regular supply of sermon from pro
bationers," and Dr Struthers explains that their plan was to have a helper
and successor to carry on, with talent and ability, the dispensation of religious
ordinances. The communion roll was down now to 217, but instead of going
on for a colleague minister and people were about to turn into altered lines
entirely. On 7th July 1835 a deputation of their number opened negotiations
with the Established Presbytery of Dumfries, and at a meeting of the con
gregation on the 22nd of that month 97 voted in favour of a union with the
Church of Scotland and 7 to remain with the Relief. On 7th August Mr
Fyfe preached before the Established Presbytery, and was admitted into
ministerial communion. For a time the large party which went with him
kept the representatives of the Relief Presbytery outside the pulpit by means
of an interdict, but the church titles were against them. The meeting-house
was tied down to connection with the Relief in all time coming, and this con
dition could not be changed except by the voice and consent of at least four-
fifths of the congregation. But 89 out of 217 adhered to their old connection,
so that the proportion required was not forthcoming. The Sheriff pro
nounced accordingly, and nothing remained for Mr Fyfe but to deliver up the
keys to the rightful owners.
After this he acted as assistant to one of the parish ministers, but funds,
to the amount of ^2500, were raised for the purpose of providing him with a
quoad sacra church. The building was not opened till November 1839, and
by this time it was decided that the charge should be collegiate and that
Mr Fyfe should not officiate except at the evening service, his income to
consist of the money then collected, together with ^30 a year. According!}',
on gth April 1840, when Mr Fyfe was inducted into St Mary's, a young man
was ordained to be the regular minister. Still, Mr Fyfe had a seat in the
Church courts, where he sided with the evangelical party, and he was also
a member of the convocation, and subscribed both sets of resolutions, com
mitting himself to the Disruption movement. However, he drew back when
the crisis came, and soon afterwards left Dumfries, with an annual allowance
from the congregation. He finally had charge of a Chapel of Ease at Strath-
kinnes, near St Andrews, where he died, I2th April 1854, in his sixty-ninth
year.
Third Minister. — WILLIAM ADAM, from Anderston, Glasgow. Ordained,
22nd August 1837. The congregation was now in a reduced state, with
,£500 of debt resting on the property, but much interest was taken in their
affairs by the Relief denomination. The stipend was large for their numbers,
being ^80, with £2 for each communion, and a manse. But on I3th March
1838 Mr Adam tendered his resignation. He had lost all hopes, he said, of
doing good in Dumfries, and believed that the interests of the Relief Church
there would be promoted by the induction of another minister. The con
gregation testified their high appreciation of his labours, but complained
that he had not tested his ability to get on by visiting those who were
friendly to the Relief cause. On 3rd April the Presbytery loosed him from
256 HISTORY OF U.P. CONGREGATIONS
his charge, and gave him a certificate for America, where he was inducted
into Chamberburg, Pennsylvania, on 2nd May 1840, with a salary of 800
dollars. He was afterwards minister in Penn's Valley, but retired in 1845.
His voice failed him many years before his death, and he became a book
seller in Washington, confining himself very much to literature of a religious
kind. He was never married, but boarded with a private family. He died,
28th July 1883, in the eighty-fourth year of his age. My informant adds :
" He was buried at Richmond, where a brother resided, who is now buried
beside him."
Fourth Minister. — WILLIAM BLACKWOOD, from Kilbarchan. Ordained,
3rd March 1840. The congregation had previously called Mr Matthew
R. Battersby, who accepted Hamilton (Auchingramont). The stipend was
to be ^80, with a manse, and £2 for each communion. On iSth February
1845 the secular affairs of the congregation had to be submitted to the
Presbytery, and Mr Blackwood at the same time gave in his demission,
which was accepted on 8th April. At the General Assembly in June he
applied for admission to the Established Church. He was recommended to
lay his case before the Presbytery within whose bounds his ministry had
been exercised, that they might transmit it to next Assembly if they saw
cause, but it came up no more. He was employed as temporary supply at
Catrine and elsewhere after this in connection with the Establishment, but
was never fully recognised. He ultimately attempted to support himself as
a teacher in the neighbourhood of Newcastle, but he was sorely weighted
in the life-struggle. His right arm and fingers were almost powerless, and a
malformation of the right limb impeded his walking powers. He died, it is
believed, about twenty years ago. " Poor fellow," says one who knew him
well, "he had a dash of cleverness and wit about him, and could write a
good sermon, but, alas ! very erratic and unsteady."
In July 1845 a unanimous call from Dumfries congregation to Mr John
Logan Aikman was brought up to the Presbytery, and accepted on the spot.
A month's delay would have saved trouble and awkwardness. At next
meeting Mr Aikman, instead of appearing to give in his trials, had a letter
forward returning the call. He had also written the elders and managers
to free him from becoming their pastor, that he might accept a charge in
Edinburgh. This was St James' Place, and the call was forthcoming in two
days. The Presbytery of Dumfries showed their disappointment by summon
ing Mr Aikman to come forward and answer for his conduct, but when they
met three weeks afterwards Dumfries congregation intimated that they would
not receive him for their minister. This suited all parties, only Mr Aikman
had to listen to some words of admonition from the chair. But all was not
over yet. Against the decision of Edinburgh Presbytery to concur in the
call from St James' Place, Mr Craig of Newlands gave in reasons of dissent
so offensively expressed that the majority of the members voted against
receiving them. This led to a protest, and at two meetings of Synod the
question was argued at great length, but in the end the Presbytery's decision
was confirmed. The case, it was believed, left bitterness behind it, and helped
to explain Dr Craig's ill-tempered stand against the Union of the following
year.
Fifth Minister. — JOHN HOGG, from Hawick (Allars). Ordained, 8th
January 1846. The congregation was to receive for the first year ,£40, for
the second ,£30, and for the third ,£25, from the Home Mission Fund, and
thus they undertook ,£80 of stipend, with a manse, and £4 for contingencies.
To reduce the debt a grant of ,£140 was also allowed from the Liquidation
Fund. A course of prosperity was now hoped for to compensate for the
disappointments and vexations of the past. But not yet was there to be
PRESBYTERY OF DUMFRIES 257
permanence, as Mr Hogg resigned, and his resignation was accepted, 3rd
December 1850. Having removed to Canada he was inducted to Hamilton,
Ontario, on i3th August 1851, and was translated to Detroit in 1859. He
withdrew from the U.P. Church soon after, and in 1861 he was officiating in
Guelph to a congregation in connection with the Church of Scotland. The
closing announcement is that Dr John Hogg of St Andrew's Church in
that town died, 3rd March 1877. He had obtained the degree of D.D. six
years before.
Sixth Minister. — JOHN TORRANCE, from Hamilton (Auchingramont).
Ordained, 2Oth November 1851, and, in contrast with the three which had
gone before, his ministry lasted within a few weeks of thirty years. In 1858
the church in Queensberry Street, which had long done service, was reno
vated at a cost of ^250, and in 1867 it was disposed of for a wool store.
The present church in Townhead was opened in 1869, and a manse was
bought a year or two before for ^810, of which the Board paid ,£300. The
strain must have been great, but Mr Torrance lived to see the property free
of debt. We can understand, none the less, what reason the co-presbyter who
preached Mr Torrance's funeral sermon had to emphasise the burdens he
had to face and overcome. In 1879 a colleague was required, Mr Torrance
to retain the status of senior minister, but requiring to be relieved of all
pulpit and pastoral duty.
Seventh Minister. — JOHN COOPER, from Rothiemay Free Church, but
studied at the U.P. Hall. Had been previously called to New Leeds, but the
call was allowed to drop. Ordained, 7th October 1880. Mr Torrance was
to have ^50 a year, with the manse, and Mr Cooper ^100 from the congrega
tional funds. Mr Torrance died, 8th October 1881, in the sixty-fourth year
of his age and thirtieth of his ministry, and Mr Cooper followed, on 2ist
March 1884, in the forty-first year of his age and fourth of his ministry.
Eighth Minister. — ALEXANDER SMITH, who had been ordained over a
small congregation at Darenth, near London, in 1882. Mrs Cooper being a
sister of Mr Smith's, he was brought into close contact with the vacant
congregation of Townhead, and within three months he was called to be
Mr Cooper's successor. The induction followed on I4th August 1884.
Mr Smith demitted, and was loosed from his charge, 7th February 1893,
with the view of proceeding to Australia. In the year of the Union he was
minister of St Mary's and Rupertswood, Presbytery of Hawkesbury, New
South Wales. The Rev. James Smith, F.C., Tarland, was his brother.
Ninth Minister. — DAVID MACKIE, M.A., from Stewarton, a brother of
the Rev. James Mackie of Both well. Ordained, 27th July 1893. Called to
Bell Street, Dundee, in March 1900, but declined the call. At the close of
1899 the membership was 326, being a single degree ahead of the other two,
and the stipend was ^210, with the manse.
DUMFRIES, BUCCLEUCH STREET (BURGHER)
THE formation of a Burgher church in Dumfries is what the dissensions in
the Relief church over the wearing of the pulpit gown ended in. On i6th
April 1807 the Relief Presbytery had this troublesome affair before them,
but the restoration of harmony was not now to be looked for. That same
day Mr Henderson of Havvick reported to the Burgher Presbytery of Selkirk
that he had preached in Dumfries on the previous Sabbath at the request of
Mr Johnston of Ecclefechan. A petition was now tabled from some people
there for sermon, which was granted, and on 29th September it was intimated
258 HISTORY OF U.P. CONGREGATIONS
that five ciders were elected, two of whom had held office in the Relief church.
A third was John Bell, the former preses of that congregation, who had come
into unseemly collision with Mr Lawson, his minister, at a Sabbath service
when things were at the worst. The entire number who left was put down
at 100. The church, with 640 sittings, was built in 1809, and until it was
ready worship was conducted in a hall. The first call was addressed to the
Rev. George Lawson of Galashiels, but at a meeting of Presbytery three
weeks afterwards it was known that another call had come out to Mr Lawson
from Bolton, and nothing could be done till the approaching meeting of
Synod. In the end Bolton carried, and Dumfries did not obtain the man
whose gifts as a preacher were all but certain to have secured success to the
new cause. The stipend promised was ^100, with ^10 for a house, and a
competent allowance was expected for sacramental expenses.
First Minister. — WALTER DUNLOP, from Newcastleton, where he had
been ordained six years before. The translation was agreed to at the Synod
by a great majority, and Mr Dunlop was inducted, 24th May 1810. The
call was signed by 157 members, and there was now a steady inflow of
prosperity. In 1836 there were 580 communicants, a number almost exactly
equal to those of Loreburn Street and the Relief put together. Of the
367 families 38 came from four to nine miles. Mr Dunlop had 279 persons
under his care in Troqueer parish, young and old, whilst Mr Clyde had only
75. He resigned, 4th November 1845, a°d died, 4th November 1846, in the
seventy-second year of his age and forty-third of his ministry. Mr Dunlop's
name has been too much linked with quaint, humorous stories, many of them,
it may be believed, apocryphal. A writer in the denominational magazine
many years ago credited Mr Dunlop with the gift of repartee or knacky
remark, but alleged that two of his brethren were blamed for concocting
ludicrous anecdotes and sending them afloat under Mr Dunlop's name.
The congregation in the early part of this vacancy called Mr William Cowan,
but Buckhaven followed, and was preferred.
Second Minister. — MARSHALL N. GOOLD, from London Road, Glasgow,
though like his kinsman, Dr Goold of Edinburgh, he was of Cameronian
blood. Ordained, igth November 1846. In 1861 Dumfries experienced a
widespread revival of religion, in which Mr Goold exerted himself even
beyond his strength, and during what might be called this " Year of Grace "
more than 100 members were added to the church. The other dissenting
ministers took part in the work more or less, and their congregations shared
in the benefit, that of Mr Torrance, in particular, having its membership
increased that year from 169 to 200. On I7th May 1863 the present church
in Buccleuch Street, erected on the old site, was opened, with 700 sittings,
the cost being about ^2000. In 1883 Mr Goold's health became much
impaired, and regular assistance was required. This led to arrangements
being made for the election of a colleague, the senior minister to have ^130,
with the manse, and the junior ^200.
Third Minister. — JOHN CAIRNS, M.A., son of the Rev. David Cairns,
Stitchell. Mr Cairns had been assistant to Mr Goold for a considerable
time, and while thus engaged he was called to Linlithgow (East), but after
he had intimated his acceptance Buccleuch Street people set about retaining
him, and prevailed. He was ordained, i6th October 1884. For about a
year Mr Goold took one of the Sabbath services, but paralysis intervened,
and his public work was over. He died, ist November 1895, in the seventy-
eighth year of his age and forty-ninth of his ministry. He left two sons
members of the U.P. Synod — the Rev. John Goold, Elgin Street, Glasgow,
and the Rev. James G. Goold, Bridgend, Dumbarton ; and also two sons-in-
law — the Rev. Robert Gray, Canongate, Edinburgh, and the Rev. Colin M.
PRESBYTERY OF DUMFRIES 259
Gibb, Morebattle. The congregation at the close of 1899 had a membership
of 315, and the stipend was ,£300, with the manse.
MONIAIVE (ANTIBURGHER)
THE Seceders in Glencairn, the parish to which Moniaive belongs, and in
the wide district around, had their headquarters originally in the village of
Closeburn, two and a half miles to the south-east of Thornhill, and eleven
and a half north of Dumfries. The first notice of sermon there is for
the second and third Sabbaths of August 1756, and it was by appointment
of Dumfries (Antiburgher) Presbytery. On 2ist January 1761 a coalescence
was agreed on between the societies of Dumfries and those of Closeburn, the
terms being that Mr Herbertson, their minister, should preach every third
Sabbath at Closeburn, and that the people there should pay one-third of the
stipend. This continued during his brief ministry, but after Mr Inglis came
a change was insisted on by the people of Dumfries. They complained that
the blank Sabbaths they had interfered with their prosperity, and they were
bent on having the minister's labours to themselves. It further appears from
a paper laid before the Presbytery that the Closeburn branch of the con
gregation consisted of 28 members and 1 1 adherents, and their contributions
for the half-year amounted only to £4. They wished to go on as before, but
on 8th July 1765 the disjunction was carried. From that time sermon was
kept up at Closeburn or Glencairn as circumstances allowed. On i6th
October 1776 the Presbytery sanctioned a union between the two places,
which were eight miles apart — "Thornhill alias Closeburn " and " Moniaive
alias Glencairn." Moniaive, as the more numerous community, was to have
three Sabbaths of the minister's labours out of every four during eight months
of the year, and during the other four months, which were to be " in the
winter and part of the neighbouring seasons," they were to have him to
themselves. It was also stipulated "that this union shall subsist so long
only as shall be found necessary, or be judged for edification by the
Presbytery."
The next thing was the organising of the united congregation, though
the name of Moniaive generally sufficed. On igth November 1776 the
Presbytery met there, and set apart three of the members to the eldership,
one of whom had held office in the Established church. At the same
meeting a moderation was granted, and when the day came Mr Alexander
Pringle was unanimously chosen. However, Mr Pringle was away now
among other vacancies, though the Presbytery of Dumfries would fain have
kept him within their own bounds, and the next notice was that he had
received a harmonious call to Perth (North). The call from Moniaive, with
its 44 names, could hardly prevail over another with twelve times that
number, and the Synod decided accordingly.
First Minister. — JAMES PATTISON, from Colmonell, who was also called
to his native congregation, but the Synod appointed him to the united
congregation of Moniaive and Thornhill. Ordained, 3Oth July 1778. How
long the original arrangement between the two places lasted we know not,
but in 1794, as we find from the Old Statistical History, Mr Pattison, who
was still residing at Moniaive, preached every alternate Sabbath at Thornhill.
This went on till 1804, and then the coalescence, which had lasted forty-three
years, was brought to an end with the unanimous approval of the Presbytery.
The severance was opposed by the people of Moniaive, but Mr Pattison
seems to have favoured it, and he now removed to Thornhill, the relation
26o HISTORY OF U.P. CONGREGATIONS
between him and that section of his congregation remaining intact, while
Moniaive was declared vacant.
Second Minister. — JAMES FRANCE, son of the Rev. John F ranee, Buch-
lyvie, and brother of the Rev. John France, afterwards of Kirriemuir (West).
Ordained, 22nd August 1805, the services being conducted in the open air.
Mr France died, loth September 1813, in the fortieth year of his age and
the ninth of his ministry. He had preached at Sanquhar on the preceding-
Sabbath, but on returning home a nervous fever set in, and he died on Friday
night, leaving a widow and four children, " the oldest only in his sixth year,
and the youngest three months old." One of the four became the Rev. William
France of Oakshaw Street, Paisley. The case stirred much sympathy, and
a sum of ^250 was raised for the benefit of the widow and family, ,£200 of
it from other congregations in the Presbytery, Dumfries heading the list
with ^50.
There was now to be difficulty experienced, and time lost, in the filling
up of the vacant pulpit. In the end of 1814 Mr William Rattray was chosen,
but the Synod appointed him to Selkirk (extinct). The stipend was to be
^80, with house and garden and payment of taxes. The minister was also
to have five acres of land, or ^15 instead, if he so inclined. The next
preacher fixed on was Mr James Reid, but, as has been stated under Sanquhar
(South), he refused to submit, and got his own way in the end. It was
almost similar on the next occasion, when Mr James Blyth not only declined
to be ordained at Moniaive, but charged the Presbytery with unfairness in
the meting out of his appointments. Here, again, there was failure, and Urr
became Mr Blyth's sphere of labour.
Third Minister. — JAMES M'GEOCH, from Wigtown. The stipend was to
be ^100, with house, garden, office-houses, and payment into the Widows'
Fund. Mr M'Geoch when a preacher made a narrow escape from getting
himself into trouble through an inopportune display of liberality. The
Antiburgher Presbytery of Aberdeen wrote the Synod in April 1817 for
supply of preachers, but warned them not to send Mr M'Geoch, as Peterhead
was their only vacancy, and he had given great offence to that congregation
by going openly one Sabbath evening to hear an Independent minister
preach. They would have dealt with him for the offence, but he had gone
outside their bounds. The Synod did not turn this piece of information to
account, and Mr M'Geoch was ordained at Moniaive on 26th August
following. In 1834 a new church, with sittings for 478, was built on the
same site as the former, which had served since the end of the century. The
cost seems to have been entirely met without Synodical aid, and in a few
years the people were contributing to assist weak congregations in liquidating
their debt, besides raising ^25 a year for missionary and benevolent pur
poses. Mr M'Geoch died, 8th August 1848, in the fifty-ninth year of his
age and thirty-first of his ministry. In a brief notice which appeared in the
Dumfries Coicrier at the time he was described as a man of rare sagacity,
well-balanced intellect, and extensive information ; and as a preacher lucid,
scriptural, and instructive. "Such men," it was added, "are blessings to
society while they live, and in their excellent example leave to survivors a
precious inheritance."
Fourth Minister. — ROBERT BORWICK, from Kirkwall, a brother of the
Rev. William Berwick, Dundee. Ordained, 26th June 1849. The stipend
was to be ,£100, with £6 for expenses, a manse, and payment of taxes and
the premium to the Widows' Fund. But alienation of feeling somehow came
between the minister and a number of his people, including some of the
better-class families, and in 1857 the case came before the Synod. The
decision come to was that nothing had been advanced requiring the sever-
PRESBYTERY OF DUMFRIES 261
ance of Mr Berwick's connection with the congregation. But at this time
the communion roll, which numbered 208 at Air Berwick's ordination, was
reduced to 155. An attempt was also made to have a rival congregation
formed in the place, but this design was thwarted. Though the majority of
the members kept loyal to their minister, with their diminished strength they
found themselves unable to make up the stipend promised, and in this
altered form the affairs of Moniaive congregation came before the Synod in
1863. Mr Berwick now intimated that, "in consequence of the existence of
serious hindrances to his comfort and ministerial success," he had resolved to
resign his charge on certain conditions. The wished-for adjustments having
been made, the demission was accepted on 24th June, his co-presbyters
expressing " high regard for him as an earnest and zealous minister of the
gospel." Mr Berwick then devoted himself to teaching, and became master
of a boarding-school near Liverpool. He is now living at Kirkwall in the
retirement of age.
Fifth Minister. --ALEXANDER W. DONALDSON, B.A., from Perth (North).
Though two candidates were proposed the call was described as most
cordial, but, as marking what the congregation had suffered through broken
harmony, the members signing were down from 164 to 118. The stipend,
however, was nearly £20 higher than before. Mr Donaldson was ordained,
25th October 1864, and was loosed, 5th July 1870, on accepting a call to
Strathaven (East). After this Moniaive was one of seven congregations that
went in for Mr John Boyd, who selected Skelmorlie.
Sixth Minister. — THOMAS KIDD, M.A., from Lansdowne, Glasgow,
brother of the Rev. Dr Kidd, Erskine Church, Glasgow. Ordained, 3ist
October 1871. At the close of 1899 there was a membership of 132, and the
stipend from the people was ^160, with the manse. Within the last twenty
years the population of the parish has decreased nearly a seventh, and in
the village, with less than 700 inhabitants, there are both a Free and a U.P.
church.
THORN HILL (ANTIP,URC;HER)
LET the successive steps in the severance of Thornhill from Moniaive be
now given more minutely. On ist August 1803 the session of the united
congregation handed over to the Presbytery a paper signed by 30 male
members from about Thornhill, craving a disjunction from their brethren in
Moniaive. The elders were divided as to what should be done, the Moniaive
section wishing to let the matter rest, while those belonging to Thornhill
desired the movement to go forward. After long reasoning the Presbytery
agreed to let the case lie over for nearly three months. Counter petitions
were then given in, one from Moniaive in opposition to the disjunction, and
the other from Thornhill insisting for it, and also craving " that the whole
labours of their minister might be confined to them." At two successive
meetings the matter was delayed, all the more so that Thornhill people did
not wish the severance to take effect till close on Whitsunday, but on 27th
February 1804, commissioners from both sides being fully heard, the question
was put — Grant the petition from Thornhill or Not? — when it carried unani
mously, Grant, and the deed was done. The minister must have acquiesced
in the transference, but the Presbytery recommended him to go on at
Moniaive until Whitsunday, when he would be removing to the manse at
Thornhill, where a church had been built twenty years before. Mr Pattison's
stipend under the new conditions was ,£70 and a manse, with taxes paid and
six and a half acres of land. He died, 28th July 1816, in the sixty-third year
of his age and the thirty-eighth of his ministry. It was Sabbath, and a
262 HISTORY OF U.P. CONGREGATIONS
friend wrote that evening : " Mr Pattison died this forenoon about 9 or 10,
after a sore-tossed night."
Second Minister. — WILLIAM ROGERSON, from Lockerbie. Ordained, 28th
August 1817. The provision for his support was liberal compared with that
at Moniaive, being " An hundred pounds in money, and, if their minister should
choose, the park at a valued rent as part of the above sum, with an house and
garden, taxes and Widows' Fund." Mr Rogerson ministered at Thornhill
till he had newly completed his forty years. He died suddenly on 4th
September 1857, in the sixty-third year of his age, almost his last words
being : " I am dying, but I know that my Redeemer liveth." A few months
before this he assisted his former co-presbyter, no\v Dr Black, Glasgow,
at the communion in St Andrews, and preached with marvellous power on
Sabbath evening. Unwritten the discourse seemed to be, but the preacher
was borne up on the wave of impassioned oratory. A published lecture,
entitled "A Few Phases of Society," delivered that spring to the Thornhill
Institute, is all that remains to show what Mr Rogerson was, and his was
the power which will not transfer from spoken address to the printed page.
Unequal in his pulpit appearances he may have been, but when he rose to
his real strength he must have left impressions of his powers " to be forgotten
never."
A vacancy of three years followed, during which three unsuccessful calls
were issued — the first to Mr Thomas M'Ewan, who ventured on Potterrow,
Edinburgh ; the second to Mr Peter C. Duncanson, who was on the point of
accepting West Calder, and this late offer did not turn him from his purpose ;
and the third to Mr David Cameron, who accepted Newton-Mearns.
Third Minister. — ROBERT WISHART, from Millport. Ordained at
Thornhill, nth October 1860, having set Sutton aside. When a divinity
student Mr Wishart was a thorough-going abstainer, and his theology was of
the Calvinistic type, as was to be expected from the structure of his mind.
His call to Thornhill was signed by 158 members and 46 adherents, and the
stipend was to be ^150, with a manse. The Evangelical Unionists had
come in to dispute the ground so early as 1851, and they built a church, with
300 sittings, in 1874. But, while Mr Wishart remained a fixture, their
ministers came and went like birds of passage. Notwithstanding opposi
tion he had a membership of 276 in 1879, ar>d the stipend from the people
was ,£175. Mr Wishart died, i8th September 1892, in the sixty-eighth year
of his age and thirty-second of his ministry. He is buried in the family
resting-place at Millport.
Fourth Minister. — JOSEPH BROWN PIRRET, M.A., son of the Rev.
David Pirret, Glasgow, and a grandson of Dr Joseph Brown. Ordained,
1 8th April 1893. A declining population, and other things, had told upon
the congregation within these twelve years, and the membership was much
below what it used to be. On Friday, i6th September 1898, a new church,
with sittings for 359, was opened by the Moderator of Synod, Dr Blair of
Dunblane, the estimated cost being ,£2200, of which members and their
friends raised ,£1600, and the Board granted ,£200, leaving ,£400 still to be
made up. At the close of 1899 Thornhill membership was 157, and the
stipend from the people was ^140, with the manse.
MAINSRIDDELL (RELIEF)
ON 24th June 1776 the Antiburgher Presbytery of Edinburgh received a
petition from Kirkbean for sermon, and on 8th July a day's supply was
appointed to that place. On 5th August the petition was renewed, but by-
PRESBYTERY OF DUMFRIES 263
and-by both petitions and appointments ceased. But on I7th September
1789 a minister was intruded into the parish of Kirkbean by orders of the
General Assembly, and this prompted Dissent to lift up its head anew. In
the earliest extant minutes of Edinburgh Relief Presbytery two calls are
presented to Mr James Smart, the one from Waterbeck, and the other from
Kirkbean. This was on 22nd March 1791. He was in great perplexity how
to decide, he said, but if they would give him till next meeting he would
then accept either the one or the other. On i2th April he was clear for
Kirkbean. They had, first of the two, intimated their design to him, which
he did not discourage. Besides, he looked on that country as well adapted
for his health. The church was built at Mainsriddell, in the parish of
Colvend, but close to the borders of Kirkbean.
First Minister. — JAMES SMART, of whose antecedents we only know
that he got licence from the Relief Presbytery of Dysart. His stipend was
to be £60 and a house the first year, and then there was to be an addition of
^10, and whatever more might arise from the surplus of the seat-rents.
Ordained, i4th July 1791. The inadequacy of the stipend may have pre
pared Mr Smart for an early removal. In the end of 1795 he was called to
Largo, when something of his former hesitancy returned, but on 5th January
1796 he informed the Presbytery that his objections to accept were removed,
and he hoped they would consent to the translation. Under the Relief
system the will of the minister in such a case was decisive, and accordingly
Mr Smart was loosed from Kirkbean.
Second Minister. — EDWARD DOBBIE, M.A., from Dovehill, Glasgow (now
Kelvingrove). Ordained, I3th April 1797. He had been previously called
to Lanark, where there was large promise, but he declined, and now settled
down for twelve years at Mainsriddell. In 1807 he put Milngavie also aside,
but on 4th July 1809 he accepted a call to Burnhead.
Third Minister. — WILLIAM MUIR, from Sanquhar, where he had been
brought up in the Antiburgher church. Ordained, i2th June 1810. He
was called to the large and important congregation of Strathaven in the
beginning of 1819, where the emoluments were ^150, but when the day for
decision came he stated to the Presbytery that "on account of various
circumstances he had made up his mind to remain in his present situation,
and had taken upon himself to prevent the commissioners coming forward in
prosecution of their call." The Presbytery thereupon expressed their hope
" that the congregation of Mainsriddell will faithfully fulfil their obligations
to him as their pastor, and that he and they will long continue in mutual
concord and happiness." But in little more than a year Mr Muir demitted
his charge, pleading inability to perform the duties of the office as he could
wish, and at next meeting, on 27th June 1820, the resignation was accepted.
In July 1821 Mr Muir became stated supply to the vacant congregation of
Langholm, and this went on till 2nd February 1824, when he wrote a letter
to the Presbytery renouncing connection with the Relief Synod " for reasons
which it was unnecessary for him to mention." They enjoined him to appear
personally before them or explain by letter why he was acting in this way.
All that followed was a further intimation that he adhered to his former
resolve. He was thereupon declared to be no longer in connection with
the Relief Church. Of his subsequent history we can trace nothing, but Dr
M'Kelvie states that he became assistant to a minister in Newcastle con
nected with the Church of Scotland.
264 HISTORY OF U.P. CONGREGATIONS
MAINSRIDDELL (UNITED SECESSION)
THIS is the same congregation, but in another ecclesiastical connection.
For some time after Mr Muir left it kept by the Relief, but on 2ist April
1821 a paper from Mainsriddell was laid before the Secession Presbytery of
Dumfries, craving supply of sermon. The recent Union had given the
Secession increased importance throughout the land, and the hope might be
that the congregation, with stronger backing, would now attain to prosperity.
Supply was readily granted, but in a few months it ceased to be applied for,
and was discontinued. There was a blank now till the close of the following
year, when a member of Presbytery stated that he had preached on a recent
Sabbath at Mainsriddell, and that about twenty-seven heads of families had
expressed a wish to have the gospel in connection with the United Secession
Church. Services were now resumed, and in April 1823 the people there
reported that they had upwards of 200 seats let, so that things were in a
hopeful state. But still there was a struggle with straitened means, and
even during the summer months sermon was asked only for alternate
Sabbaths. Thus slowly did the cause at Mainsriddell advance towards a
fixed pastorate.
First Minister. — ROBERT GELLATLY, from Kinclaven. Ordained, 2nd
January 1828, after thirteen years of probationership. He had supplied
repeatedly at Mainsriddell during those years, and the impression might be
that, though not popular, he would be well adapted for the place. Next year
he was married to a daughter of the Rev. William Inglis, Dumfries, a union
which brought him into a large and respectable family connection, and
proved of advantage otherwise. But the funds of the congregation required
to be subsidised from the Synod Fund year after year, and at last these slight
grants were withheld. At the close of 1839 it was found that the income for
six years had afforded Mr Gellatly a stipend of only ,£28 on an average,
exclusive of the manse, garden, and other pertinents. In a few months the
congregation expressed the opinion that their minister's usefulness was gone,
and, Mr Gellatly having tabled his resignation, it was accepted on 8th April
1840, the Presbytery ascribing the congregation's want of prosperity, in some
measure, to imprudences of expression and conduct on his part. On nth
June the affairs of Mainsriddell came before the Presbytery in a threatening
form. Certain of the office-bearers and members were to be prosecuted for
arrears of stipend to the amount of ^500, and they appealed for protection
to the courts of the Church. This meeting was in Edinburgh, and the case
was handed over to the Synod, which was in session at the time, and by their
orders Mr Gellatly was suspended from the office of the ministry. He had
trampled on a deed of Synod relating to the temporal support of ministers,
but on agreeing to desist from the prosecution he had the sentence uplifted.
It is to be inferred from references in the Presbytery minutes that Mr
Gellatly, apparently through his marriage, was independent of stipend
arrears. He applied in October 1843 for admission to the ministry of the
Free Church, but the matter was delayed. He was more successful in his
next venture, being received into the Established Church by the General
Assembly in 1846. He died at West Toft, Stanley, on i8th April 1860, in
his seventy-seventh year.
Mainsriddell congregation was now at the expiring point. The member
ship was 50, and the annual income under ^40, which little sum had to be
encroached on for payment of interest on a debt of ,£200. But the Mission
Board wished to keep up ordinances at Mainsriddell for the sake of the wide
district around, where there were five stations at which preachers supplied.
At this point the Debt Liquidation Board allowed a grant of ,£120, and the
PRESBYTERY OF DUMFRIES 265
people, through earnest efforts, raised the other ^80. The way being thus
far opened for obtaining a settlement, the Rev. Alexander Cuthbert was
invited to become their minister, but after some hesitation he declined to
.accept, and was settled in Bathgate. Then in 1846 they called Mr William
•Cowan, who accepted Buckhaven.
Second Minister. — PETER MERCER, from Lochee. Ordained, 27th
October 1846. Resigned, 26th June 1849, and returned to the preachers'
list. Admitted to Drymen in the end of 1850. It is interesting to place
•over against Mr Mercer's humble beginning at Mainsriddell the fact that he
was ultimately appointed to train the students in Sacred Languages and
Exegetical Theology in the Presbyterian Church of Victoria.
Mr William Porteous, son of the Rev. James Porteous, Coldstream (East),
was now called to Mainsriddell, but he accepted the collegiate charge of
Spittal, where he was ordained, i6th April 1850, and died, 22nd February
1881, in the fifty-seventh year of his age.
Third Minister. — THOMAS FULLARTON, from Saltcoats, Relief (now
Trinity Church). Ordained, 5th November 1850, when he was in his forty-
third year, and had been married for fifteen years, his wife being a daughter
of the Rev. David Ewing of Saltcoats. Mr Fullarton moved quietly on in
his little sphere of labour till his death on 22nd May 1890, in the fortieth
year of his ministry, having retired from the duties of the pastorate only two
months before. His age has been wrongly given even in the parish register,
where it is put as high as eighty-nine. But in a return he made to the
Widows' Fund Society he gave 2ist December 1807 as his birthday, so that
.at his death he was in his eighty-third year. Mr Fullarton by his will left
.£400 to found the Fullarton Bursary in the U.P. Hall.
After this an earnest attempt was made by Dumfries Presbytery, and
specially by the Rev. David Kinnear of Dalbcattie, to keep up the cause at
Mainsriddell, but owing to discouragements this was not persisted in, and
the congregation was dissolved, 7th February 1893. The last return gave
only 20 members and a total income of ^24. In October 1896 the sum of ^167
was handed over to the Home Mission Board as the proceeds of the property
when sold. The neighbouring Free church had obtained a new minister,
and there was no end to be served by the building standing empty.
BURN HEAD (RELIEF)
PENPONT was long the name given to this congregation, that being the
parish in which the village or hamlet of Burnhead is situated. On 26th
November 1 798 a petition " from a respectable body of men " in Penpont
parish was presented to the Relief Presbytery of Dumfries for sermon, and
the Rev. Edward Dobbie of Mainsriddell, who became their minister ten
years afterwards, was appointed to preach to them on the second Sabbath of
December. On gth September 1799 they were recognised as a forming con
gregation.
First Minister. — WILLIAM AULD, from Langside, Glasgow. Ordained,
26th March 1801. The stipend promised was ^80, with house and garden,
and ^5 for sacramental expenses. Called also to Duns (South) and Beith
(Head Street), both important congregations, but it was well that he decided
in favour of Penpont. Dissatisfied with the sectarianism of the Reformed
Presbyterians, among whom he had been brought up, Mr Auld sought and
found greater freedom in connection with the Relief. There were tokens
before long that their first minister's stay in Penpont was not to be pro
tracted. In May 1804 a call came up to him from Dalkeith, but at next
266 HISTORY OF U.P. CONGREGATIONS
meeting it was dismissed at his own request, care having been previously
taken to save the commissioners in its support a needless journey. It was
different when a call appeared from the newly-formed congregation of
Greenock. Here the inducements to remove prevailed, and on 25th October
1808 the connection with Burnhead was dissolved, but the congregation by
this time was prosperous and well compacted.
From this point we may glance back over the circumstances in which the
Relief cause got footing in Penpont. A certain preacher, Mr John Nevison,
had been presented to the parish church in May 1797, but his settlement
was strongly opposed. However, when the case came before the General
Assembly in May 1798 that court overruled all objections, "and ordered the
Presbytery to have the settlement over before the end of July." Prior to.
this the parish of Penpont had a goodly sprinkling both of Cameronians and
Seceders, the number of the former in 1791 being 77, and of the latter 73.
That district had been marked, even in Boston's time, by a strong inclination
on the part of the people to separate from the Established Church, and now
the Relief was to have the ascendency among the various Dissenting bodies
within its bounds. Their church, with 700 sittings, was built in 1800.
Second Minister. — EDWARD DOBBIE, translated from Mainsriddell after a
ministry of twelve years, and inducted to Burnhead, 2Oth July 1809. In
1835 a colleague was arranged for, and in view of Mr Dobbie's partial
retirement it was agreed to allow him ^40 a year, the junior minister to have
^80 and the manse, with ^4 at each communion. In the beginning of that
year the parish minister returned the entire population of Penpont at 1261,
of whom 347 belonged to the Relief church at Burnhead, 235 to the Re
formed Presbyterian church in the village of Penpont, and 109 were con
nected with the Secession congregations at Thornhill and Moniaive.
Third Minister. — JOHN SMITH, from Falkirk (West). Ordained, 22nd
March 1836. In 1839 the church was rebuilt. The collegiate relation lasted
seventeen years, and the senior minister was the survivor. Mr Smith died,
3rd March 1853, in the forty-third year of his age and seventeenth of his
ministry.
Fourth Minister. — WILLIAM M. MACDONALD, from Greyfriars, Glasgow.
Ordained, 231x1 February 1854. Mr Bobbie having entered on the sixtieth
year of his ministry, the event was celebrated on gth June 1856 by the con
gregation and by friends from far and near. He died, 22nd February 1857,
in the eighty-fifth year of his age. In 1879 the congregation had a member
ship of 259, being nearly equal to Thornhill, which is little more than a mile
distant, and the stipend was ^163. There was also the manse, which had
been rebuilt in 1868 at a cost of ^1030, of which the people and their friends
raised .£730, and the Board paid the other ,£300. Mr Macdonald died, i7th
December 1891, in the seventy-second year of his age and thirty-eighth of
his ministry. The congregation then called Mr Henry Hamilton, now of
Auchterarder (South), who declined.
Fifth Minister. — JAMES DRUMMOND, previously of Alexandria and
Dundee (Ryehill). Inducted, 2ist February 1893. Was struck down with
apoplexy on the evening of Friday, I3th July 1900, after returning from a
long diet of visitation, and died in two hours. He was in the fifty-sixth year
of his age and twenty-eighth of his ministry. The membership at the close
of the preceding year was 120, and the stipend from the people ,£110, with
the manse.
PRESBYTERY OF DUMFRIES 267
CASTLE-DOUGLAS (RELIEF)
Ox ist September 1800 a preacher was appointed to Castle-Douglas for the
first and second Sabbaths of November by the Relief Presbytery of Dumfries,
in answer to a petition from a number of people in and about the town, and
after that supply was continued with regularity. In July 1801 the congrega
tion called Mr Decision Laing, minister of Wamphray, but by a majority so
slight that it was considered better to go no further.
First Minister.— WILLIAM BOAG, from Dovehill, Glasgow (now Kelvin-
grove). Called unanimously, and the call accepted in preference to another
from Waterbeck. Ordained, 8th March 1803. The church, with its 700
sittings, is stated to have been erected in 1801, but as the ordination was
intimated "from the tent" on 4th February 1803 this indicates that the
church was not yet taken possession of. The stipend was ,£80, with dwelling-
house and garden, and £2, los. each communion. In the course of seven
years "certain grievances" became oppressive, and on 4th December 1810
Mr Boag gave in his resignation. When the Presbytery met on the i8th
they found that an agreement had been come to between his congregation
and him in order to a separation. They were to give him ^40 as an
acknowledgment for past services, and also as much additional as might be
raised by subscription, of which £24 had been already obtained. The
Presbytery were dissatisfied with this system of having everything cut and
dry, as if the pastoral bond had been little more than a money transaction,
but they consented to accept the demission, and declare Castle-Douglas
vacant. Mr Boag, after officiating for a time as a preacher, was admitted
to Strathkinnes.
Second Minister.— ROBERT CAMERON, like his predecessor, from Dove-
hill, Glasgow. Ordained, i8th July 1811. The money adjustments were
quite up to the original standard, being ,£80 of stipend, £2, los. for each
communion, and ^i 5 for a house, besides a formidable item which sometimes
comes into view in Relief congregations at that period— ^20 in name of
travelling expenses. Mr Cameron accepted a call to East Kilbride on 3rd
June 1817, and for twenty years a stated ministry ceased in connection with
the Relief cause at Castle-Douglas.
A few weeks after the vacancy occurred some residenters applied to the
Burgher Presbytery of Annan for a clay's supply, which was granted, and
this proved the beginning of a rival cause. The t\vo parties struggled on
together for three years, and then on 5th September 1820 the Relief Presby
tery expressed surprise and regret that no application had come up from
Castle-Douglas for sermon. On 7th November they were told that the
property had been disposed of, and one of the ministers was appointed to
visit Castle-Douglas, and make full inquiries. The title-deeds having been
examined, it was ascertained that they contained no clause binding the
place of worship to the Relief body, and the Presbytery resolved to give
themselves no more concern about the affairs of that congregation. The
building was gone, and the Reformed Presbyterians were the legal possessors
by right of purchase. The Secession cause in Castle-Douglas still held on,
but it \yas on a humble scale and in the face of difficulties. They were
wishful in 1821 to have their church finished, but they got little encourage
ment from the Presbytery and no aid whatever from the Synod. Their
request by-and-by was for supply on alternate Sabbaths, with the hope super-
added that the Presbytery would pay for every third appointment. In
November 1823 they pressed their desire to have the place of worship seated,
and asked advice from the Presbytery as to how the money they required
was to be had. They were told in reply to delay operations till winter was
268 HISTORY OF U.P. CONGREGATIONS
over. Tired of bearing up in the face of hope deferred, the people seem to
have parted with the building at Whitsunday 1824, and allowed it to be
utilised in some other way. After supplies had ceased for a year a
society in Glasgow for propagating the gospel in connection with the
Secession voted 10 guineas for providing sermon at Castle- Douglas, but
the people thought it better not to accept, as there was no probability that
the gift would be of any permanent advantage. For the next ten years the
Secession and Relief alike disappeared from Castle-Douglas.
In July 1835 the Relief Presbytery of Dumfries commenced sermon anew
in this town on petition from a number of the inhabitants, and in November
the adherents were recognised as a forming congregation. On 1 3th September
1836 Mr Cross of Langholm reported that he had preached at Castle-
Douglas, and opened their place of worship. This church had been built
for the Secession congregation, but it was never occupied, and had been
turned to everyday purposes. It was now secured by the friends of the
Relief, and fitted up with fully 300 sittings. A call followed to Mr Alexander
Nelson in April 1837, but he declined, and obtained Carluke soon after.
Third Minister. — JAMES JENKINS, from St Ninians. Ordained, 2nd
August 1837. The meeting-house would not be costly to purchase, and
with the aid of ,£65 from the Liquidation Fund in 1846 the debt which
remained was entirely cleared off. Mr Jenkins died, I4th March 1867, in
the sixty-seventh year of his age and thirtieth of his ministry.
Fourth Minister. — JAMES ROTHNIE, M.A., from Old Meldrum. Ordained,
igth November 1867. A manse had been recently erected at a cost of ,£658,
of which the Board paid ,£200, and the present church, with 375 sittings,
was built in 1870 at a cost of ,£1300. Mr Rothnie died at Sidmouth, 25th
January 1875, in the thirty-second year of his age and eighth of his ministry.
Mr Turner of Craigdam, who knew him well in his early days, and was
always measured in his statements, testified that a finer, purer, more ad
mirable, more lovable nature than Mr Rothnie's he had scarcely known.
Fifth Minister.— JAMES AITKEN, M.A., from St Andrews. Ordained,
27th April 1875. Tlie stipend from the people was to be ,£135, with the
manse, and the membership at the end of the year was 170. Mr Aitken
accepted a call to Northumberland Square, North Shields, 6th February
1877, whence he was transferred to Lothian Road, Edinburgh, in August
1881.
Sixth Minister.— ROBERT S. WILSON, M.A., from Stewarton. Called
also to Hallside. and to Greenhead, Glasgow. Ordained, 6th November
1877. The membership at this time was about 180. At the close of 1899
it was 262, and the stipend from the people had risen .£30, being ,£165, with
the manse.
LOCHMABEN (BURGHER)
ON 2nd December 1811 a petition from seventeen male heads of families in
Lochmaben for occasional supply of sermon was given in to the Burgher
Presbytery of Annan, and the ministers of Ecclefechan and Dumfries were
recommended to preach there should this be asked for. On 28th January
1812 it was explained that, owing to the state of the weather and the want of
a house large enough, it had been deemed advisable to do nothing till spring.
Mr Dunlop, however, had preached to the petitioners on a week day, when
the service was well attended, and the people were anxious to have sermon
as soon as the season would permit. On 15th March 1813 they were forward
asking to be formed into a congregation. A year before this Dumfries con
gregation acquiesced in the propriety of giving the applicants all encourage-
PRESBYTERY OF DUMFRIES 269
ment, and Ecclefechan had no objections to regular supply being granted
them. The next step was to receive accessions, and two members of Pres
bytery were appointed to visit Lochmaben for that purpose, the proceedings
to commence with public worship. On that occasion forty-five persons were
conversed with, but it was thought proper that they should be examined
" more particularly respecting their knowledge of the gospel." This all
shows that Lochmaben congregation was not an offshoot from other churches
of the denomination, but that its foundations were composed of material
newly brought in. No sooner, however, was a formal beginning made than
additions came from the two churches already specified. In June 1813 eight
members of Dumfries congregation (Mr Dunlop's) were disjoined, with the
hearty concurrence of the Session, that they might connect themselves with
Lochmaben. Ecclefechan gave up its quota of two elders and nine members
somewhat later, and not till after a minister was ordained.
First Minister. — ANDREW YOUNG, from Kirkintilloch, at least that was
the congregation from which he was admitted to the Hall. Lochmaben
appeared to be much favoured when the Synod in September 1813 gave
their call, with its seventy signatures, the preference over another from Kil-
marnock, with between 400 and 500. This was opposed to the preacher's
wishes, and was come at by only a small majority, but he submitted, and
was ordained, 26th October 1813. There was the appearance of success at
first, for within six months the congregation petitioned the Presbytery to aid
them in the erecting of galleries in the church, which had been built the year
before, and was now to be seated for 800. About this time Mr Young was
called anew by the congregation of Kilmarnock, but the Synod vetoed the
removal. Mr Young must have had popular gifts of a kind, but success
did not continue to attend his labours at Lochmaben. The Synod, mindful
perhaps of how they had twice kept him from a better place, did what they
could in 1823 to relieve him and his congregation from their embarrassments,
collections to lighten their burdens being recommended, which brought them
,£350. Had care been at the same time taken to have their money affairs
put upon a business footing this interposition might have had lasting effects,
but, as it was, matters got worse year by year, and on 2ist August 1827 Mi-
Young tendered his resignation. Inquiry brought out that, though the
stipend had been reduced again and again, the arrears amounted to nearly
^90, and that for years there had been no regular accounts kept. The Synod
on 2ist May received Mr Young's demission, expressed sympathy with him
in the trying circumstances in which he had been placed, and added his
name to the list of probationers. After two years of preacher life he was in
ducted to the Secession church in Lanark.
Second Minister. — ANDREW MARTIN, from Lauder. Ordained, i8th
August 1831. The communicants at this time were 190, and five years after
wards they were 250. Fully a third of the congregation were drawn from
other parishes, specially Kirkmichael, and next in order, Tinwald and John-
stone. But, though fair in numbers, the grace of liberality was but slenderly
developed, the entire income being little more than j£ioo, and the stipend
only ,£80, with no manse. About the year 1861 Mr Martin entered heart and
soul into the revival movement, and spoke of it as a blessed season to
hundreds in and about Lochmaben, and to none more than to himself. In a
few years his strength gave way, and on 22nd November 1865 he died, in
the sixty-second year of his age and thirty-fifth of his ministry. The mem
bership at this time was 150, and the stipend was made up to £\ 10 in all by
a supplement of ^35. The congregation now called Mr Robert Lindsay,
who declined, and was settled in Creetown a year afterwards.
Third Minister. — ALEXANDER M'DONALD, from Kelso (First). Called
270 HISTORY OF U.P. CONGREGATIONS
to Whitehill in December 1863, but though scarce under forty he ventured, with
that modest self-reliance which characterised him, to wait for something
better. Cullybackey followed in 1865, but this also was set aside. Then
came Lochmaben, where he was ordained, i6th July 1867. Next year a
manse was built at a cost of ,£750, of which the Board paid two-fifths, and
on 8th March 1870 the church was reopened, after being renovated at a cost
of ,£500, and the sittings reduced to 500. In 1872 Mr M'Donaldwas invited
to Portsburgh, Edinburgh (now Gilmore Place), but preferred to remain in
Lochmaben. At the close of 1899 the membership was 130, and the stipend
from the people ^uo, with the manse.
HIGHTAE (RELIEF)
THOUGH this congregation was never fully organised its history will fitly
supplement that of Lochmaben. The village of Hightae is fully two miles
south of Lochmaben, and used to have a population of 400. On 1 1 th
September 1797 a petition for sermon came before the Relief Presbytery of
Dumfries from what was described as the forming congregation of Hightae,
and the Rev. Edward Dobbie of Mainsriddell was appointed to preach there
on the first Sabbath of October. During the next two summers there was
occasional supply, but the name is lost sight of during the year 1800. After
that sermon was resumed and continued at intervals, but on 26th November
1806 a commissioner from the committee of management appeared before
the Presbytery. A question had arisen as to what was to be done respecting
the property, and it was agreed to submit this matter to a meeting of the
subscribers and of all who were friendly to the Relief cause in the place.
The people were still worshipping in the open air, and it was ascertained
that they had raised about £90, and that a burden of ^65 rested on the
building. The Presbytery were of opinion that the interests of the society
would not be advanced so long as the present managers remained in office,
but these men were resolved to keep hold till the debt was liquidated. The
cause did not long survive this division of counsel, and on 5th August 1807
the name appears on the records of Dumfries Relief Presbytery for the last
time, the entire period this history covers being ten years.
For information about the after-fortunes of the building we have to draw
from another source. About the year 1828 it was sold for £jo to a few
individuals who were setting up a Reformed Presbyterian congregation at
Hightae. This little denomination then took possession of the ground, and
obtained a minister in the following year. In 1836 the communicants
numbered about 112, and the membership was drawn from fourteen different
parishes, thirty families coming from more than four miles. The sittings
were 325, and the minister's stipend, which was ,£80 at first, had been
reduced to ^60, with no manse. The congregation is now connected with
the Free Church.
DUNSCORE (RELIEF)
ON 6th September 1814 some friends of the Relief cause in the parish of
Dunscore applied to Dumfries Presbytery for as many days' supply as
possible. On 4th October three of the members who had preached there
stated that they met at Dunscore with a respectable number of the in
habitants, and they believed that circumstances favoured the formation of
a congregation in that place. From this time supply was granted nearly
PRESBYTERY OF DUMFRIES 271
every Sabbath, and the people were early in the mood for having a minister.
With that view they wished Mr James Porteous recalled, who had already
been with them four Sabbaths. This was in March 1815 ; but the scheme
failed, as Mr Porteous was ordained at Jedburgh soon after.
First Minister. -MATTHEW BEATTIE, from Kilmarnock (King Street).
Ordained, ist April 1817. The stipend was to be ^80, with a comfortable
house, or ,£15 instead, and ,£2, IDS. each communion. There was also a
large item, already spoken of as figuring in money arrangements within the
Relief Presbytery of Dumfries — ^20 for travelling expenses. Their place of
worship was built the year before. Mr Beattie died on Tuesday, 23rd June
1858, in the seventy-second year of his age and forty-second of his ministry.
Though in a weak state of health for some time, he preached the Sabbath
preceding his death.
Second Minister. — GEORGE BARCLAY, from St Andrews. Was first
called to Newton-Mearns, but commotion having arisen the call was laid
aside. Then after balancing for a little between Holm of Balfron and
Dunscore he accepted the latter place, and was ordained, 3ist May 1859.
The stipend was to be ^90, with manse and garden, and* a supplement of
^20, and the call was signed by 75 members and u adherents. In 1864 a
new church was built at a cost of ,£850, with 320 sittings, and in 1868 nearly
^500 was expended on the repairing of the manse, of which the Board paid
^155. At the close of 1899 the membership stood at 102, and the stipend
from the people was ^80, with the manse.
Dunscore, it may be of interest to know, figured in connection with a
Dissenting movement in the early part of the eighteenth century. Aversion
to the Abjuration Oath was specially strong at that time among both ministers
and people in the counties of Dumfries and Kirkcudbright. It bound those
who took it, they urged, " to maintain and defend the Erastian supremacy,
prelacy, and the popish ceremonies of the Church of England as established
by law." Mr James Gilchrist, minister of Dunscore parish, on this ground
renounced connection with the judicatories of the Church. After this he
preached far and wide, though Dunscore was still his peculiar care, and the
sentence of deposition pronounced on him by the General Assembly in 1717
did not put an arrest on his activities. He died, i8th August 1721, but not
without preparing the way for the prevalence of Dissent in that wide region
at a later time. One of the Societies which went to form the Antiburgher
congregation of Dumfries was from the parish of Dunscore, nine miles off,
and it may be surmised that Moniaive, a mile or two nearer, drew supplies
from the same quarter. But now the Relief interest took large possession,
and the Secession passed into the background.
KIRKCUDBRIGHT (BURGHER)
THIS congregation did not originate till 1818, though attempts were made
at an earlier time, first by the Relief Presbytery of Dumfries, and second by
the Burgher Presbytery of Kilmarnock, to obtain footing there. On the
former of these occasions sermon was granted for the second and third
Sabbaths of October 1801, in answer to a petition "from a respectable
number of persons in Kirkcudbright." For a time there was almost constant
supply, but in August 1802 it ceased entirely. The other attempt, in
November 1809, was so slight as scarcely to deserve mention. It was only
a day's sermon that was asked for, and granted, and though Kilmarnock
Burgher Presbytery was active in Galloway about that time nothing followed.
The third attempt, however, was to be successful. This took shape on 22nd
272 HISTORY OF U.P. CONGREGATIONS
December 1817 in a petition from some of Kirkcudbright people to the
Burgher Presbytery of Annan, " to appoint some of their number to attempt
the erection of a congregation in that town." Sermon was granted for the
first and second Sabbaths of January, the reason assigned being the destitute
situation of the place with regard to the gospel. The parish minister was
at this time some years over eighty, and we infer from the above that he
had been the reverse of evangelical, though he was able to testify in 1794
that among his parishioners there was not one Dissenter or Seceder of any
denomination whatever. The application just referred to may be traced to
some evangelistic work in Galloway by Mr Dunlop of Dumfries and some
other Burgher ministers immediately before. Once commenced, supply was
kept up till the summer of 1819, though on an average half the Sabbaths
were blank, but at this time it entirely ceased. In December there was
the appearance of reviving interest through the Presbytery receiving a letter
from Kirkcudbright asking them to commence services anew. This was
done, and difficulty having been experienced in obtaining a site from those
in high places a petition was addressed to the Synod in April 1820 for
assistance in purchasing a freehold. Though no grant was allowed mean
while the people ventured within six weeks to ask for a moderation, pro
mising a stipend of £i 10.
First Minister. — GEORGE WOOD, from Blackfriars, Jedburgh. Called
to Kirkcudbright and Lochwinnoch. The Burgher Synod met on Tuesday,
5th September 1820, and the union with the Antiburghers was to be con
summated on the 8th, but though their time was limited the whole sederunt
on Wednesday evening was occupied in discussing the conflicting claims of
the two calls, and the debate had a notable ending. The numbers for each
were equal, but the minister who presided pro tern, had vacated the chair
during the calling of the roll, and given his vote. What about the casting
vote now ? To get out of the difficulty they would go over the ground anew
next forenoon, when the bulk of another sederunt was consumed. When the
vote was taken a second time Kirkcudbright was carried by a great majority,
and Mr Wood was ordained, 2oth December 1820. This was the co-
presbyter, "a man stately and able-bodied, and possessed of solid spiritual
and mental attainments," to whom the Rev. James Towers referred in the
denominational magazine for 1889 (page 438). Lochwinnoch, he said, "was
a well-established church, which he was just the man to feed with the bread
of life. The other was a new cause, where dissent was unpopular, and
would have required a man of quicker step, disposed to preach simpler and
shorter sermons. My friend preferred the settled congregation, but the
Synod, in its wisdom or unwisdom, sent him to the infant cause, to labour in
a sphere for which he was not adapted." The new church was opened in
May 1822 at a cost of about ^iioo, including the purchase of the ground,
and the people were few in number, only 50 members having signed the
call.
For a clear view of the congregation's affairs we pass on to 1836. The
stipend aimed at had not been reached by a goodly sum, having averaged
only ^85 during these fifteen years, without a manse. The communicants
were 100, but the attendance was double that number. Of the families
belonging to the congregation nearly a third were from the parishes of
Rerrick, Girthon, and Twynholm, and ten of these came from more than
six miles. As only one-fifth of the sittings yielded more than 35. a year it
cannot be said that the financial arrangements were on a satisfactory footing.
A burden of ^300 rested on the property till 1845, when it was extinguished,
^180 being granted by the Liquidation Board and ,£120 raised by the
people. Mr Wood had to contend long with straitened means, but, remarked
PRESBYTERY OF DUMFRIES 273
Mr Towers, u It is pleasing to add that, when he reached a good old age, his
stipend from Augmentation and other sources amounted to ^150 or ^160."
This is rather an under-estimate, as some years before his death Mr Wood
had a stipend of ,£200 besides a dwelling-house, ^137, los. being paid by the
people. A manse was built in 1865 at a cost of ^750, of which the Board
paid two-fifths. In 1869 a colleague became indispensable.
Second Minister. — WILLIAM WATSON, from Douglas. Called also to
Lumsden and Findochty. Ordained at Kirkcudbright, I4th July 1869. Mi-
Wood died, 7th March 1870, in the seventy-eighth year of his age and
fiftieth of his ministry. Amidst long drawbacks it is much to have Mi-
Towers' testimony that Mr Wood had among his elders and members as
godly and prayerful men as it had been his lot to meet. On I4th July 1880
the present church, with sittings for 480, was opened by Dr George Jeffrey of
Glasgow, when the collection amounted to ^316, and it was reckoned that
no debt remained on the building. The entire cost was ,£3228. Mr Watson
died, 7th October 1894, in the fifty-third year of his age and twenty-sixth of
his ministry. His son, of the same name with himself, is now one of our
probationers, and the Rev. J. Mitchell Watson of Leitholm is a younger
brother of Mr Watson's.
Third Minister. — RICHARD GLAISTER, B.D., from Lanark (Hope Street).
Ordained, 3oth July 1895. The membership at the close of 1899 was 107,
and the stipend from the people .£165, with the manse.
DALRY (UNITED SECESSION)
THE original name was Balmaclellan, a parish on the S.E. of Dairy. An
application was presented to the United Secession Presbytery of Dumfries
on 6th November 1820 by fifteen men residing in that village, or its vicinity,
for sermon every alternate Sabbath. This arrangement was kept up for two
years, and then, owing to pecuniary difficulties, the people requested to have
the supply reduced to once a month. On this limited allowance the cause
subsisted till about 1825 ; only members of Presbytery came in, ever and
again, to fill up blank Sabbaths by preaching gratis. Aid was also afforded
to the extent of ^5 on several occasions. It was scarcely possible that there
could be decided increase on this system, and in May 1825 the congregation
asked the Presbytery to grant them a collection from each congregation to
aid them in erecting a place of worship, and also to endorse a paper they
had drawn up to be sent for subscriptions to other parts of the Church.
Encouragement was given, and a committee appointed to advise with them
on the proposal. We have the outcome in a minute, of date 6th November,
when a petition for sermon was received from the congregation of Dairy, and
the explanation is appended : " Formerly Balmaclellan, a place of worship
being now built in the parish of Dairy." The cost, we learn in another way,
was a trifle over ^200, and the number of sittings 200. To what extent the
expense was met is nowhere given, but both the people and the Presbytery
were exercised in mind, before the opening, by a gentleman in the neighbour
hood refusing to pay the ^50 he had subscribed unless compelled by law.
It was some time after the new stage was reached that the congregation
could afford to receive regular supply, though in April 1829 they saw their
way to apply for a moderation, undertaking a stipend of ,£80, together with
a house and sacramental expenses.
First Minister. — JOHN REID, from Mauchline. There were calls brought
before the Synod to Mr Reid in April 1829 from Cowgate, Edinburgh,
and Nicholson Street, Glasgow, and Dairy followed on the 3oth of that
274 HISTORY OF U.P. CONGREGATIONS
month. But two days before this the Synod appointed Mr Reid to Cowgate,
Edinburgh (now Fountainhall Road), though he had plainly intimated his
inability to undertake so difficult a charge. Edinburgh Presbytery did their
utmost, as instructed, to remove his objections, but without effect, and on
2nd June he got free. The way was now cleared for Dumfries Presbytery
sustaining the call from Dairy, and Mr Reid was ordained over the little
society there on 8th October 1829. The call had the signatures of only 29
members, but there were 74 adherents. Success was now to be looked for
up to the measure of what that rural district could afford, but within four
years confusion arose. On the last Sabbath of March 1833 Mr Reid entered
the pulpit and read a paper in which he stated that he had resolved to retire
from the pastorate at Dairy, and then left the church, " amidst the astonish
ment and grief of the whole congregation." Next Sabbath there was again
no service, and the minister attended the parish church. At a meeting
of Presbytery" on Tuesday Mr Rogerson of Thornhill was appointed to
preach at Dairy on Sabbath and meet with the congregation on the previous
afternoon. His report bore that a paper of reasons for the step he had
taken was expected to be laid on the table of the Presbytery by Mr Reid
that day, and that it had been already read to the congregation. Instead of
this he sent in the demission of his charge, and owing to his conduct in the
whole affair he was laid under suspension. At a meeting of Presbytery on
8th May inquiry brought out that a marriage engagement was involved, from
which Mr Reid was, in the opinion of his brethren, attempting to resile in a
deceitful way. He alleged that another young woman stood in the way,
though both parties in this case admitted that there had been nothing
beyond certain attentions which might have been presumed on. On 4th
June the Presbytery decided to proceed by libel, and have witnesses ex
amined upon oath, when Mr Reid rose, expressed his conviction that there
was no wish to do him justice, renounced their authority, and immediately
left the court. On 8th July he signified by letter his withdrawal from the
communion of the United Secession Church, and his name was erased from
the Presbytery Roll.
The warning Mr Rogerson gave the people at the outset was opportune
and greatly needed : "to forego all private partialities as well as animosities,"
and " by all means to live united, for to be divided was to be destroyed."
The first petition from Dairy was for two Sabbaths of pulpit supply each
month, and Mr Reid's successor testified three years afterwards that at this
time the congregation suffered a considerable diminution in the number of
its members, and specially in the number of seat-holders. It was well, perhaps,
that in less than two months they had spirit enough to apply for a modera
tion, which issued in a call to Mr David Henderson, who was invited soon
after to Dairy in Ayrshire, which invitation he preferred.
Second Minister. — ALEXANDER RITCHIE, from Perth (North). Or
dained, 2 ist August 1834. This call was signed by 70 communicants, but
the adherents were down to a half-dozen. The stipend was ,£10 lower than
before. But the Presbytery was not done as yet with Mr Reid. A year
after he had been loosed from Dairy he comes before us as minister of a
congregation in Mary's Chapel, Edinburgh, which was petitioning to be
received into fellowship with the United Secession Church. The application
was signed by 64 members, 31 seat-holders, and 63 who designated them
selves friends. Edinburgh Presbytery found on inquiry that the petitioners
had gathered round Mr Tully Crybbace, a Secession preacher whose peculi
arities had placed him outside the denomination. Mr Crybbace having gone
on a missionary tour to England put Mr Reid, who had recently married a
sister of his, into his place, and the bulk of the people became bent on
PRESBYTERY OF DUMFRIES 275
having the substitute altogether. This was followed by a written call to
Mr Reid, which he accepted, and this again by a resolution to petition the
United Secession Presbytery for admission and to be constituted pastor and
people. But before progress could be made Mr Reid had to appear before
Dumfries Presbytery with a request to have the sentence of suspension
under which he was lying removed, and the case was handed over to the
Synod. With the aid of certain assessors the Presbytery went into the
merits of the case anew, but the Synod in October 1835, guided by the
report before them, declared the suspension to be still in force. At this
point we take farewell of the Rev. John Reid, to meet him amidst better
fortunes when we reach Bathgate (Livery Street).
In 1836 Mr Ritchie reported the membership at 103, of whom 37 were
from the parish of Balmaclellan and 27 from the parish of Kells. Of the
families in the church, fifteen were distant more than four miles. Mr
Ritchie explained that about the year 1833 the hold the congregation
had of the district was very considerably weakened, and the reason is to be
found in connection with the close of the former ministry. On 2nd March
1841 Mr Ritchie demitted his charge, and on igih July, after arrears of
stipend had been made up, the demission was accepted. Having pro
ceeded to Canada as one of the Synod's missionaries Mr Ritchie was
inducted into West Dumfries, 4th May 1842, and of his success there
Dr James Robertson testified in 1848: "There is not a more thriving
congregation than this in the whole body." Mr Ritchie died, June 1861, in
his sixty-fifth year. He was brother to the Rev. W. Ritchie, West Linton.
Third Minister. — ALEXANDER PATEKSON, M.A., from St Nicholas'
Church, Aberdeen. Ordained, 3Oth May 1843. ^r Paterson had been
previously called to Smyrna Chapel, Sunderland, after being located there
for some time, and was about to be ordained, but money difficulties emerged
at the last hour, and the congregation had to be dissolved. Though Dairy
could not promise more than .£50 from their own funds Mr Paterson agreed
to accept, and the Presbytery, without waiting for the award of the Mission
Board as to a supplement, decided " to encourage this interesting congrega
tion "by fixing the ordination at once. The membership at this time was
only 70. In 1845 the whole debt of ^230 was cleared off, the Liquidation
Board allowing one-half. About this time feeling was stirred by the erection
of Glenkens Free Church at a distance of little more than a mile from the
village of Dairy. The Mission Board reported to the Synod that by this
movement, taken in connection with the thinness and poverty of the popula
tion, Mr Paterson's usefulness as a minister had been to a considerable extent
affected. But the work went on with slight variations till 3oth September
1884, when arrangements were completed for Mr Paterson retiring from
active service owing to advancing infirmities. But he died on 7th November
at Edinburgh, in the seventy-third year of his age and forty-second of his
ministry. He is best remembered in connection with his son, the Rev.
James A. Paterson, D.D., Professor of Hebrew and Old Testament Litera
ture in the U. P. Hall.
Fourth Minister. — JAMES MATHER, formerly of Langbank, which he
resigned in January 1882. Inducted, 3ist March 1885. The membership
at this time was 63, and the stipend from the people was to be ,£55, with the
manse. In 1897 arrangements were entered into for the erection of a new
church, and with this view a field in a very suitable situation was bought for
^336. Through the aid of friends and the proceeds of a bazaar, along with
a grant from the Central Board, it is hoped that the church will be opened
free of debt. The entire cost is estimated at ^1800. At the close of 1899
there were 69 names on the communion roll, and the Free Church of Glen-
276 HISTORY OF U.P. CONGREGATIONS
kens, which entered into formidable rivalry with Dairy forty-five years ago,
had nearly double that number.
DALBEATTIE (UNITED PRESBYTERIAN)
THIS thriving police burgh in the parish of Urr had no existence till about
the year 1780. In 1802 a number of residenters attempted to have it made
the seat of a Relief congregation, and they had occasional sermon for years,
but the experiment was abandoned, the last day's supply being in January
1807. From this time till 1858 there was a blank, so far as any section of
what is now the United Presbyterian Church is concerned, though Urr con
gregation, four miles distant, had a considerable branch in Dalbeattie district.
During the vacancy occasioned by the removal of the Rev. James Black to
St Andrews steps were taken to secure gospel ordinances for themselves,
and on 4th May 1858 "a petition was presented from seventy persons residing
in or near Dalbeattie praying for supply of sermon." A hall had been
obtained, and the applicants engaged to meet all expenses for the first half-
year. The station was opened on Sabbath, the 23rd of that month, with
encouraging prospects.
The above movement was prompted into shape at this particular time by
a dispute which had arisen in Urr congregation. The question of whether a
choir, introduced some time before, should be discontinued had been sub
mitted to a plebiscite of the congregation, but, on a scrutiny, thirty-two of
the voting papers were cancelled. By this measure the session turned the
balance in favour of the choir. Disturbance followed, and here now were
the elders in a body up at Dumfries before the Presbytery. The reason they
assigned for setting aside these thirty-two papers was that the parties had
recently joined the" congregation ; but the Presbytery held that, after being
admitted to membership, they could not be denied any of the rights which
membership involved, and finding that an actual majority had voted against
the choir gave deliverance that the session counsel its discontinuance.
Before the month was ended steps were taken to have a preaching station
opened at Dalbeattie.
On 4th August 1858 a petition was presented from sixty-two persons
asking to be constituted into a regular congregation at Dalbeattie, and on
6th October it was reported that this had been done, and that there were
38 names on the communion roll. An election of elders was now proceeded
with, and four of their number having held office already a session was
formed without the usual preliminaries. Other six months having passed
the congregation applied for a moderation, promising a stipend of ,£120 from
their own resources. The membership at this time was slightly over 50.
First Minister. — DAVID KlNNEAR, B.A., from Buckhaven. Ordained,
3oth August 1859. In October 1861 the church, seated for 350, was opened
by Dr Macfarlane of London and Dr Eadie of Glasgow. It cost .£1000,
which was paid up in a few years, ,£250 being received from the Ferguson
Fund, ,£120 from the Debt Liquidating Board, and the rest subscribed
by the people. In or about 1868 a manse was built at an expenditure of
,£1060, of which ,£330 came from the Manse Board, and ,£730 was raised by
the congregation. But in Dalbeattie, where there were already a Free and
a quoad sacra Established Church, with an E.U. Church added in 1863,
there has been little scope for extensive increase. The present membership-
is entered at 120, and the stipend from the people ,£135, with the manse.
PRESBYTERY OF DUMFRIES 277
CARSPHAIRN (UNITED PRESBYTERIAN)
THOUGH this congregation is but of yesterday it has served itself heir to
another of a much earlier date. This takes us back well-nigh a century and
a half. On 24th February 1756 an unpopular presentee was thrust into the
parish of Carsphairn. The Presbytery claimed the right to appoint, but the
General Assembly in 1755 gave orders to moderate in a call to the patron's
nominee, and go on towards his settlement with all convenient speed. The
carrying out of the decision had this effect, that the congregation was dis
persed, and during the ministry of sixteen years which followed the Lord's
Supper was never dispensed. In the absence of written records the time
when sermon was first obtained from the Antiburgher Presbytery of San-
quhar cannot be given, but it seems not to have been earlier than 1758. On
1 4th July 1760 four persons in Carsphairn, two men and two women, acceded
to the Act and Testimony. For several years after this supply was kept up,
but with no approach to regularity, and in July 1762 there were two other
accessions given in, " as members of the Associate congregation of Cars
phairn." By the year 1768 the name appears very seldom, and on 1st April
1772 they had supply appointed for the last time. The obnoxious incumbent
died on 5th February of that year, and this may account for the Anti-
burgher cause passing out of existence in the parish of Carsphairn. The
population was very sparse, and though the name appeared on the list of
Sanquhar Presbytery as a vacant congregation it does not seem to have
been ever organised, and in 1793 the parish minister was able to testify, in
the Old Statistical History, that "sectaries of all descriptions are almost
entirely extirpated."
The present chapter does not open till considerably more than a century
had passed. This brings us to 2nd February 1886, when the U.P. Presbytery
of Dumfries appointed a deputation to visit Carsphairn, and this led to the
constituting of a preaching station there on 2nd March under the charge of
Dairy session. At next meeting, on 6th April, it was reported that 68
members of the Established Church at Carsphairn had given in their certifi
cates to Mr Mather of Dairy, and he had dispensed the communion among
them. They had withdrawn from attendance at the parish church owing to
dissatisfaction with the way in which a fama against the minister had been
dealt with by the Presbytery of the bounds. It was an affiliation case, and
the accused had been absolved in the Sheriff Court ; but, as was afterwards
stated in the General Assembly, the church was virtually deserted, the com
municants not numbering over ten. Preaching, however, was regularly kept
up in the school by the U.P. Presbytery of Dumfries, with an attendance, it
was stated to the Assembly, of 1 10. But it was doubtful whether this could
go on, as a proportion of the adherents looked on sermon outside the parish
church as only " good for the present distress." When the building of a
church was being arranged for the parish minister was induced to retire and
make way for an ordained assistant, who was to have the sole charge, with
^90 from the people and ,£60 from the minister, and the manse. This end
being compassed in 1889 the prosperity of the preaching station was im
paired, a considerable number finding their way back to the Established
Church. In 1892 Dairy and Carsphairn were conjoined, the understanding
being that the two places, which are ten miles apart, could be wrought by
Mr Mather with the aid of a preacher. This arrangement, it was certain,
could not be permanent, and on ist June 1897 Carsphairn was erected into a
separate charge. The church had been opened on Thursday, 25th May
1893, by Professor Paterson, with sittings for 150, the estimated cost being
^500, of which .£150 came from the Home Board.
278 HISTORY OF U.P. CONGREGATIONS
First Minister, — WILLIAM FRASER, from Caledonia Road, Glasgow.
Mr Fraser, who had been located for some time at Carsphairn, was ordained,
2 ist July 1897. The membership at the close of 1899 was 64, and the people
contribute ^50 of the stipend.
PRESBYTERY OE DUNDEE
DUNDEE, SCHOOL WYND (BURGHER)
IT was at Liff, a parish to the west of Dundee, that th« Secession flag was
first unfurled in the south of Forfarshire, as will be given under its own
heading. The first accession from the town itself was on i8th July 1738,
when a society in Dundee was taken under the inspection of the Associate
Presbytery. Other accessions followed, including three elders, and on gth
February 1741 a session was constituted. An elder from Errol, who had
joined shortly before, is also entered in the sederunt of the first meeting, and
a fifth name appears some months later. The first trace of Sabbath
supply by probationers is in September 1740, and for years the amount
hardly averaged more than one Sabbath in five or six weeks. It was this
which led the Rev. John Willison of Dundee to complain of the seceding
brethren " exciting and stirring up poor people to leave their godly pastors,
by whom many of them had been brought to Christ." " People,'' he said,
" if they obey them, must sit at home on the Lord's day, and live without
the gospel except when they get a transient sermon now and then from a
seceder." The recommendation of the Associate Presbytery to the people
under their inspection was '' to cast themselves" into societies and meet for
prayer and conference on the Lord's Day, if no preacher could be had and
there was no Secession church within reach. Thus they were to wait till it
should please the Lord to send more labourers into His vineyard.
Dr M'Kelyie has ascribed the origin of the Secession in Dundee to Mr
Willison having given dissatisfaction to a number of his people by the
attitude he took up towards the Seceding brethren in his " Fair and Impartial
Testimony," a book which was not published till 1744. What proportion of
the Seceders in Dundee was drawn from under Mr Willison's ministry can
not be known, as the town was already divided into three parishes, each
with its own minister, but in the passages quoted above he wrote as if
under a sense of personal wrong. Still, in tone and bearing Willison's
" Impartial Testimony" contrasts well with other controversial pamphlets of
the time, and had the Secession Fathers read it with candour it might have
kept them back from hurtful extremes. He miscalculated, however, when he
blamed the Four Brethren for not returning to the mother Church, when
the General Assembly opened the door to receive them. Had they sur
rendered at that time they would never have got possession of the same
vantage-ground again, and if, in the face of the relief they offered oppressed
congregations, violent settlements became the order of the day, is it credible
that their feeble voices in the courts of the Church, and straggling votes,
would have sufficed to hold Moderatism in check ? Still, John Willison all
through was as earnest in resisting the tide of defection as the first Seceders
were, and it is pathetic to read the correspondence he had with Ralph
Erskine when on his deathbed. " I thank you," wrote the dying man, "for
the regard you express for me, notwithstanding the differences that have
taken place by reason of the different degrees of light in the dark valley of
PRESBYTERY OF DUNDEE 279
this world. May the back view of these make us long to be ripened for that
world of light where divisions have no place ! "
The anomalous relation between Dundee and Montrose, and the attempt
made in 1744 to have these places united under a collegiate ministry, belongs
with greater propriety to Montrose. It may be remarked, however, that,
partly perhaps through the influence of John Willison's character and
writings, the Secession cause was slow in taking root in Dundee, and con
tinued long in a feeble state.
First Minister. — JAMES JOHNSTONE, from the parish of Mains. Extracts
from Mr Johnstone's Diary, relating to communion solemnities in 1735 at
Abernethy, Dunfermline, and Abbotshall, make manifest that he was drawn
strongly in the direction of the Secession movement almost from the first.
But for other nine years he continued in the Established Church, and
received licence from the Presbytery of Dundee, 2nd February 1743. After
a time he gave in his declinature to that court, and on 7th August 1744 he
was received as a probationer by the Associate Presbytery. Called to
Dundee in May 1745, hut not ordained till i6th April 1746, the callers
numbering 75. 'The church in School Wynd was built that year. In 1749
Mr Johnstone was called to the large congregation of Kirkcaldy, or
Abbotshall, but the Presbytery decided that he should remain in Dundee.
He died of fever on Thursday, I5th November 1750. Ralph Erskine tells in
one of his letters how he arrived in Dundee on the following day, and per
formed the last duty "of carrying his head to the grave on Saturday." " He
was interred in his own kirk." His illness was sharp and soon over, for "he
kept a fast in his congregation the one Thursday, and died the next." Mr
Erskine preached on Sabbath, his text in the afternoon being : " Mark the
perfect man, and behold the upright, for the end of that man is peace." He
had a very great and crowded auditory, multitudes being obliged to go
away. Mr Johnstone's widow returned to Alloa, her native place, with her
infant son, who became an extensive merchant in that town, and was long
an elder in what is now the West U.P. Church.
Ralph Erskine and James Johnstone were drawn into close fellowship
through the Breach, when, of the nine ministers in the Presbyter}- of
Dunfermline, they alone took the Burgher side. At that time the extent of
Mr Johnstone's labours was lessened, as Coupar-Angus, where he preached
every third Sabbath, broke away and declared for the Antiburghers. A few
of his people about Dundee also withdrew from his ministry, and formed
the nucleus of the Antiburgher congregation in the Overgate (now Bell
Street). But his four and a half years of earnest devotedness must have
given the Secession cause in Dundee a better standing and a deeper tone.
A few months after Mr Johnstone's death School Wynd congregation made
an urgent effort to obtain Mr James Erskine for their minister, but the
Synod appointed him to be colleague to his uncle at Stirling. As for
Dundee, their Commissioner declared the decision to be "contrary to right
reason, to the conduct of the Church of Scotland since the Reformation, to
the practice of this Synod since their first constitution, and a preventing of
the very design of the Secession." What all this meant it is hard to
conceive, unless it were that their call ought to have carried because it was
first on the field.
Second Minister. — WILLIAM M'EwAN, from Perth (Wilson Church).
Called to Dundee in July 1752, before he was out of his teens, but he was
not ordained till 23rd January 1754. Mr M'Ewan was widely known in our
fathers' days as the author of a book on "The Types," and he is described
by Dr John Brown in the Appendix to his " Life of Fisher " as a young man
of fine genius and elegant taste ; while Dr John Erskine has linked his name
28o HISTORY OF U.P. CONGREGATIONS
with that of Hervey, the author of the " Meditations." But Mr M'Ewan's
course, like that of his predecessor, was to be brief. On Tuesday, 2Qth
December 1761, he crossed over from Dundee to Edinburgh, and preached
in Bristo Church on the following Sabbath for the Rev. John Pattison, who
became his biographer and the editor of his works. On Monday he was
married at Dalkeith to Miss Wardlaw, whose brother's son became Dr Ralph
Wardlaw of Glasgow. On Wednesday he set out with his bride for Dundee,
but was stopped at Leith by illness, which developed into fever, and next
Wednesday, I3th January 1762, he died, in the twenty-eighth year of his age
and eighth of his ministry. He was buried among his wife's kindred at
Dalkeith. Mr M'Ewan's work on " The Types " was published the year after
his death, and a volume of " Select Essays," with Memoir prefixed, appeared
in 1767.
Third Minister.— THOMAS LISTER, a native of Dysart, but brought up
under the ministry of Mr Shirra of Kirkcaldy. Ordained, I5th September
1762, and died, i8th January 1766, in his twenty-seventh year. He was a
half-brother of William Dryburgh, the most intimate of Michael Brace's
fellow-students, who died of consumption four months afterwards. They
were buried in the old churchyard at Dysart, and in Bruce's words :
"There stands their tomb upon the sea-beat shore."
Mr Lister's minister, Mr Shirra, put on record Mr Lister's deathbed ex
periences, and tells how, when dying, he quoted the saying of John Owen :
" I am going to Him whom my soul loveth, or rather to Him who hath loved
my soul," and soon afterwards " fell on sleep."
School Wynd congregation now called Mr Robert Campbell, a preacher
of great oratorical power, whom the Synod had previously ordered to be
ordained at Stirling (now Erskine Church), and the call was obliquely dis
posed of by a decision that the ordination at Stirling go on at once.
Fourth Minister.— JAMES CLUNIE, from Leslie (now Trinity Church),
where his father early cast in his lot with the Seceders, and he himself, as the
parish register shows, was baptised by Ralph Erskine. On obtaining licence
he was speedily and unanimously called to Dundee and Alloa. The Presby
tery gave Dundee the preference, and though Alloa carried their claims to
the Synod they got no redress. Mr Clunie was ordained, 4th November
1767, and in three months he was called to be colleague and successor to the
Rev. James Fisher of Glasgow. On 5th April 1768 the call was laid on the
table of Perth and Dunfermline Presbytery, with 1 162 signatures of members
and adherents. Parties were summoned to appear at Kirkcaldy on Tuesday,
2ist June ; but in the parish register of Leslie there is a small sum entered
on the preceding Saturday as " Mortcloth dues for Mr James Clunie." Ex
citement, it is understood, had dethroned reason, and his life was brought to
a tragic end. On Tuesday the Presbytery met as appointed, and Mr Clunie's
name was dropped from the roll. Commissioners from Glasgow were pre
sent, but their occupation was gone, and they had to content themselves with
asking a few Sabbaths' supply for their aged pastor. Mr Clunie was in the
thirty-first year of his age. It has been stated again and again that he was
assisting at the dispensation of the Lord's Supper at Leslie when the end
came ; but the Burgher congregation there, in which his father was a leading
man, had neither a minister as yet nor a place of worship. It is more pro
bable that, in distress of mind, and in a strung-up state, he betook himself to
the old home circle, and thus his life was breathed away where it began.
After being nearly a year vacant Dundee congregation called Mr Samuel
Kinloch, whom Glasgow Presbytery was about to ordain at Paisley, and
Dundee people had to allow their call to drop.
PRESBYTERY OF DUNDEE 281
Fifth Minister. — WILLIAM BALLANTYNE, from West Linton. During
a short probationary course he received calls to Cambusnethan, Duns, and
Dundee ; but the Synod gave Dundee the advantage, and Mr Ballantyne
was ordained, 24th October 1770, when he had newly entered on his twenty-
first year. The congregation was visited presbyterially in the end of 1773,
and, as usual on such occasions, the minister preached, the text being the
next in the ordinary course of his week-day expositions. At the close the
Presbytery passed judgment on the merits of the discourse as a specimen of
his public work, and declared themselves satisfied. Then Mr Ballantyne
was removed, and, the session and congregation being questioned concerning
their minister, the Presbytery found "there was no relevant objection against
his life and doctrine." After inquiry had gone round, Mr Ballantyne asked
liberty to make a statement in the church and before the people, but this
was not allowed. The Presbytery then retired to the session-house, where
he was permitted to break silence. The purport of his statement was that
he believed his usefulness in Dundee to be nearly at an end, and he was
under the necessity of asking them to loose him from his charge. On the
plea that there was not a full meeting of Presbytery the case was delayed,
and there might be the hope that, as the result of the visitation, discords
would die away and the past be forgotten.
Contention having revived, "the whole complex affair" was submitted to
the Synod, and by their advice three of the Presbytery were appointed to
visit Dundee and deal with the confusions there. This was done, and the
chief complaint against the minister was that in laying on baptismal vows
he did not make mention of the Act and Testimony. Though Mr Ballan
tyne had no difficulty in meeting the wishes of his accusers on this 'point,
matters got worse, and at a meeting of Presbytery in Leslie early in 1775, in
the house of Andrew Clunie, the father of his lamented predecessor, Mr
Ballantyne urged anew the acceptance of his demission. In this unhappy
state things continued till gth May 1776, when the Synod decided that the
resignation should be accepted, although 106 members were petitioning for
his continuance among them and testifying to his character as a faithful
minister of Jesus Christ.
If Mr Ballantyne in demitting his charge presumed on his former popu
larity he was to meet with worse than disappointment. After itinerating
among the vacancies for four years his want of acceptability was complained
of, and he was solemnly rebuked at the bar of Synod, " with certification
that, if he did not stir himself up to preach in such a manner as people might
hear him, and in some measure relish his ministrations," his name would be
dropped from the roll. Two years later he was informed that to give him
appointments along with the other probationers would rather be hurtful than
conducive to edification. A protest followed, and a paper calumnious of the
court and of the ministers and preachers of the Church generally. At the
Synod in September 1784 he was in a submissive mood, and his name was
restored to the list, but in May 1788 it was agreed that it would not be for
edification to employ him further. It suggests the reflection that if Mr
Ballantyne's preaching could not be borne with as occasional supply, what
may it have been to sit under his ministry Sabbath after Sabbath ? Better
the restiveness of a Dissenting congregation in such circumstances than the
settling down in apathetic unconcern, knowing that there is no riddance
possible, though the evil should be prolonged for two generations. As for
the popularity of a young preacher, it may be like the grass on the housetop
" which withereth afore it groweth up." Believing himself wronged by his o\vn
Synod Mr Ballantyne after a time sought to transfer himself to another
communion. In September 1792 he petitioned the Relief Presbytery of
282 HISTORY OF U.P. CONGREGATIONS
Perth to be received as a probationer, assigning reasons for leaving his former
connection. The Presbytery did not look on the application with disfavour,
but the Synod, in the following May, closed the door against him. How
long he lived after this, what avocation he followed, or where he died, are
points on which no information can be obtained.
The Synod on accepting Mr Ballantyne's demission instructed the
Presbytery to inflict censure on the ringleaders of the opposition, and a half-
dozen of them afterwards journeyed from Dundee to Lochgelly for the sole
purpose of being rebuked. Matters continued in an unsettled state for years ;
but in 1780 Mr John Blackhall was called to School Wynd, and at three
successive meetings came forward with his trial exercises. On 22nd November
the congregation met for the ordination services, but instead of the edict
being read one of the ministers went up and informed them that the day
would be observed in fasting and humiliation. Mr Blackhall had not come
forward, and they had a letter from him stating that he would not submit to
be ordained at Dundee. It is clear from this that the story of Mr Blackhall
having disappeared when the Presbytery were on their way from the session-
house to the church is a myth. He was supplying Rathillet at the time, and
remained there, as Dr George Brown has stated, instead of proceeding to
Dundee. After unsuccessful dealings with him at subsequent meetings the
Presbytery referred his case to the Synod, where it carried to dismiss the
call, and he was neither rebuked nor admonished. If, as has been alleged,
his aversion to School Wynd Church arose from an impression that some
fatality hung over the lives of its ministers, this may account for the lenity
he experienced. Within a few months he was called to Berwick (now
Wallace-Green), where he was ordained, 3rd January 1782. In parting
with Mr Blackhall we may state that he was from Selkirk ; that he laboured
in Berwick twenty-one years; and that he died, 5th March 1813, in the
fifty-eighth year of his age.
Sixth Minister. — JAMES BLACK, from Biggar (now Moat Park). Or
dained, 25th September 1782. The congregation must have suffered from
the confusions which went before, as Mr Blackhall's call, the only one of
which the numbers are given, was signed by no more than 119 members,
male and female. The stipend was to be 1000 merks, or ,£83, 6s. 8d. They
were also to pay half the Widows' Rate, and probably the house rent also.
In the Old Statistical History ten or eleven years later the entire number
under Mr Black's care, "including children and occasional attendants," was
given at 784. In 1807 Dundee congregation requested supply of sermon
from the Presbytery "on account of the affliction of their pastor." The
yearly income at this time from seat-rents and collections was over ^170, and
they had a communion roll of nearly 300. Their minister had a manse,
garden, and other belongings, and the debt was only ^50. All was well
thus far, but evil days were at hand. At next meeting a paper was given in
setting forth the distressing situation in which they were placed owing to
the bodily infirmities of their minister, and also from a report having gone
abroad unfavourable to his character, and they wished him induced to demit
his charge and accept such an annuity as they might be able to give him.
But when brought to the point the commissioners would not engage to prove
the things they had advanced against him, and the Presbytery declared that
his character stood fair in their estimation, a decision against which a
protest was taken and adhered to by elders and members to 'the number
of 220.
When the case came before the Synod in April 1808 the appellants in
sisted on one of two things : either Mr Black's removal, or sermon for
themselves. As a healing measure it was agreed that the pulpit should be
PRESBYTERY OF DUNDEE 283
partially supplied by other ministers. At the Synod in September the two
parties in the congregation were heard at great length, and also Mr Black.
The conclusion arrived at was that, as the complainers had established no
charge against their minister, his character remained untarnished, and that,
in having circulated reports against him which they refused to put into the
form of a libel, they were to be held as false accusers and laid under suspen
sion. The two parties in School Wynd now took farewell of each other, and
on 8th November 1808 the majority applied for sermon to the Original
Burgher Presbytery of the bounds, assigning as the reason "a difference
that existed between them and the courts of their former connection, in
consequence of complaints preferred by them against their minister." The
petition claimed to be from eleven elders and more than two-thirds of the
members, and the Presbytery, without interfering with recent disputes, took
them under their inspection. Next came a formal accession from 8 elders,
1/4 members, and 38 adherents, the distinction between Old and New Light
being of small account in an emergency. These figures are short of the
totality, for one of the calls which followed was signed by 269 members and
263 adherents. Being in a majority they attempted to carry the property
with them, but the title-deeds bound it to the party which adhered to the
Synod. In 1816 the Rev. Robert Aitken was translated from Kirkintilloch
and inducted as minister of the Original Burgher Church, Dundee. It is
now known as Willison Free Church, and has a membership of over 850, the
stipend being ,£400.
School Wynd congregation had more trying fortunes. In 1813 a return
to the Presbytery bore that the communicants appeared to be 177, but it
afterwards appeared that in their large church there were not more than
115 sittings let, and their entire income was under ^90. In 1814 pulpit
supply was needed owing to Mr Black being in bodily affliction, and the
Synod appointed two ministers of weight to meet with the Presbytery in
Dundee on 23rd August and inquire into the state of the congregation. But
Mr Black died on the I4th of July, and the whole face of affairs was changed
through the rupture of a feeble life thread. He was only in the fifty-sixth
year of his age and thirty-second of his ministry. Over the case from first
to last there rests a mystery which nothing can entirely remove. His chief
accuser declared before all was done that " the faina clamosa had dwindled
into a point compared with the offence they had received on other grounds"
— language scarcely compatible with grave moral delinquency.
Seventh Minister. — GEORGE DONALDSON, from Glasgow (now Grey-
friars). Called first to Newbigging, which was little more than a preaching
station, and then to Auchtermuchty (East) and Dundee almost simultaneously.
When the three calls came to be decided on, the Presbytery, in kindness
to a weakened cause, voted unanimously for Dundee, a decision against
which the commissioners from Auchtermuchty, which had the larger
following, appealed to the Synod. Before the Supreme Court met other
calls came out for Mr Donaldson from Lochwinnoch and Kilmarnock, but
in the Synod Dundee carried by an absolute majority, and the ordination
took place, 3oth August 1815. The stipend was to be ^no, with the manse,
and an allowance of £4 for each communion. Under Mr Donaldson's
ministry School Wynd became full to overflowing. In 1825 the present
church was built, not on the old site, but slightly to the south, on what used
to be a green for the tent services at communion times. The sittings were
between 1000 and uoo, and the cost has been set down at ^2000. In 1830
Mr Donaldson's health gave way, and while he was in this state the
membership fell off considerably. In July 1831 the session and congrega
tion petitioned Cupar Presbytery for supply of sermon, with a view to a
284 HISTORY OF U.P. CONGREGATIONS
second minister. A letter was read from Mr Donaldson expressing his
concurrence, but he died on 2oth October, in the thirty-ninth year of his age
and seventeenth of his ministry. No specimen of his preaching powers was
ever given to the world by himself, and any selection from his manuscripts
was forbidden by an entry on the blank leaf of one of his note-books. " He
that publishes sermons not expressly prepared and left for the press is an
assassin of posthumous reputation and a sacrilegious trafficker in the
memory of the dead.1'
Of Mr Donaldson one of his successors in School Wynd, the Rev. George
Gilfillan, has said that "for fiery eloquence, with a dash of poetry, and vast
and varied stores of miscellaneous knowledge he had few equals during his
career of seventeen years among the Dissenters of Scotland." His appear
ance at a tent preaching on the evening of a communion Sabbath he has
given as follows : — " He was a tall and very thin man of about thirty-five
years of age, at least 6 feet 2 inches in stature, with thick masses of fair hair
falling over his. shoulders." "A certain pensive expression, often, as with
him, the prognostic of early death, lay on his countenance." "He took for
his text the words : ' It is appointed unto men once to die.' In the matter
of the sermon I was disappointed. It consisted chiefly of the old common
places on the subject, conveyed in language of considerable spirit and
eloquence rather than with originality, felicity, and boldness. But this I
was barely able to perceive while hurried away by the overpowering fervour
and enthusiasm of his manner." * The description closes thus : " He was
a most amiable and, I believe, good man, and died a few years after this
visit to Strath-Rennie (Strathearn), beloved, admired, and pitied by all who
knew him."
At a moderation in June 1832 Mr Robert Wardrop was carried by a
slight majority over Mr John Robson, afterwards Dr Robson of Glasgow ;
but the minority, instead of acquiescing, got up an adverse petition, and when
the case came before the Presbytery there were 281 members subscribing
the call and 309 asking to have it set aside. The two lists give a strong
communion roll, but it cannot be said that the congregation's liberality was
proportionate to its numbers. The stipend named was ,£150, with the
manse, and when the Presbytery recommended ^200 the answer sent back
was that " they could not comply with the recommendation, and they
judged the stipend sufficient." In disposing of the call the preponderance
of names on the negative side left the Presbytery no alternative but to
decline sustaining it. A protest against this decision was taken, but it was
fallen from, and the two parties set about measuring strength anew. At a
second moderation, on 29th August, the supporters of Mr Wardrop found
themselves outnumbered by 22. A severance followed, and this was the
origin of Tay Square Church.
Eighth Minister. — ALEXANDER DAVIDSON, from Glasgow (Regent
Place). His appearance in School Wynd pulpit, with his dashing delivery,
may have tempted some who voted for Mr Wardrop on the previous occa
sion to change sides. The present call was signed by 365 members, an
increase of 84 over the other. For a few weeks the issue was uncertain,
as Mr Davidson had previously obtained calls to Hamilton (Blackswell) and
Hawick (East Bank), but the Synod decided for School Wynd, and Mr
Davidson was ordained, 8th January 1833. During the two years which
followed the church was filled anew to overflowing. Of Mr Davidson, George
Gilfillan wrote in his "Remoter Stars": "He was a man of natural
eloquence, a showy exterior, great warmth of heart, and unbounded popu-
* " History of a Man," page 195. It is a fancy sketch, more or less, and the
name is slightly disguised, but the picture fits the reality.
PRESBYTERY OF DUNDEE 285
larity with the masses." " His discourses were plain and evangelical, and
their garnish lay in a sensational, violent, but very effective, delivery." On
loth March 1835 Mr Davidson accepted a call to Lothian Road, Edinburgh,
and a few months after the transference his work came to an end. He died
in the following year, but the particulars belong- to the history of his second
charge.
Ninth Minister. — GEORGE GILFILLAN, youngest son of the Rev. Samuel
Gilfillan, Comrie. On the fourth Sabbath of August 1835 he occupied
School Wynd pulpit for the first time, and long afterwards he entered in
his journal : " I preached that day in the forenoon on the Rich Man and
Lazarus, in the afternoon on, What is Man ? and in the evening on, Awake,
O Sword ! against my Shepherd." He had been on the list since January,
and Comrie was the only place which had offered as yet. On one of the
last days of the year the call from Dundee was announced, and he was
ordained, 23rd March 1836. The tide of prosperity now went back for a
time in School Wynd, and the crowds which had gathered round Mr David
son melted away. Still, a year and a half afterwards Mr Gilfillan returned
the communicants at from 800 to 900, and the stipend was .£220 in all, with
a manse. In a few years, and specially after he began to figure in
literature, there was steady progress, though he speaks in 1842 of his
congregation being in a bad plight. By the building of a new manse the
debt had risen to ^1600, and owing to bad trade the effort to reduce it had
to be abandoned, and it was not till 1869 that the burden was entirely re
moved. The life course of George Gilfillan has been vividly traced by
Dr and Mrs Watson of Dundee, with the aid of his own Letters and Journal.
He died at Brechin, I3th August 1878, in the sixty-sixth year of his age
and forty-third of his ministry. In the earl)' morning a deadly heart ailment
wakened up with the suddenness of a midnight cry, and through severe
pangs he passed away with the words on his lips : " The will of the Lord
be done." He was followed to his grave in Balgay Cemetery, Dundee, by
"the largest concourse of mourners that ever honoured the remains of a
townsman.'1' So it was reported at the time. Others grieved at a distance
and in quiet ways as they remembered what George Gilfillan had been to
them. Those whose admiration for him was kindled more than fifty years
ago will go back beyond his more elaborate works, such as " The Bards
of the Bible," "Christianity and Our Era," and "Alpha and Omega," to his
first " Gallery of Literary Portraits," and to the days when his pen did much
to make Hoggs Instructor what no such periodical ever was to them before
or since. But his " Martyrs, Heroes, and Bards of the Scottish Covenant"
requires special mention owing to its substantial merits. There is also
his most prolonged undertaking, the " Lives of the Poets," prefixed to
Nichol's edition of the " British Poets " in forty-eight volumes.
In proceeding to fill up the vacancy School Wynd congregation took
a course for which their late minister had done much to prepare them. In
the last year of Mr Gilfillan's life the Rev. David M'Rae of Gourock was
causing trouble to Paisley and Greenock Presbytery, being resolute to have
the dogma of eternal punishment eliminated from the standards of the
Church. With his efforts at creed reform Gilfillan expressed sympathy in
his own exuberant way, and seemed ready to take the vanguard in the
prospective exodus from the house of bondage into a wide place, but while
matters were in this state he passed away. His "Papers, Literary and
Theological," published after his death, make manifest that in his later
years he was at sea on doctrines which go far deeper than those bearing on
the destiny of the unsaved. It was not surprising then that on 5th May
1879, the day on which the Synod met which was to deal with the case
286 HISTORY OF U.P. CONGREGATIONS
from Gourock, Mr M'Rae got a unanimous call to become Mr Gilfillan's
successor, signed ultimately by 643 members, with the promise of ,£400,
and a manse. When the Presbytery met on 2oth May it was proposed to
delay procedure, " seeing the Synod had appointed a committee to deal
with Mr M'Rae," but the motion carried to prosecute the call in the usual
way. But before further steps could be taken the Synod at a special
meeting declared Mr M'Rae no longer a minister of the U.P. Church,
and the case entered forthwith into new complications. On I4th August
Mr M'Rae, having met with a committee of the majority in School Wynd
congregation, told them it was very improbable he could remain in Gourock.
At another conference on loth September invitation sheets with 870 names
were forward to enforce the call to Dundee, and Mr M'Rae was of
opinion that the production of these documents should have weight at
Gourock in deciding whether he should be urged to remain. A week after
wards he intimated to his session that his mind was made up to leave
Gourock, but his acceptance of Dundee would depend on the state of his
health. On Monday, the 22nd, a farewell meeting with his people was held,
and next day Mr M'Rae notified his friends in Dundee that he had been
much impressed all along with the claim they had upon him, and now that
his mind was relieved a few days might put him into a position to accept.
Preliminaries being got over Mr M'Rae was inducted to his new charge
on Friday, 3ist October, in Kinnaird Hall by the Rev. Baldwin Brown, M.A.,
of London, and at the close Mr M'Rae, in name of the congregation, thanked
Mr Brown for his kindness in coming down from London to officiate on the
occasion.
It may be added that Mrs Gilfillan, whose life was so long and so honour
ably linked with that of her husband, survived him fifteen years, kept by
the denomination, and died at Newport-on-Tay, 4th January 1894.
Tenth Minister. — J. L. SKERRET, who had been for a few years an
English Presbyterian minister, first at Birmingham and then at Walsall, but
was originally from Falkirk (West) and a licentiate of the L^.P. Church.
Inducted into School Wynd, I3th May 1880. In the return at the close of
the preceding year the membership was down from 900 to 270. The
property, however, was placed beyond the power of any majority, however
large, to alienate it from the denomination, thanks to their former minister,
and his hostility to the proposed Union with the Free Church. So the
Gilfillan Memorial Church was built, and there Mr M'Rae ministered to a
large body of people till 1897, when he retired, and was succeeded by the
Rev. Walter Walsh, the present minister, under whom all has not been
harmony. The minority in their weakened state fixed the stipend at ^300,
with the manse, plainly calculating on rapid increase. On 8th June 1886
Mr Skerret accepted a call to Cathedral Square, Glasgow. His last return
gave a communion roll of 742, but at the end of that year the number was
put at 500.
Eleventh Minister. — GEORGE SMART, translated fom Denny, where he
had been for seven years, and inducted, nth January 1887. The member
ship is now about 550, and the stipend ^300, with the manse, as before.
DUNDEE, BELL STREET (ANTIBURGHER)
AT the meeting of the Antiburgher Synod in August 1747, ten weeks after
the Breach, a party in Dundee, which had broken away from School Wynd
Church, petitioned for sermon. This dates the origin of Bell Street con
gregation. For the first twelve years they were in a very feeble state, and
PRESBYTERY OF DUNDEE 287
had sermon not oftener than once, on an average, every three or four
Sabbaths. A session was constituted on tyth January 1751, but it was long
before they were favoured with what the Synod called " a gospel minister in
a witnessing capacity."
First Minister. — ANDREW SCOTT, from Abernethy. Ordained, loth
November 1761. In so far as the witnessing capacity was concerned Mr
Scott came short of the Antiburgher standard. His own account is that,
when settled down in Dundee, he was not inclined to press forward covenant
ing work, though he had no aversion to it on principle. At last some of the
more thorough-going members got impatient, and complained about this
work being delayed year after year. By-and-by he began to doubt the
propriety of the observance, believing that numbers were drawn in to swear
to matters they knew very little about. Of those he examined one could not
tell what Deism was, only he was sure that, were it not a very bad thing, it
would not be condemned in the Bond ; and another was silent when asked
what was meant by " Latitudinarian tenets." Thus Mr Scott found himself
in growing antagonism to the whole Secession scheme. This change of
mind showed itself in the avoidance of references to a covenanted work of
reformation in his preaching and prayers, and this again brought up a
complaint to the Presbytery from 24 members against minister and session
about " silence and omissions." The fact was patent to his brethren that
during his ministry of five years covenanting had never been engaged
in by Dundee congregation, and the conclusion arrived at was that he and
his session were of different principles from the Synod.
Being afterwards dealt with to declare himself Mr Scott gave in a long
paper of " scruples," which the Presbytery referred to the judgment of the
Synod. When the case came up in September 1767 Mr Gib, the recognised
leader of the court, " happened to take a dumb fit," according to Mr Scott,
and would not open his mouth, but at last he advised delay till another
meeting. Seven months of discomfort followed at Dundee, the malcontents
being on the alert, he says, so that if he inculcated forbearance on minor
points "he was a latitudinarian," and if he enforced brotherly love he was
giving them " Independent trash." He was unable to be present at next
meeting of Synod, and the case was sent down to the Presbytery, with
instructions to summon Mr Scott before them, and, unless he was prepared
to be done with his " scruples," they were to suspend him from the exercise
of his ministry. When they met on the day appointed Mr Scott professed
himself open to Bible light ; but Mr Gib had already laid down the principle
that to reason with him about his " scruples " would be inconsistent with a
firm stand for truth, and as no retractation was forthcoming sentence of
suspension was pronounced. This was followed up on 22nd November 1768
by deposition, and thus ended Mr Scott's connection with the judicatories of
the Secession Church.
Mr Scott's scruples now passed into certainties, and these found expres
sion in a couple of pamphlets which he published in 1770, the one entitled
" The Scheme of the Antiburgher Unmasked," and the other " An Account
of the Difference between him and the Antiburgher Seceders." With less
of fiery invective than Pirie's productions in the same line, they were better
fitted on that account for making an impression. Taking a leaf out of Glass's
" King of Martyrs " he urges against the Antiburgher scheme that it breaks
down the distinction between the kingdom of Christ and the kingdoms of
the world. He is specially weighty in his exposure of what he reckoned
evils in their mode of renewing the covenants, in which they rehearsed
manifold defections in Church and State, with which a great part of their
people were but slightly acquainted, and yet they engaged them by solemn
288 HISTORY OF U.P. CONGREGATIONS
oath to testify against these multitudinous evils. According to Professor
Bruce of Whitburn the controversy with Messrs Scott, Pirie, and others
formed part of a current which was drifting in the direction of New Light
views, and preparing the way for the adoption of the New Antiburgher
Testimony.
Dundee congregation now broke into two, Mr Scott occupying the
pulpit as before, and, weak as both parties were, they ventured into the Court
of Session about the property. The church, it should be premised, was built
in 1763-4, worship having been conducted up till then in a hall. Assistance
was needed from sister congregations, as appears from the session minutes
of Kinclaven and of the North Church, Perth, the latter of these contributing
^25 or ,£26 to aid their Dundee brethren "in rearing a place for public
worship." But now Mr Scott and his adherents made a bold attempt to
alienate the building from its original purpose as an Antiburgher meeting
house. The other party were meanwhile hardly bestead, as they were
obliged to go down a steep place at the seaside and hold their meetings
there ; but, adds the narrator, " we were not choked, but I hope refreshed
by the waters of the sanctuary." The facts brought out before the Lord
Ordinary were these : David Jobson, writer in Dundee, had been employed
to purchase the ground and provide for the erection of the church, and
considerable sums were handed over to him for that purpose. But instead
of having the rights made over to himself as trustee for his constituents he
took them absolutely, and, so far as the papers went, the place of worship
was his own private property. Having sided with the minister when the
split took place, he kept possession of the building for the use of his own
party, who were admittedly in the minority. When the majority appealed
to the Court of Session to oblige him to grant them a valid disposition of the
subjects his principal plea was that, being only a Seceding congregation, they
had no standing in the eye of the law.
Jobson admitted on examination that at the time the meeting-house was
built he acted as trustee for behoof of the Antiburgher congregation, and he
also admitted that he and the party he represented had abandoned their
original principles in sundry particulars. The Lord Ordinary's decision was
that the pursuers were entitled in law to carry on the action, and as they
and those concurring with them formed a majority of the congregation,
Jobson was bound to surrender the property in their favour. On I3th
December 1771 the Court adopted the Lord Ordinary's interlocutor, and
decided accordingly. Had this principle been acted on twenty years earlier
Bristo Church, Edinburgh, would not have gone to the Burghers. Mr Scott
and his adherents had now to vacate Overgate Chapel, and till the close of
his ministry their place of meeting was in Barrack Street. In an old history
of the town there is a congregation designated Scottites so late as 1803, with
a considerable number of adherents. The last glimpse we have of Mr Scott
himself is in the minutes of his old congregation in 1791. There his name
comes up as the respondent in a case of immorality, and we find further that
guilt was acknowledged. His connection with Dundee now ceased, and he
is said to have removed to London, but we can follow him no further.
Second Minister. — WILLIAM BARLAS, from Perth (North), a brother of
the Rev. James Barlas of Crieff. The call was signed by 89 (male) members,
which indicates a communion roll of over 200. Mr Barlas was ordained,
I3th October 1772, and he died, 5th August 1779, in the seventh year of his
ministry, " a young man," said the Caledonian Mercury, " much lamented by
his congregation, and justly esteemed by all who knew him." His tomb
stone at Crieff bears that he came thither for the recovery of his health, and
that at the time of his death he was in his twenty-eighth year.
PRESBYTERY OF DUNDEE 289
The congregation soon after this called Mr John Jamieson, but not
harmoniously, the principal objection being, it is said, that " he carried his
head too high, and affected to speak fine English." At the moderation 66
voted for Mr Jamieson and 36 for Mr Allan, afterwards of Coupar-Angus.
A unanimous call from Forfar followed, which Perth Presbytery sustained,
setting the Dundee call aside. This deed was protested against, but the
Synod confirmed it, with only one contradictory voice. The congregation
next got into a troubled state over a call to Mr James Graham, who became
the first Antiburgher minister at Rothesay. Objections were stated from
" the method of his preaching," and the Synod, while repelling the charge,
laid the call aside, believing that his settlement at Dundee would not be
for edification. At the Synod in May 1782 the two parties were admonished
to bury their differences and study affection towards each other, but by 80
against 36 Mr Graham's friends forced on a second call in his favour, which
the Supreme Court put aside "as not expedient to be proceeded upon." The
next call was addressed to Mr Robert Laing, but at the Synod in May 1784
Dundee had only 4 votes in its favour out of 59. Mr Laing ultimately
became junior minister of Duns (East), where his course came to an un
happy close.
Third Minister. — JAMES M'EwAN, from Buchlyvie. Ordained at Work-
ington in Cumberland on 23rd March 1780. After struggling on there for
four years he resigned his charge, and returned to the preachers' list.
Coming within the bounds of Perth Presbytery he carried the vacancies
before him, and in March 1785 Perth, Dundee, and Kinclaven were all up
for moderations, and Montrose was indignant at not getting forward. In
the Synod Dundee had the turn of the balance in its favour over Perth
owing to " the disappointments they had met with and their present harmony
after very threatening animosities." The induction took place on 29th June,
and it was to be hoped that peace and prosperity would follow. There must
have been large increase during the first seven years of the new ministry, as
in 1792 the session claimed to have 650, young and old, under their care.
The population of Dundee was growing rapidly, and of Secession families
coming into the town the great majority were sure to be Antiburghers. But
though all went on successfully for a time a period of turmoil was at hand.
In a notice of Mr M'Ewan which appeared in the CJtristian Magazine soon
after his death he is described as an excellent preacher, and deservedly
popular, but it is admitted that "his cast of mind occasionally led him into
the ludicrous in conduct, or to be more jocular than the gravity of his office
allowed." From 1793 till 1803 the history of the Overgate Church is painful
to trace, and it is to be feared that Mr M'Ewan had neither the skill to
smooth down, nor the dignity to overawe, the stormy elements around him.
To be more particular, an aged member had been venting vagaries about
the Saviour never having had a human body, and had also been accusing
his minister of corrupting the worship of God. Some were holding back
from the communion table, and one of the elders, in defiance of a deed of
session, was attesting the defaulters for admission to the Lord's Table else
where. Scruples and grievances were playing their part, and lengthy
papers, of which as many as fifteen were in the hands of the session clerk
at one time. By the efforts of the Presbytery reconciliation was professedly
arrived at, but in 1797 strife broke out anew over the question of missionary
societies. In the previous year the Synod had declared the system of
joining with ministers of other denominations in the ordination of agents
for the foreign field, or in public acts of worship, to be inconsistent with
Secession principles. The malcontents in Dundee were strictly conservative,
and nine of their number brought up a complaint to the session against
29o HISTORY OF U.P. CONGREGATIONS
certain elders and members of the congregation, that they attended meetings
of the missionary society in the town. In May 1798 the state of Dundee
congregation engaged the attention of the Synod, which dealt out blame all
round with marked impartiality. A petition for sermon by themselves was
now presented to the Presbytery from 22 male and 35 female members of
the congregation, along with three elders, as " for want of necessary agree
ment and unanimity they had no comfortable fellowship with their brethren,"
but the proposal was resisted by the session and went no further.
At this time the Rev. James Aitken of Kirriemuir was beginning to make
strong opposition to the New Testimony, and in him the complainers about
Dundee found a friend ; indeed, they spoke of him ere long as the only
minister of the Presbytery with whom they had freedom to join, and he was
sixteen miles away. Meanwhile Mr M'Ewan and the majority of his session
carried matters with a high hand, giving the conservative party ground for
the complaint : " One of our number has two children unbaptised, one about
five years of age, the other about three— a sober, religious man." This was
the one side, but, of course, there was another. In the papers given in to
the Presbytery and Synod they had charged their minister with "accommo
dating his doctrine to men of corrupt minds, and the humours of the age."
They also complained of him as " a general preacher," meaning that he
did not testify as he ought against "prevailing sins, errors, and corruptions."
The institution of Sabbath evening schools also gave offence, and a monthly
meeting in the church for prayer stumbled them, " because it resembles a
missionary society." But at this stage the body of the congregation came
forward in Mr M'Ewan's defence, and a representation subscribed by 143
male members was given in to the Presbytery bearing emphatic testimony
in favour of his character and doctrine.
In 1802 the minority withdrew from attendance and "kept a society on
the Sabbath." They were without sealing ordinances until Mr Aitken came
to their relief. Hence one of the charges against him in the Synod of
August 1806 was "that he had baptised children to persons who had been ex
cluded from communion and who were still lying under scandal." His son,
the Rev. John Aitken of Aberdeen, complained long afterwards of this
language, as suggesting that the parties were " chargeable with some flagrant
breach of the divine law, and unworthy of a place in any religious society."
Such were the circumstances in which the Original Secession Church in
Dundee originated. But it was not till 1819 that they had a minister
ordained over them. They were worshipping now in a church which they had
bought from the Relief, as will come up under the history of the New Inn
Entry congregation. In 1838 the membership was 260. In 1852 about half
the membership went with their minister, the Rev. Edward Thomson, into
union with the Free Church, and the other half adhered to the Synod of
Original Seceders.
In June 1804 the Overgate congregation asked constant supply of sermon,
as Mr M'Ewan through indisposition "could not perform his usual minis
terial work." The worry of recent years was enough to account for prema
ture decline. In 1807 a colleague was resolved on, but there were barriers
arising from the state of the funds, and when a moderation was applied for
^90 was the utmost they could promise the junior minister.
Fourth Minister. — MATTHKW ERASER, from Rothesay, who had firmly
refused to be ordained at Peebles a year before. The call from Dundee was
signed by only 62 (male) members, a circumstance which made the Pres
bytery pause. On inquiry it was found that numbers were holding back
because they were apprehensive of "coming under obligations to a support
which they could not fulfil." But the call was accepted, and Mr Eraser
PRESBYTERY OF DUNDEE 291
ordained, 4th October 1809. The collegiate relation lasted four years, and,
though those who may have been deemed "the troublers of Israel" were
away, everything did not move smoothly. Mr M'Ewan's idiosyncrasies did
not fit him for being" a model colleague, and in 1811 the session brought
under the notice of the Presbytery the fact that ever since Mr Eraser's
ordination " their senior minister had given them ground of complaint in not
attending carefully to his part of the work." They mentioned in particular
that he failed to take his turn with the evening service, and that he lately
went to assist at Buchlyvie, his native place, and remained away three
Sabbaths. In 1813 they complained anew that through his limited service
an undue proportion of the work had fallen on the other minister. Mr
M'Ewan pleaded indisposition, and expressed his willingness to take his full
share of the pulpit, if strength permitted, and " have the affair terminated."
But the affair was about to be terminated in another way. Mr M'Ewan
preached to his people on Sabbath, iQth September 1813, and died on
Saturday, the 25th. He was in the sixty-third year of his age and thirty-
fourth of his ministry.
Mr Eraser was now sole pastor, and while this continued all went on in
a quiet, uneventful way. His stipend as junior minister had remained at
^90, and Mr M'Ewan was allowed ^100, as he had a family of ten to sup
port. An addition was now made to Mr Eraser's income, which afterwards
stood at .£120, and a manse was also built for him on. the open ground
beside the church. Accounts agree that he was a man of deep-toned char
acter, and greatly respected, though in pulpit gifts he may not have equalled
either the senior colleague of his early ministry or the junior colleague of his
riper years. Believing, perhaps, that in a town like Dundee great things
might be achieved by a young and popular minister, the people started a
movement in that direction so early as 1834, when Mr Eraser had scarcely
reached his semi-jubilee. It was proposed that he should retain his ^120
of stipend, with the manse, and the junior minister was to have the same
sum, but without any allowance for house rent. A goodly number of the
congregation were opposed to the measure, pleading that a second minister
was not needed, but the Presbytery gave effect to the wishes of the majority.
As for Mr Eraser, he seems to have acted in character and to have been
mildly acquiescent.
Fifth Minister. — WILLIAM B. BORWICK, from Kirkwall. A sad incident
in Mr Berwick's early life claims to be put on record at this point. His
father was a farmer in Shapinshay, and the family was connected with Mr
Paterson's congregation in Kirkwall. The 3rd of November 1822 was the
communion Sabbath, and that island sent over a little company to the sacred
observance. Fourteen of their number were crossing homewards at the
close of the afternoon service ; the sails were set, and the breeze was up.
One of the passengers, it is said, took ill, and the man at the rudder let go
his hold and stepped from his place. The boat capsized, and of the fourteen
on board only two were saved, one of these being William B. Borwick, aged
fifteen ; but his father, three sisters, and one or two of their servants went
down.* After this his mind turned in the direction of the Christian ministry.
Having received licence he was called to Rousay, in Orkney, but City Road,
Brechin, followed within three days. When Overgate, Dundee, came in
there was much to make Mr Borwick hesitate. A party in the congregation
* The death list for that Sabbath reads as follows in the Register of Shapinshay
parish: — William Borwick, aged fifty; Helen Borwick, twenty- four; Euphan Borwick,
twenty ; Margaret Borwick, eighteen ; Thomas Bell, twenty; Thomas Groat, thirty;
Thomas Heddle, twenty-eight ; William Laisk, twenty-eight ; Eliza Peace, twenty-
two ; Peter Peace, twenty-two ; Margaret Laisk, twenty ; and Mary Smith, thirty.
292 HISTORY OF U.P. CONGREGATIONS
was hostile to the whole movement, and had been causing trouble through
the public prints and in other ways. The call, too, was signed by only
62 members, male and female, which we may reckon not more than one-
sixth of the entire number, the thought of liabilities being doubled probably
holding them back. But Mr Berwick girt himself to meet the difficulties of
the situation, and he was ordained, I3th May 1835. There was steady
increase now, and within two and a half years there were upwards of 500
names on the communion roll. Calculating, perhaps, that a place of worship
more modern and better situated would lead on to fortune, the people threw
themselves with spirit into a formidable enterprise, and the present massive
and stately building in Bell Street, with sittings for 1300, and costing ^5000,
was opened on Sabbath, 3151 May 1840. In the forenoon Mr Fraser
preached, and Mr Berwick gave an address, and the services afternoon and
evening were conducted by Dr Young of Perth — collection, ^225.
In a very few years money difficulties became oppressive, though there
was continued growth, and in 1843 the communicants were put at 600 in
round numbers. To make matters worse the experiment of dispensing with
seat-rents, entered on when they removed to the new church, told adversely
on the congregation's coffers. In May 1845 a caM from Rattray to Mr
Borwick brought matters to a crisis. There was friction in the session
before this, and we also read that " dissatisfaction arose among a section of
the congregation with Mr Eraser's preaching." He was now beyond three
score-and-ten, and the impression might be that by continuing to take half
the pulpit work he was standing in his colleague's way and hindering the
prosperity of the church. Accordingly, along with the call from Rattray,
there came up to the Presbytery two petitions from Bell Street, the one to
sanction a division of the congregation, each party taking its own minister,
and the other against interference with the collegiate relation. The Presby
tery met in Bell Street Church on the evening of Monday, 3rd June 1845,
to restore harmony " if possible," when commissioners were heard for and
against a separation. Then the two pastors spoke, and at the close of his
remarks Mr Fraser tendered the demission of his charge. The Presbytery
thought it best to lay the case in its entireness before the Synod, which was
on the eve of meeting, to give Dr Marshall of Kirkintilloch the opportunity
of libelling Dr John Brown.
The affairs of Bell Street Church, Dundee, occupied the Synod a whole
day, and in the end they refused the prayer of the majority to have the
congregation divided. They also appointed a committee to co-operate with
the Presbytery in endeavouring to effect a reconciliation. They met in
Bell Street church on the evening of i3th August, when the question of
accepting Mr Fraser's resignation was put to the vote of the congregation,
and it carried by 81 to 71 that the services of both ministers should be
retained. But the Presbytery and committee were of opinion that the
senior minister had outlived his acceptability, and after an interval of six
weeks, during which exchanges were arranged for, so that Mr Fraser did
not occupy his own pulpit, they met for decisive work. Mr Fraser renewed
his demis ^ion, and when this was communicated to the assembled congrega
tion there was no objection offered to its acceptance. He was to have the
^200 already subscribed for, and as much more as they could raise for his
behoof. Thus on 23rd September 1845 he was loosed from his charge.
At their next meeting the Presbytery clerk put on record " their hearty
sympathy with him in the ordeal through which he had recently passed and
their high admiration of the Christian meekness with which he had endured
these afflictions." But feeling in Mr Fraser's favour found its fullest expres
sion in a farewell soiree held in Tay Square Church on the evening of
PRESBYTERY OF DUNDEE 293
!3th October, when nearly 1300 were present. On that occasion a parting
address was presented to him by a number of his late congregation, who
recorded that they had long venerated his piety and admired the uniform
tenor of his Christian walk, and fondly trusted that his ministerial labours
would have been preserved to them while his bodily strength lasted. Mr
Fraser made a pathetic reply, unmingled with the slightest approach to
bitter reflections. After this he removed to Rothesay, his native place, where
he died, 8th September 1857, in the eighty-third year of his age. The .£200
promised him by the congregation was augmented through the efforts of
his friends in Dundee, and in 1848 he began to receive £20 a year from the
Synod Fund, which was raised to ^25 in 1854 and to ^35 in 1856.
In the farewell address to Mr Fraser the following sentence occurs .: —
"We do earnestly request that you will think of us in our present state of
dispersion like sheep without a shepherd." It appears from this that the
party in Bell Street Church who adhered to the senior minister had already
left, and it is understood that Wishart Church, in particular, got strengthen
ing through this disruption. On the other hand, the old congregation,
which placed its membership at 600 in 1843, had little over 500 in 1848.
Neither, in the circumstances, was lost ground easy to make up ; and in
1 86 1 the communion roll, notwithstanding the minister's pulpit gifts, only
reached 535. That year, and some time before, Mr Borwick threw himself
heart and soul into the revival movement, and the extra strain is believed
to have told on his powers of endurance. On Monday, 2nd January 1865,
which was observed as New Year's Day, a terrible catastrophe happened
outside the Bell Street premises. The hall underneath the church accom
modated 700, and was in demand for festive entertainments and public
meetings. On the evening of that day a great crowd had gathered at the
entrance waiting for admission ; there were thirteen steps down, and when
half the gate was opened the other half yielded to the pressure, and in the
end nineteen dead bodies were lifted from beneath the struggling mass.
This shock helped to bring Mr Berwick's work to a close, and on 28th
March 1866 his resignation was accepted, the congregation instead of a
yearly allowance presenting him with ,£720, to which another ^100 was
added from friends outside. He ultimately resided at Newport-on-Tay, in
a state of much prostration every way, and died there, I5th June 1870, in the
sixty-third year of his age. A monument in the Western Cemetery of Dundee
marks where he is buried. A younger brother, the Rev. Robert Borwick,
formerly of Moniaive, still survives, and the Rev. James Borwick of Rathillet
was his cousin.
Sixth Minister. — JOHN BRAND, from Uddingston. A prior call had
been given to Mr James Mather, but it was not harmonious, and he lost
no time in setting it aside and accepting Langbank. Mr Brand was ordained,
1 9th September 1867. The stipend was now ,£230. The debt, which
amounted to ^1400 in 1857, was lessened by ^280 two years later, and then
by special effort, in connection with an offer of ^100 from the Liquidation
Board, it was brought within slender compass. The way was opened for
Home Mission activity, which went on under Mr Brand till 7th March 1876,
when he accepted a call to John Street, Glasgow. They now called the
Rev. David Thomas of Lockerbie, but he did not accept.
Seventh Minister. — JAMES CONWAY, translated from Linlithgow (East),
where he had been over three years. Inducted, i4th February 1877, on a
call unanimous and very largely signed. Loosed, I7th June 1879, with the
full concurrence of the congregation. Investigation brought out money
transactions of an equivocal kind, and all through it is as if much were
left to be inferred. Resignation followed, and the case was wound up with
294 HISTORY OF U.P. CONGREGATIONS
suspension sine die. Mr Con way left Scotland for America, and in 1881 his
name appears as stated supply at Rehoboth in Maryland in connection with
the Presbyterian Church of the United States. He removed in the following
year, but is said by his oratorical ability and genial Scottish ways to have
left pleasant remembrances behind him. After that he ministered to more
charges than one in the States, and in 1891 he appears on the General
Assembly's Clerical List with the letters D.D. at his name. Since then
his field of labour has been at Brookville, in the Presbytery of Clarion and
State of Pennsylvania.
Eighth Minister. — THOMAS S. DICK.SON, M.A., from Auchterarder
(North), where he had been ordained four years before. Inducted, igth
February 1880. The stipend was .£420 and the membership 590. Ac
cepted a call to Argyle Place, Edinburgh, on 7th January 1890, and was
loosed from Bell Street, leaving 672 names on the communion roll.
Ninth Minister. — JAMES G. WALTON, B.D., from St Paul's, South
Shields, where he was ordained, 8th April 1884. Belonged to London Road,
Edinburgh, and was a brother of the Rev. W. A. Walton of St James' Church,
Paisley. Admitted to Bell Street, Dundee, 2nd July 1890. In December
1894 Mr Walton was invited to Blairgowrie, perhaps under the impression
that he would look with favour on removal to a less exacting field of labour,
but he continued at his arduous post for other five years, and then, finding
his strength overtaxed, and not aware that the evil was too deep down to be
removed by lightened burdens, he accepted a call to St Nicholas' Church,
Aberdeen, on igth July 1899, where he had only time to break ground before
lying down to die.
Two unsuccessful calls followed in quick succession, the first to the Rev.
Henry Brown, Earlston, in December 1899, and the other to the Rev. David
Mackie, Dumfries (Townhead).
Tenth Minister. — JOHN W. BEVERIDGE, B.D., who had been translated
from Stow to Wolverhampton in 1893. ^e now returned to Scotland, and
was inducted to Bell Street Church, igth June 1900. The membership at
the close of the preceding year was 931, and the stipend ^400.
CHAPELSHADE (RELIEF)
THE origin of this congregation may be ascribed to nothing deeper than the
need for church accommodation in Dundee, the population having nearly
doubled itself within thirty years. The place of worship in Chapelshade was
built in 1789.
First Minister. — JAMES SMITH, from Dunfermline (now Gillespie
Church), where he succeeded the Rev. Thomas Gillespie, and had been
minister for thirteen years. In 1787 Mr Smith published a book, entitled
" The Carnal Man's Character," being a dissertation on the seventh chapter
of Romans, in which he took what is called the Arminian view, and affirmed
that those who differed from him "are chargeable with the most criminal
abuse of the inspired writings, give the lie to the Holy Ghost, and are ex
posed to the curse of God." When he was called to Dundee some members
of Dysart Presbytery had scruples about allowing the transference to go on
until this matter was inquired into. The Synod, however, decided other
wise, and on 27th May 1790 the Rev. James Smith was inducted into
Chapelshade, Dundee. Next year the case was again before the Synod,
and it was arranged that in each of the four Presbyteries a committee should
be appointed to examine the book, and afterwards coalesce, and draw up a
joint report for the Synod of 1792. Dysart Presbytery was recommended
PRESBYTERY OF DUNDEE 295
to treat Mr Smith meanwhile with brotherly tenderness, but at an after
sederunt he and other three ministers were disjoined from Dysart and
formed into the Presbytery of Perth. At the first three meetings of the new
Presbytery Mr Smith occupied the chair, but on gth September 1791 a
pro re nata meeting was held at Perth, " it being certified that the Rev. James
Smith had deserted them " and was off to the Establishment. The Presby
tery was now in a condition of extreme feebleness, for Bryce of Aberdeen,
having adopted a like course, and outstripped his Dundee brother, was
already safe within the State enclosure.
On 1 7th September Mr Smith's former brethren, finding him guilty of
attempting to detach the congregation of Dundee from the Relief body,
" deposed him from the ministry in all its parts," but he was beyond their
borders now and close upon other territory. On 7th December his applica
tion for admission to the Established Church was granted, and on the
following Sabbath one of the town's ministers preached in Chapelshade,
and declared it a Chapel of Ease in all time coming for the town and parish
of Dundee. At their next meeting the Relief Synod found that Mr Smith
had betaken himself to the Established Church to escape a trial, but they
felt obliged to publish to the world their disapprobation of the views ex
pressed, and the language employed, in his volume on " The Carnal Man,"
and an extract of their Minute to that effect was to be inserted in the
Edinburgh and Glasgow newspapers. That same year Dr Simpson of
Pittenweem published a pamphlet, entitled " Dangerous Errors of Mr Smith
in Reference to the Atonement stated and refuted."
In the alienation of Chapelshade Church from the Relief Mr Smith, it is
stated, had ^400 resting on the property, and this enabled him the better to
effect his purpose. The building was seated for 800, and the stipend a few
years after was ,£90. The admission of Mr Smith and his people into the
Establishment did not meet with universal approval, as appears from an
overture introduced into the Synod of Angus and Mearns a year afterwards,
proposing " that no Relief congregation be received as a Chapel of Ease in
future." But Mr Smith did his best to make amends for former delin
quencies. In Dunfermline he had upheld the cause of Mr Gillespie in his
"Historical Sketches of the Relief Church," published in 1773. In that
performance he brought up against the Established Church "the laws of
patronage, promiscuous admission to the seals of the covenant, and Arminian
tenets " ; but, adapting himself to his new ecclesiastical bearings, he published
a pamphlet in 1806, entitled "The National Church defended," in which he
passed off his Historical Sketches as " a juvenile performance." What
struck him especially now as a strong point in the Established Church was
the high standard of purity kept up in her communion. He died, 25th
September 1810, in the sixty-second year of his age. The building still
belongs to the Establishment, and since 1871 it has formed one of the parish
churches of Dundee.
WEST PORT (RELIEF)
THIS may be taken as a continuation of Chapelshade, under an altered
name. On 7th February 1792, five months after Mr Smith had broken
away from the Relief, a petition for sermon was presented to Perth Presby
tery from parties styling themselves " the vacant congregation in Dundee,"
and Mr Grimmond of Coupar-Angus was appointed to preach to them on
the first Sabbath of March. At the Synod in May they applied for aid in
building a place of worship. This was Temple Lane Church, with the in-
296 HISTORY OF U.P. CONGREGATIONS
cription on its front : " 1792, To the Cause of Religious Liberty." Before it
was opened Gellatly of Haddington speaks of having preached at Dundee
in the pit of a theatre.
First Mzm's/er.—NEl'L DOUGLAS, M.A., from Cupar-Fife, where he had
been for six years. The stipend offered was ^90 ; but the commissioners were
told that unless they granted sacramental expenses " the Presbytery would
proceed no further with this affair." The threat was uttered after Mr Douglas
had been loosed from his former charge, and was waiting for access to
Dundee. The point was yielded, £2 being promised for each communion,
and the induction took place, i6th January 1793, with only two ministers
and one elder forward to form the Presbytery. In August 1796 there were
tokens that the machinery of the church was getting into disorder. Mr
Douglas, wishing to have the communion observed more frequently, had been
dispensing with the week-day services, an arrangement which he attempted
in his former charge. Complaints arose, and so important did the question
look in the eyes of the Presbytery that they brought it before the Synod
for judgment, and the decision come to was that "every member shall be
at liberty to act in that matter as shall seem to him and his session to be
most conducive to the edification and peace of their congregation." But this
ripple of the surface was the index of a deeper evil. In Dr Wardlaw's Life
we read of the Rev. Neil Douglas : " He lost his popularity by preaching
democratic politics. The congregation decayed ; the stipend, of course,
could not be paid ; and Mr Douglas was under the necessity of withdrawing."
Prior to this he brought before the Synod the difficulties under which he and
his people laboured ; but somehow the case awoke little sympathy, and Glasgow
Presbytery even intimated to him that they would interest themselves no
more in collections for him or his congregation. This may have been the
last straw which breaks the camel's back, for within a fortnight he demitted
his charge, and though a majority of his people petitioned the Presbytery
to join with them in soliciting his continuance, he adhered to his purpose,
and on igth November 1798 the demission was accepted.
Like Chapelshade, the West Port Church was now lost to the Relief
denomination. In one of his publications Mr Douglas recounts the cir
cumstances as follows: — "The author gave up his charge in Dundee as
he could not retain it in honour, the people having determined to leave
that connection and join a famed party of Christians rising at that time in
the land." It was to the Independents that the bulk of the congregation
went over, taking the building with them, which was burdened with a debt of
^1200. In 1 804 the Rev. John Campbell, ultimately of the Secession Church,
Nicholson Street, Glasgow, became their minister ; but, though they called
themselves Independents, "he ruled by a session, the office-bearers having
been formerly elders ordained in connection with the Relief Church." On
his removal to Glasgow in 1810 they invited the sister Congregational church
in Dundee to coalesce with them, as the chapel would contain both, and thus
they came under the pastoral care of the well-known Dr Russell. So much
for the second Relief congregation in Dundee, and the second Relief place
of worship.
To trace the erratic course of the Rev. Neil Douglas after he left Dundee
would occupy more space than we can spare. His own account bears that
"he carried his family to Edinburgh, and went into a printing office for
some time, preaching gratis on the Lord's Day." But he had not been long
in Edinburgh before he was accused of transgressing a law of Synod by
occupying pulpits outside the Relief body, and the Presbytery summoned
him to answer for his fault. After admonition, of which he told them he
made no account, he was warned that if the offence were repeated he
PRESBYTERY OF DUNDEE 297
would be declared out of their connection in all time coming. At a subse
quent meeting Mr King of Dalkeith complained that Mr Douglas, when
acting recently as his substitute, took for his text : " Go ye into all the
world, and preach the gospel to every creature." In discoursing from these
words he declared that, according to the law of the Relief Synod, you are
to preach to no one unless he comes into a Relief church to hear you.
Not compearing at next meeting, and as it was testified that he had been
recently disregarding the rule anew, he was declared to be excluded from
the Relief body.
Freed from ecclesiastical restraints Mr Douglas now passed through a
process of theological development, and in the course of a few years was
figuring as a Universalist. In that capacity he preached for a short time
in Greenock, but in the year 1805 he settled down in Glasgow. In 1817
he was tried before the Justiciary Court for preaching sedition, and specially
for assailing George III. and the character of the Prince Regent in certain
Sabbath evening lectures on the book of Daniel. One witness described
him as difficult to follow: "He is nervous," he said, "and his voice is
extended too high, and then falls away." The prosecution broke down,
much to the chagrin of the presiding judge, as appears from the tone of his
address to the prisoner when he was dismissing him from the bar. Mr
Douglas died, gth January 1823, in the seventy-third year of his age, as his
tombstone states, and thirty-eighth of his ministry. He published on various
subjects, but his "Narrative of a Mission to the West Highlands in 1797" is
the best of his productions, and may still be read with interest. Further
particulars of his chequered career, and specially of his mental attitude
when death was near, are given in an appendix to Dr Struthers' " History of
the Relief Church."
NEW INN ENTRY (RELIEF)
A SECOND time the Relief cause in Dundee passed out of existence, but it
was only for a few months. On i8th February 1799 a few persons who had
belonged to Mr Douglas' congregation craved supply of sermon from Perth
Presbytery, and at next meeting members were recommended to give them
a day each, that appearances might be tested. The outcome is given in
the Missionary Magazine for October of that year : " A number of people
adhering to the Relief connection have recently purchased a house, formerly
occupied as a place of public amusement, and have fitted it up as a meeting
house." The accommodation is given at 900.
First Minister. —ALEXANDER PATERSON, M. A., from Aberdeen (Shiprow).
After preaching in Dundee for four months, the audience at first being very
small, he became the unanimous choice of the people, and was ordained,
1 5th January 1 800. The stipend to begin with was only ^70 ; but Mr Paterson
accepted, " trusting that he would be useful and happy among them," though
aware that he had little reason to expect " what is generally called a good
living" from being settled in Dundee. Now began a period of prosperity,
all too brief, for the Relief cause in Dundee. Mr Paterson's Diary, which
was published along with a collection of his sermons after his death, reveals
how he made usefulness his constant aim and object. In pastoral visitation
he pressed home the claims of personal and family religion, narrowing,
perhaps unduly, the points of social and friendly contact. Finding among
his people great ignorance of the doctrines of Christianity he made the
Shorter Catechism the basis of his Sabbath evening discourses. In dealing
with applicants for admission to the Lord's Table he felt his need of wisdom
298 HISTORY OF U.P. CONGREGATIONS
from above, " that he might neither encourage the presumptuous nor occa
sion unnecessary alarm to the doubting," and along with all else there was
watchfulness over the workings of his own heart, with a tendency to sombre
views and unhealthy introspection. Such the man whose ministry lent
dignity for nine and a half years to the Relief cause at Dundee.
In the beginning of 1807 Mr Paterson was met by a proposal to succeed
Mr Sangster at Perth, where his income would have been bettered, but he
replied that he saw nothing to warrant removal from his present charge.
However, a change of sphere might have conduced to the prolonging of his
days. Before that year was ended he speaks of having been at the gates
of death, and, though partially restored, his constitution gave way through
persistent exertions beyond his strength. "A complication of disorders
assailed him." On his way home from the communion in Aberdeen he
caught cold from which he never rallied, and on the morning of Sabbath,
6th August 1809, he died, in his thirty-sixth year. It is to Mr Paterson in
his student days that Lord Byron refers in his journal : " Afterwards I had
a very serious, saturnine, but kind, young man named Paterson for a tutor.
He was the son of my shoemaker, but a good scholar, as is common with
the Scots. He was a rigid Presbyterian also. With him I began Ruddi-
man's Grammar, and continued till I went to the Grammar School." This
description is applied by Scott in his Fasti to Mr Paterson's brother,
Dr Joshua Paterson of the Established Church, Montrose, who was his
junior by four or five years, and had scarcely entered College at the time.
When Byron's Life was in course of preparation Murray, the publisher, wrote
the Doctor for information about his illustrious pupil, but was told in reply that
it was only on rare occasions when his brother was ailing that he took his
place as Lord Byron's tutor. A son of Mr Paterson of Dundee died at
Aberdeen, I2th December 1828, aged twenty-five, before finishing his course
as a divinity student. The refusal of a Professor in Aberdeen to enroll him
in his theological class unless he joined the Established Church helped to
mature the resolve of the Relief Synod to have a Divinity Hall of their own.
An Analysis of the Shorter Catechism, written out by young Mr Paterson
when prosecuting his studies, was published in 1841, and has been much
valued.
Second Minister. — JOHN LAWSON, who had been for about twenty years
minister of the Relief Church, Dumfries, which he rent asunder in the
interests of a pulpit gown, and was now acting as a probationer. Having
preached a day at Dundee by appointment in November 1810, he remained
over another Sabbath, and without authority from the Presbytery dispensed
the communion. For this breach of Church order he was reported to the
Synod, censured, and suspended from his preaching functions for an entire
Sabbath. Inducted to New Inn Entry, 6th June 1811. The call was not
opposed at the time, but immediately after Mr Lawson's settlement a
number of the members applied to be formed into a new congregation, and,
though the petition was strongly resisted, the end was gained. There were
now to be two rival congregations in Dundee, both of which were to experi
ence disaster. The mother church was the first to succumb. In May 1817
the Presbytery was asked to sanction a reduction of stipend, and at next
meeting Mr Lawson complained that the doors of the meeting-house had
been closed against him. He stated at the same time that, considering the
state of the congregation, he would willingly give up ^50 for the present
year. With this concession the managers and members who were in
attendance declared themselves satisfied, and the Presbytery "cheerfully
sanctioned the generous offer" ; but tranquillity was of short duration. In
February 1818 Mr Lawson's adherents craved leave to remove to the
299
Tabernacle in Tay Street, as on the previous Sabbath the minister had
again been locked out of the church. The property was then sold to the
Constitutionalists, the party which had left the Overgate Church in the early
part of the century. The price paid was ^650. Thus a third Relief place
of worship in Dundee passed into the hands of another denomination.
The congregation went by-and-by to pieces. In May 1818 it was found
that Mr Lawson had received from the managers little more than £21 during
the preceding twelvemonth, though they had ample funds for other purposes,
such as meeting exorbitant charges for "travelling expenses." Of Mr
Lawson's subsequent history the little that can be traced is of a very sombre
cast. In 1819 he was visited with severe bodily affliction, accompanied by
mental imbecility, and removed to Manchester ; but it was not till 1823 that
the Presbytery dropped his name from the roll, his congregation, they said,
having nearly all left him before he departed from Dundee. Should he ever
require a certificate of his moral and ministerial character they were pre
pared to give it in the most ample manner. He was still unfit for any part
of public work, but in 1825 he applied to Dysart Presbytery to be located at
Pittenweem, and in 1827 he was preaching about Dumfries without consult
ing the minister. As this was contrary to a law of Synod the Presbytery of
the bounds required him to appear before them, though they were wishful
"to exercise mercy and forbearance towards him in his declining years."
His letter in reply should have stirred pity : "The sermons of many of your
preachers have no tendency to edify Christ's mystical body." " Your disci
pline is a mere rope of sand — it separates not the precious from the vile — so
your communion is not the communion of saints." It ended thus : " I now
relinquish for ever all connection with the Relief, and hope to be guided by
Christ's wisdom, defended by His power, comforted by His love, and crowned
with His glory." A newspaper notice bears that he died at Temple, 2ist
October 1836, aged eighty-three.
SEAGATE (RELIEF)
THE attempt to form a second Relief congregation in Dundee in 1811 was
urgently resisted by Mr Lawson and his elder, and three times the petition
was refused by the Presbytery. But while the cause was in dependence
Mr Arthur of Perth took the law into his own hands by preaching to the
applicants and dispensing baptism, an offence for which the Presbytery
decided he should suffer " a solemn rebuke " and suspension from his office
for two Sabbaths. The Synod found on appeal that the culprit had acted
with flagrant impropriety, but they set aside the sentence as too severe, and
along with this allowed the petitioners from Dundee to be congregated.
Thus the disaffected party in New Inn Entry Church triumphed, and in a
few months they obtained the grant of a moderation, much to the annoyance
of the representative elder from Mr Lawson's session. He maintained that
to allow such a thing, considering the part they had acted, " would dishonour
the character of God, sully the beauty of the gospel, and open the mouths of
infidels to ridicule the comely order of Christ's Church."
First Minister. — ROBERT HALL, from Jedburgh (High Street;. Ordained,
7th April 1813. Seagate Chapel, which belonged originally to the Episco
palians, was now bought for ,£400, and from being tenants the congregation
became proprietors. But the cause had only a year to gather up when Mr
Hall was called to Berwick (Chapel Street), and on 3ist May 1814 he was
loosed from Dundee. After labouring for nearly twenty years in his second
300 HISTORY OF U.P. CONGREGATIONS
charge he died, I4th March 1834, in the forty-eighth year of his age and
twenty-first of his ministry.
Second Minister. — WILLIAM STRANG, from Ford, where, after eight years,
everything was ripe for a change. The Presbytery were not eager to press
forward with the call, as they must have known that Mr Strang had raised
an action in the Court of Session against his people at Ford for arrears of
stipend ; and would Seagate congregation, with limited resources at its
back, be prepared to face a like contingency ? But hesitancy was got over,
and Mr Strang was inducted, 25th January 1815. Three years after this the
mother congregation broke up ; but there had been embittered feeling
between the two ministers, which led on one occasion to a disreputable scene
in the Presbytery, and the probability is that Seagate Church gained nothing
by the altered situation. Besides this disaster was now coming to their own
doors. In July 1819 there is reference to animosities between the congrega
tion and the " bond-holder," and in May 1820 Mr Strang gave in his resigna
tion. At next meeting, on 7th June, no commissioner appeared ; the connec
tion was dissolved ; and five years afterwards Mr Strang was admitted to
Carrubber's Close, Edinburgh. It has been stated that after his departure
from Dundee he prosecuted his supporters for backgone stipend, much to
the injury of the Relief cause in the town. It may have been this which led
the Relief Synod at their next meeting to enact that it is " expedient to lay
aside bonds altogether, and have recourse to calls written on paper not
stamped, leaving the arranging to the Presbytery and the commissioners."
Seagate congregation now disappears from the Presbytery records for six
months, though it was not altogether out of existence. The Rev. James
Jardine, who had been loosed from Newlands seven years before, was
out of connection with the Relief Church, but, belonging to Dundee, he was
available for the vacant pulpit, and in November 1820 a number of people
professing adherence to his ministry petitioned the Presbytery to have the
relation between him and them recognised. They were asked to bring up
the call they had given to Mr Jardine and their lease of the place of worship,
the Presbytery engaging, if these were found satisfactory, to transmit the
petition to the Synod ; but on 24th April 1821 Mr Jardine withdrew from
connection with the case, and the people were recognised as a forming con
gregation. From this point we may date the origin of Dudhope Road
Church.
DUDHOPE ROAD (RELIEF)
IN May 1821 sermon was begun anew in Seagate Chapel by the Relief
Presbytery of Perth, and the membership seems to have been drawn from
the floating wreck of the two pre-existing congregations. We find at least
that they had among them two or more elders who had been ordained by
Mr Lawson. In the beginning of 1822 they called Mr Alexander Harvey,
afterwards of the Calton, Glasgow, and the renowned champion of Volun
taryism in the great city of the West. They next tried Mr David Reston,
afterwards of Coupar-Angus, but he also declined to accept.
First Minister. — JOHN CROSS. Of his early days some particulars were
got from his brother, the Rev. Archibald Cross, who was twenty-four years
his junior. He was born in Cambuslang parish, and his parents were
members of the Relief Church, Bellshill. On removing to Kirknewton they
connected themselves with the Secession congregation of East Calder, though
John, their eldest son, generally attended Mr Duncan's ministry at Mid-
Calder. But, influenced apparently by parental leanings, instead of entering
PRESBYTERY OF DUNDEE 301
either of the Secession Halls he studied divinity at the University, and was
licensed by the Relief Presbytery of Edinburgh. On 2Oth February 1823
he was ordained as minister of Seagate Church. The stipend was to be
,£100, without a house, and though the communicants in 1837 were returned
at 370 the original figure was still retained. In 1833 they removed from
Seagate to the chapel in Temple Lane, built in 1792 for the Relief. It had
now been bought back from Dr Russell's congregation for ^1000, leaving a
debt of £700. From the word lease being used in the Minutes we infer that
their place of worship in Seagate was only rented. Though the change may
have been desirable in itself dissatisfaction with the locality partly accounts
for the withdrawal of a number of members in 1837, and the formation of
James' Church, Bell Street, an unfortunate move for both parties. In the
end of 1842, owing to the illness of Mr Cross, Mr Bryce Kerr was called to
be his colleague, the junior minister to have £100 and the senior ^70, but
Mr Kerr preferred Largo. Mr Cross died, 2Qth January 1843, m the forty-
seventh year of his age and twentieth of his ministry, "after about fifteen
months of severe and complicated distress." Of Mr Cross's two clerical
brothers, the younger, who was a student at this time, has been already
referred to ; the other was the Rev. James Cross, Relief minister, first at
Langholm and then at Newcastle.
Second Minister. — JOHN SYMINGTON, from Dovehill, Glasgow (now
Kelvingrove). In that city he was a bookseller for a number of years, and
from 1837 to 1841 the Christian Journal, the organ of the Relief, bore on its
title-page the name, "John Symington & Co." But by this time he was a
student of divinity. Ordained at Temple Lane, ist June 1843. At Mr
Cross's death it was reported that the church was to be sold and the con
gregation broken up ; but the Presbytery on investigating into their affairs
came to the conclusion that with a little fostering care the cause would
survive and prosper. In numbers they were far do\vn, though not quite so far
as is stated in Mr Roxburgh's condensed History of Dundee Presbytery,
where the membership is put at 80 ; but Mr Symington's call was signed
by 98 members and 89 adherents. Still there must have been a great
shrinking-up since 1837, and the property was debted to the margin of its
value. In the circumstances the congregation could not come good for more
than the former stipend of ,£100, but the minister was to receive in addition
two-thirds of the surplus revenue, "the other third to be devoted to the
further prosperity of the congregation," a system of augmentation from which
Mr Symington declined to accept benefit. Under his ministry the congrega
tion rapidly improved, and in two years the membership numbered 400.
The debt was also reduced, with the aid of ^100 from the Liquidation Board.
On 1 7th June 1845 Mr Symington accepted a call to Bread Street, Edin
burgh (now Viewforth).
Third Minister. — ROBERT GEMMELL, who had been ordained at Provost
Wynd, Cupar, a year and a half before. At the moderation no other
candidate was proposed ; but some wished delay, and when the call was
laid before the Presbytery 51 members first opposed the sustaining, and
then 35 of their number petitioned for sermon, that they might form a
separate congregation. The induction followed on 2nd April 1846, the
stipend being now .£130. After the service a committee, with Mr Gemmell
as convener, was appointed to meet with the disaffected party, and Mr
Russell of Errol was to act along with the session in composing differences.
But Mr Gemmell, believing, perhaps, that he and his elders were quite
competent to manage their own affairs, took time by the forelock, and the
meeting was over before Mr Russell arrived. If the design was to get rid
of the malcontents the plan must have succeeded, for they are never again
302 HISTORY OF U.P. CONGREGATIONS
heard of. But these things may have helped to put Mr Gemmell out of
tune with the Presbytery. While in Cupar he kept in harmony with his
brethren, but now the era of dissents and protests began. He was rigid in
demanding adherence to forms, and may sometimes have had grounds for
complaint, but these things were not fitted to promote the standing of
Temple Lane Church. In 1849 Mr Gemmell was called to Errol (Relief)
to be colleague to Mr Russell, but declined, and a year later, as I happen to
remember, there was talk of inviting him to Milnathort, where he had
preached with acceptance, but after Mr David Young appeared this was
thought of no more. On 3rd July 1855 he accepted a call to Arthur Street,
Edinburgh.
On becoming vacant the congregation applied for advice to the Presby
tery in their embarrassments, and it was felt that something would have to
be done for their relief. There had been previous reference to a bond of
_£6oo, and the Presbytery now suggested the raising of subscriptions for its
liquidation. They were also to preach Sabbath evening discourses in
Temple Lane Church in succession to obtain collections for the same pur
pose. Thus inspirited the people applied for a moderation, though they
could not go higher than ^130, with some allowance for expenses.
Fourth Minister. — JAMES WILSON, from Stonehouse. The call, though
unanimous, was signed by only 142 members, or about 30 fewer than last
time. Mr Wilson was ordained, 3oth April 1856, and within a few years the
congregation succeeded in getting from under its oppressive burdens. First,
the debt was reduced by ,£400 in 1860, though the Board allowed only ^25 ;
and then a sum of ,£200 was raised to meet expenditure on repairs. But,
as the place of worship was thought to be unfavourably situated, it was
resolved in 1869 to have it replaced by a new erection in Dudhope Road,
about one-third of a mile to the north, a movement which met with the
sanction of the Presbytery. The estimated cost was ,£1500 or ^1600, and
towards this the people subscribed ,£300, while the minister pledged himself
to raise an equal sum, and it was hoped that the .£900 or .£1000 might be
met by the sale of the old church. It happened, however, that the property
only brought ,£700, and the new buildings absorbed ^2000, so that the
reality went beyond the forecast by at least ^700. The new church was
opened, 22nd December 1870, and within four years a manse was built at
a cost of ,£800, of which ^550 was raised by the people and ,£250 allowed
by the Board. But, in whatever way the goal was reached, the minister was
able to announce in November 1887, at the centenary of the Relief cause in
Dundee, that they were entirely free of debt.
But difficulties of a more trying kind had still to be faced. The change
of situation brought them within a few minutes' walk of our two churches in
Bell Street and into a district well provided for already. It might be hard
to fix on anything better, but much was urged against removing nearer the
centre of the town. The sources of gain being slight, the membership,
which was 330 in 1874, came rapidly down to 300, and in 1884 it was felt
that the stipend would have to be reduced from ^200 to ^160. Two years
later it was explained to the Presbytery that, owing to heavy losses through
the state of trade, the names on the communion roll were reduced to 240,
and they could only undertake ^150. This arrangement continued all on,
supplement and surplus lifting the entire stipend up to about ,£180, with the
manse. On 9th March 1898 Mr Wilson was enrolled minister-emeritus.
Since then questions have arisen as to the future of the congregation and
whether it may not have to be superseded altogether. The return for the
close of 1899 gave a membership of 211 and an income of ^174 for all
purposes. On 4th April 1900 the Presbytery was informed that Dudhope
PRESBYTERY OF DUNDEE 303
Road Church had engaged an ordained licentiate, the Rev. James Bayne, to
carry on work among them for five years, reserving the right to come up for
liberty of moderation whenever they should see fit, and a recognition service
was to be held in the church on ist May.
TAY SQUARE (UNITED SECESSION)
ON nth September 1832, when the call from School Wynd to Mr Alexander
Davidson was sustained, 235 members who had already got their certificates
applied to the Presbytery for sermon. The object being well known, supply
was granted at once and without any remit being made to the session of
either congregation in Dundee. On 6th November they were congregated,
and the elders among them, seven in number, constituted into a session. A
moderation was forthwith applied for, but, with heavy liabilities before them,
the congregation only ventured to undertake a stipend of ^130, including
everything. This was wise, though it kept them from getting abreast of
School Wynd with its ,£150 and a manse. As a foregone conclusion the call
came out for Mr Robert Wardrop, the subscribers numbering 201. On
5th February he delivered part of his trial discourses, and there was the pros
pect of a speedy settlement, but an insuperable barrier intervened. There
was first a pause, and then, on I4th May, in a letter to the Presbytery, Mr
Wardrop expressed great uncertainty as to whether he would ever be able to
enter on the duties of the ministry, and left it with the congregation and the
Presbytery to act in the circumstances as they might think best. The summer
months did not bring restoring, and on 27th August the people, under a
feeling of deep disappointment, asked permission to withdraw their call.
They had now another preacher in their eye, and if he were not to pass
beyond their reach there was need for immediate action. So along with the
withdrawing of the call to Mr Wardrop there was the request for another
moderation, and as the case was urgent two Sabbaths were not allowed to
intervene.
First Minister. — JAMES R. M'GAVIN, from Irvine (now Trinity), a brother
of the Rev. Matthew M'Gavin, Airdrie. Called on Saturday, 6th September
1833, and appointed on the following Friday to Dundee in preference to
Cupar-Fife and Campbeltown, Argyllshire (now extinct). Ordained on 26th
November, the sermon being preached by Mr Davidson of School Wynd.
The era of giant collections was not yet come, and £16 was thought worthy
of honourable mention. The congregation was still worshipping in a hall,
but the church in Tay Square, with accommodation for 1000, was in course
of erection.
Mr Wardrop now withdrew from the preachers' list for several years,
though not entirely laid aside from pulpit work except in winter. In April
1837 he entered anew on probationer life, and on 27th July he was called to
Dumfries (Loreburn Street) unanimously, and on 6th August to Mount
Pleasant, Liverpool, by a goodly majority, 94 having voted for him and 67
for Mr William Bruce, afterwards of Edinburgh. Both calls were promptly
declined, Mr Wardrop explaining in the latter case that "the onerous duties
of such a charge exceeded his present energies." But Liverpool people felt
encouraged before a month passed to proceed with a second attempt to
obtain him as colleague and successor to Dr Stewart. What follows appeared
in the denominational magazine at the time : " The majority of the people
have long shown a decided attachment to him, notwithstanding the excellent
supplies they have had since he ministered among them, and no other
candidate would have been proposed at the first moderation had not fears
3o4 HISTORY OF U.P. CONGREGATIONS
been entertained of his physical strength rendering him inadequate to the
work. These fears have happily been removed by the great improvement
which has taken place in the state of his health." Alas ! the clouds were to
return after the rain. Mr Wardrop being in much hesitancy how to decide
the Presbytery appointed a committee to converse with him, and at next
meeting their report bore that they had consulted two medical men, who
were at one in the opinion that though he might entertain the prospect of
usefulness in a more genial climate he ought on no account to undertake
Liverpool. Mr Wardrop then expressed deep regret that the circumstances
stated by the committee rendered it imperative on him to decline the call.
For other two years Mr Wardrop kept on the preachers' list, but during
the winter months there were generally blanks opposite his name. In
October 1839 he caught a deep-seated cold when returning from the bounds
of Elgin Presbytery to Galston, his native place, and on a Saturday in
January he went forth on a journey of nearly twenty miles to keep a con
gregation from being without supply on the following day. He conducted
he forenoon service, and all that remained for him after that was to seek
back to his father's house and prepare for the end. He died, I7th March
1840, in the thirty-third year of his age. A volume of his discourses, with
Memoir, was published in 1841. They are marked by a basis of vigorous
thought clearly expressed, and they must have told with effect when heard
from the preacher's lips.
The commodious church in Tay Square was opened in 1834, and rapidly
the pews filled and the communion roll swelled up, the membership amount
ing in 1837 to 900. The building cost about ,£2300, and of this sum fully
two-thirds remained as debt on the property at the latter date. The stipend
was now ^200, but as the seat-rents alone brought in ^270 in 1835, and the
collections something more, it was sure to rise and the debt to melt away.
Dr M 'Gavin in his earlier days was exceptionally popular. I can recall the
cast of his sermons when he assisted at the communions in Balgedie. He
had a favour for such subjects as Jacob's Ladder and the Angels appearing
to the Shepherds, and such texts as : " The multitude stood beholding," and
"Thou art weighed in the balances, and art found wanting." The discourses
were marked by pictorial finish, and they were given with an amount of
emotional warmth which they needed to give them full effect. Dr M 'Gavin's
publications were slight, but his " Perils of the Deep" is a narrative naturally
and expressively told. Some of his " Pastoral Sketches " are also very
skilfully executed. One of these, entitled " Sold yet Saved," which appeared
in the U.P. Magazine for 1857, comes back upon us still with the deep
pathos of its artless story.
In the early part of 1877 notice comes up of Dr M'Gavin's illness — he
got the degree of D.D. from Princeton College, United States, in 1858. The
congregation arranged to give him relief for three months, but it soon
became evident that a colleague and successor was required. Accordingly,
in July they requested the grant of a moderation, the stipend arrangement
being on a liberal scale — ^500 to the junior minister and ^400 to Dr M'Gavin,
for that year at least. A call followed to the Rev. James Orr of Hawick,
signed by 440 members, but it was not accepted. On 5th March 1878 Dr
M'Gavin's formal retirement from active duty on an annual allowance of
.£250 was confirmed by the Presbytery. In May there was a movement in
favour of the Rev. Robert Scott, of Garscube Road, Glasgow, but a week
after his election the congregation unanimously agreed to ask the Presby
tery to allow the call to drop.
Second Minister. — CHARLES JERDAN, LL.B., from Dennyloanhead,
where he was ordained nearly twelve years before. Inducted, 8th January
PRESBYTERY OF DUNDEE 305
1879, and loosed, 4th March 1884, on accepting a call to Sir Michael Street,
Greenock.
Third Minister. — JOHN REID, M.A. Inducted, 6th August 1884, after a
ministry of three years in Milnathort. The junior minister was to have ^500,
as before, but, in keeping with his own wishes, the allowance to Dr M'Gavin
was reduced to ^100, and in the end of the following year he volunteered to
relieve the funds altogether. The Doctor died, 3oth October 1887, in the
seventy-seventh year of his age and fifty-fourth of his ministry. The mem
bership in the beginning of 1900 was 728, the congregation having suffered
through the opening of new churches in other parts of the town ; but the
stipend continues at .£500, or more than double what it was in days when
the communion roll was larger by 200.
JAMES' CHURCH (RELIEF)
THE Relief congregation in Temple Lane, with its minister, the Rev. John
Cross, was connected with Perth Presbytery, but in January 1837, when a
party in that church resolved to break away from their brethren, it was to
Dysart Presbytery they went for supply of sermon. The petition being
granted, the Rev. Daniel Kerr of Ceres opened the station on Sabbath,
5th February, and at next meeting of Presbytery he reported an exceedingly
good attendance and very encouraging prospects. The minister and session
of Temple Lane, which had no strength to spare, ought to have been con
sulted at the outset ; but while in the Secession the rights of existing
congregations used to be over-carefully guarded the Relief left such matters
to take their course. On 25th April it was agreed that the forming con
gregation should have the Lord's Supper dispensed among them on the
following Sabbath, Mr Kerr to preach on the Fast Day and admit applicants
into communion.
First Minister. — JAMES RESTON, who had been for twelve years in
Newton-Stewart, a brother of the Rev. David Reston of Coupar-Angus.
The stipend agreed on was ^100, with no extras. The induction took place
in Ward Chapel on i7th January 1838. The want of a regular place of
worship was a serious drawback, and required a change of centre four times
in little more than three years, but in June 1840 they settled down in an old
Episcopal chapel in the Nethergate. After being tenants there for nearly
four years a deputation of their number brought up a representation to the
Presbytery that their place of worship was advertised for sale, and that they
had resolved to build a church for themselves. At Whitsunday 1844 they
removed to the large hall below Bell Street Secession Church, and remained
there till Sabbath, 26th April 1845, when the church which they still occupy,
with its 680 sittings, was opened by the Rev. William Anderson of Glasgow.
The collection, large for them, was over ,£100, but a burden of debt, amount
ing to -£9°°) remained on the property. After twelve years it stood at ,£650,
having been reduced to that figure by the efforts of the congregation and the
minister. But by this time the struggle for existence was beginning. In
May 1857 the Synod was appealed to for aid in a special emergency. A bill
of ^100 was falling due, and the church was in danger of passing from the
denomination altogether. A year afterwards the managers prayed the
Presbytery to inquire into the whole circumstances of the congregation, and
investigation revealed a distressing condition of things. The communion
roll, which some years before reached 400, whatever may have been their
quality, was down now to 176, "of which only about 69 can be counted on
as effective members," and the stipend of ^100 was ^500 in arrears. The
306 HISTORY OF U.P. CONGREGATIONS
congregation, while sympathising deeply with their respected pastor, wished
him to demit his charge ; but an arrangement, under which Mr Reston
would retire on receipt of .£200 in lieu of all his claims, was fallen from, " the
people not being able to raise the promised sum." In November 1862
deputies from the Mission Board met with the congregation, when they
found the members to be 130, the forenoon attendance from 30 to 80, and
the afternoon from no to 150. The people agreed to raise the stipend from
;£6o to .£70, and the supplement was to be ,£30 instead of .£20. Thus
matters dragged on till Sabbath, 23rd April 1865, when Mr Reston's ministry
closed with startling suddenness. At the afternoon service, while delivering
his discourse, he was struck down with apoplexy, and died within an hour,
in the sixty-fifth year of his age and fortieth of his ministry.
In December following the congregation called the Rev. James Robertson
of Balfron, but, when the day of decision came, he accepted Bread Street,
Edinburgh.
Second Minister. — ROBERT LAWRIE, who had been four and a half years
in West Linton. Inducted, 6th September 1866. The membership was
already on the increase, the call being signed by 133 communicants. Of
stipend the congregation was to raise .£80, with ^20 for house rent, and
there was to be a supplement of ^40 from the Home Board. But there was
to be rapid progress now, and by the close of another year James' Church
resolved to be self-sustaining, making the stipend ,£140, with other ^"20 as
before. From this time there was a steady rise in numbers and resources,
till in 1879 there were 696 names on the communion roll, and the stipend
was ^300. Mr Lawrie died, ?3rd June 1893, m tne sixty-fourth year of his
age and thirty-second of his ministry. His farewell message to his wife, who
was laid down in another room, was : " I am resting in the everlasting love."
She only survived her husband three days.
Third Minister. — JAMES ROBBIE, B.D., from Aberdeen (Charlotte Street).
Ordained, i6th January 1894. The membership, which came down con
siderably in the interval, after six years was 482, and the stipend ^250.
WISHART CHURCH (UNITED SECESSION)
ON 2 ist February 1837 a number of persons connected with the three
Secession churches in Dundee petitioned the Presbytery of Cupar for sermon,
with the view of forming a fourth congregation in the town. Having obtained
regular supply they made application in May to be congregated, and the
Presbytery referred their case to the Synod, which was in session at the
time. The result reads thus : "The Presbytery of Cupar is allowed, accord
ing to their petition, to congregate the members of the Secession Church,
who assemble for public worship in the Roman Catholic chapel, Dundee."
This was done on 3Oth August, and by November the managers were able
to report a membership of between 70 and 80, four of them being elders ;
an average attendance of 250 ; and funds more than adequate to meet i
present requirements. For their temporary place of worship they paid .£40
a year. Such was the beginning of this congregation, which was intended
to supply a felt want in the eastern part of Dundee. The first they called
was Mr Andrew Robertson, who preferred Stow. The call was signed by
60 members and 24 adherents, and the stipend promised was ^100.
First Minister. — SAMUEL SPENCE, originally from Dumfries (Loreburn
Street). Instead of accepting Chapelknowe when a preacher Mr Spence
was attracted to Liverpool, where he was ordained, 3rd January 1833. The
congregation, which met in Russell Street, had been originated shortly before
PRESBYTERY OF DUNDEE 307
by a party in Mount Pleasant Church, who felt strongly on the question ot
Psalmody. Adapting themselves to the atmosphere of England Dr Stewart's
congregation had all along used Watt's Psalms and Hymns as the book of
praise ; but about the year 1831 five of the elders insisted that they should
limit themselves to the Scottish version of the Psalms, and, baffled in this
endeavour, they got sermon for themselves, and after a time had Mr Spence
set over them as their minister. In 1837 the chapel which they rented was
sold, and it was needful to build a church of their own. At this point the
old subject of controversy came in to trouble them. The majority of the
congregation wished the Paraphrases introduced ; but against this proposal
the session, which consisted of the five elders aforesaid, set themselves
resolutely, and declared they would have nothing to do with a new church
unless there was a clause in the title-deeds excluding everything but the
Scottish version of the Psalms from the service of the sanctuary for ever.
The Presbytery after lengthened conferences with the parties declared
that a majority of the members ought to have the control of this matter,
and, owing to the unbending attitude taken up, they found it necessary to have
the session dissolved, a measure which involved serious loss. In a petition
to the Synod for aid in erecting a place of worship the congregation
explained that they had been much reduced by the desertion of
members, and that those who remained were for the most part of the
working classes. Such was the state of affairs in Liverpool when Mr
Spence became a candidate for Wishart Church, Dundee, and obtained
their call. The people, so far from opposing the translation, intimated to
the Presbytery that, while their attachment to their minister remained
unabated, they rejoiced that a door of usefulness had opened for him else
where. He was inducted to his new charge, 24th October 1838. The
chapel, which the Roman Catholics had vacated two years before, was
still the place of meeting, but it was exchanged soon afterwards for the
Caledonian Hall. Wishart Church, with sittings for 736, was built in 1841.
On the first Sabbath of June 1844, after preaching a farewell sermon, Mr
Spence read a paper in which he explained the course of action he was
about to take, and on the following Wednesday he applied to the Presbytery
of the bounds for admission to the Free Church. He was constrained, he
said, to renounce his present connection, because "he has no hope of seeing
a majority in favour of sound Calvinistic doctrine." The extreme position
he took up on the Atonement was the more noteworthy, considering that
he was a brother-in-law of James Morison's, their wives being sisters. But
the Free Church Presbytery felt that he had overdone his part, and instead
of homologating the charge of heresy they held " it should never have been
brought forward in the application at all." His own Presbytery met the
week after, when Mr Spence gave in the demission of his charge. The
congregation at the same time intimated their adherence to the principles
of the Secession, and characterised the step their minister had taken "as
having a beneficial tendency, rather than otherwise, in reference to their
prosperity," and on the ground of having acted irregularly and aspersed
the denomination the Presbytery suspended him from office. "Against
this sentence Mr Spence protested, renounced the authority of the court, and
left the house," and on i ith June 1844 he was loosed from his charge.
On 2nd July a committee of Presbytery tabled a report, in which they
brought home to Mr Spence some glaring inconsistencies. He had never
dissented, they said, from any decision of Synod on the Atonement question.
He had also been a pronounced voluntary, and so late as the day after the
Disruption he had hailed that event as a proof of the incompatibility of
Church Establishments with the Word of God and the rights of the Christian
3o8 HISTORY OF U.P. CONGREGATIONS
people. On the following day the Free Presbytery, " without pretending to
justify every step in the manner of Mr Spence's procedure," admitted him to
the ministry of the Free Church. In less than three months he received four
calls, one of them to Milton Church, Glasgow, but he accepted Kilbirnie,
and was inducted there, roth October 1844. In 1862 Mr Spence received
the degree of LL.D. from a foreign University. He retired from active
duty in 1880, and died at Croydon, near London, 3oth January 1891, in the
eighty-ninth year of his age and fifty-ninth of his ministry.
Second Minister. — ROBERT DICK DUNCAN, son of Professor Duncan of
Mid-Calder, and the youngest of six brothers, all of whom were ministers of
the United Secession Church. Called first to Girvan to succeed his eldest
brother, and then to Montrose to be colleague to the Rev. Andrew Wilson,
but after some hesitancy he accepted Wishart Church, and was ordained,
i gth February 1845. The callers were only 106 in number, and the stipend
was .£120 in all. That year the debt of ^850 which rested on the property
\vas cleared off, the people raising .£600 to meet a grant of ,£250 from the
Board. The congregation also got a substantial increase of strength through
accessions from Bell Street at the time the senior minister, Mr Fraser, had
to retire. On 1st August 1848 Mr Duncan accepted a call to Edinburgh,
Bread Street (now Viewforth). In intimating his decision he expressed his
interest in furthering mission work in the heart of our large towns, his ex
perience in Wishart Church, no doubt, encouraging him to look for like
success in his new sphere of labour.
Third Minister. — JOHN C. BAXTER, from Greyfriars, Glasgow. Called
also to Catrine, Gourock, and Musselburgh (Bridge Street). Ordained,
7th February 1849. The stipend was now ,£200, with ^10 for sacramental
expenses. The call was signed by 377 members, attesting a rapid building-
up during the three and a half years of his predecessor's ministry. At the
celebration of Mr Baxter's semi-jubilee his ministry was described as "un
broken in its peacefulness," but exactly a year afterwards it came to an end.
On gth February 1875 he accepted an invitation to Stanley Street Church,
Montreal, and was inducted there on 7th May. Though the signatures were
only 70 the stipend promised was 2500 dollars. In October 1878 the
Presbytery of Montreal received from Mr Baxter, who was in the mother
country at the time, the demission of his charge, and at next Synod he was
received back into the U.P. Church. Within a few weeks he was inducted
over the newly-formed congregation of Loughborough Road, Kirkcaldy. In
the previous year Mr Baxter received the degree of D.D. from Queen's
College, Kingston, Canada.
Fourth Minister. — JAMES GEORGE. Inducted, 7th October 1875. The
call was signed by 457 members, and the stipend, including expenses,
was ,£325. Mr George is a native of the United States, but was brought up
in Scarborough, Canada, under the ministry of his uncle, the Rev. James
George, D.D., afterwards Vice-Principal of Queen's College, Kingston,
Upper Canada. The family having returned to Scotland, Mr George, like
his younger brother, the Rev. William George of Dunfermline, was educated
at Dollar Academy. About the beginning of his University course he came
over to the U.P. Church from the Establishment, and was connected in student
days with Bristo Church, Edinburgh. On 3oth November 1871 he was
ordained over the newly-formed congregation of Gateshead, where he re
mained nearly four years. On gth April 1890 76 members of Wishart
Church were disjoined, along with their minister, to be formed into a new
congregation in the N.-E. part of the town, and Wishart Church was to be
preached vacant on Sabbath, nth May. Mr George's name is now to be
transferred to the history of Park Church.
PRESBYTERY OF DUNDEE 309
Fifth Minister. — WILLIAM A. DUNBAR, from Woodside, Aberdeen,
where he had been for eleven years. Inducted, 25th September 1890. The
stipend was to be ,£265 in all. The congregation is in course of erecting a
new church in King Street, at no great distance from their present site.
The membership at the close of 1899 was 542, and the stipend ^300.
BUTTERBURN (UNITED PRESBYTERIAN)
THE history of this congregation dates from the beginning of 1861, when the
attention of Dundee Presbytery was turned to Butterburn, in the north
eastern extremity of the town, as a district occupied by no evangelical de
nomination. On 5th March a committee of their number reported that they
had secured a hall for public worship every Sabbath evening and for a
weekly prayer meeting. In July Mr David Hay, preacher, began to labour
at Butterburn, and in October the people petitioned to be congregated.
After some months' delay to test the station's prospects, it was agreed at a
meeting of Presbytery on nth March 1862 to form thirty-one persons into a
congregation, but in the case of other applicants delay was recommended.
Had there been a fair proportion of certificates from other churches it
svould have been security for greater compactness. At the same meeting
an election of elders was asked for, but the drag was put on, and not till the
following August was a session formed by the ordination of three to that
office.
First Minister. — DAVID HAY, from Lauriston Place, Edinburgh.
Ordained, 7th July 1863, after being located at Butterburn for two years.
The call was signed by 64 members, and the people engaged to contribute
,£70 of stipend, which was to be raised to ^120 by a supplement from the
Mission Board.
The congregation, which had been worshipping hitherto in a schoolroom,
now set to work for the erection of a church, and at the first meeting after
Mr Hay's ordination they informed the Presbytery that a suitable site had
been obtained, and they were in course of collecting money among them
selves for building purposes. The new church, with over 400 sittings, was
opened on Sabbath, 4th June 1865, by the Rev. David Croom of Lauriston
Place, Edinburgh. The estimated cost was ^850, of which ^550 was to be
raised by the congregation and the Presbytery, and ,£200 was to be given
by the Board. But the building must have absorbed more than was calcu
lated, as a burden of ,£500 was not cleared off till 1870, when the people
raised ,£300 to meet a grant of .£200 from the Debt Liquidation Board. In
1871, there being no longer a drain on the funds for interest, the congrega
tion undertook £120 of stipend, and a year later the remaining supplement
°f £37i i os. was dispensed with. On 23rd July 1878 Mr Hay accepted an
invitation to undertake the charge of the Henderson Memorial Church,
Glasgow, and was loosed from Butterburn, Dundee.
Second Minister. — ROBERT A. WATSON, M.A., from Aberdeen (Garden
Place). Mr Watson had been previously in Middlesborough, where he was
ordained, 28th February 1871, having preferred it to Aberchirder. At the
Union of 1876 his congregation retained its connection with the United
Presbyterian Church and was linked to Berwick .Presbytery. In this state
matters continued till 8th January 1878, when at their own request they were
disjoined, with the view of acceding to the Presbyterian Church of England.
On 7th October of that year Mr Watson's resignation was accepted with
much regret by his Presbytery, and on i8th February 1879 he was inducted
to Butterburn, Dundee, .In the early years of Mr Watson's ministry there
310 HISTORY OF U.P. CONGREGATIONS
the congregation contracted fully ,£700 of debt by the erection of a gallery,
which increased the sittings to 600, and by the addition of a hall and other
buildings, but with the aid of ,£160 from the Liquidation Board this was
entirely got rid of by the end of 1884. In 1888 Mr Watson published
"Gospels of Yesterday," in which Henry Drummond, Herbert Spencer, and
Matthew Arnold are pointedly criticised. It passed into a third edition next
year. This was followed in 1890 by "Judges and Ruth," in the Expositor's
Bible series, and at a later time by "Job," and in 1891 he had the degree of
D.D. from the University of Aberdeen. Mention has been already made
of " George Gilfillan : Letters and Journal, with Memoir," the joint production
of Dr and Mrs Watson (Deas Cromarty), published in 1893. Since then he
has contributed a suggestive volume for the series of Books for Bible Students,
entitled " In the Apostolic Age." In June 1898 Dr WTatson intimated to the
Presbytery that he intended to resign his charge, but the committee appointed
to confer with him was able to report next month, amidst much satisfaction,
that he had been induced to depart from his purpose. The membership of
Butterburn at the close of 1899 was 477, and the stipend ^230.
VICTORIA STREET (UNITED PRESBYTERIAN)
THIS church was begun as a preaching station on Sabbath, ist June 1873,
the services being conducted by Dr M'Gavin and Messrs Baxter and
Gilfillan, the three ministers to whose congregations the prime movers in
the enterprise belonged. The promise of success was such that on i7th June
55 members of the U.P. Church applied to be formed into a new congrega
tion for the eastern, or north-eastern, part of the town. On the evening of
3rd July this was done, when the roll numbered 65. An election of elders
followed, of whom seven accepted. These had all been in office before,
and they were inducted on I5th September. The services had been con
ducted in a schoolroom as yet, but by November it was found needful to
remove to a larger meeting-place. Prior to this it was notified to the
Presbytery " that a good site had been secured at the north-west corner of
Victoria Street on which to build a place of worship." Here "The East End
Church," Dundee, was to find a local habitation, and from this point dates
the name it has since borne.
In their first attempts to secure a minister the congregation failed, though
their position and prospects were tempting, and the stipend to begin with
was .£250. In April 1874 they called Mr John Clark, M.A., but he accepted
Redcar, in Yorkshire, and is now minister of Union Church, Kirkcaldy.
They next called the Rev. Matthew Galbraith of Aberdeen, but he also
declined.
First Minister. — WILLIAM ROSE, who had been in Airth four and a half
years. The call was signed by 121 members, and Mr Rose was inducted,
i6th February 1875. On Sabbath, 5th September of that year, the new
church was opened. It is seated for 860, and cost over .£5500. In ten
years the buildings were free of debt, and the communion roll stood at 734,
the stipend being ^300.
On gth December 1896 Mr Rose, who had been prematurely incapacitated
for work by a severe stroke of paralysis, intimated to the Presbytery by letter
that the congregation had acceded to his desire to have a colleague, and on
loth February 1897 the arrangement was sanctioned by which he was to
receive ^100 a year and the acting minister ,£250.
Second Minister. — THOMAS G. CONOCHIE, M.A., from Airth, and a
brother of the Rev. David Conochie, Fetterangus. Ordained, 29th April 1897,
PRESBYTERY OF DUNDEE 311
Mr Rose, who is a son-in-law of the late Dr Ogilvie, Falkirk, holds the
status of senior minister, but is not responsible for any part of the work.
The membership is now about 850.
HAWKHILL (UNITED PRESBYTERIAN)
THIS church is the outcome of mission work carried out in the West Port
district for a long course of years by Tay Square congregation. On nth
April 1871 the Presbytery agreed that the members should have sealing
ordinances dispensed among them, and on 23rd November 1 875 they petitioned
to be erected into a congregation. With this proposal Tay Square concurred,
and also engaged for ,£200 of stipend, but coupled with the proviso " that
the appointment be agreeable to the members of this church." On the
evening of 7th December the station was congregated by Dr M'Gavin, and
at next meeting of Presbytery a moderation was granted. The names on
the communion roll were certified to be 55, fewer than might have been
looked for from the mission operations of twenty-seven years.
First Minister. — JOHN TAYLOR, from Kirkintilloch. Mr Taylor received
licence in February 1857 ; but, after acting for a short time as a probationer,
he settled down as a teacher in Edinburgh, and also became an elder in
Broughton Place Church. Thus thirteen years passed, and then in 1872
his name was restored by the Synod to the preachers' list. In 1874 he
was called to Canongate Mission Church, Edinburgh, but owing to want
of harmony Mr Taylor declined. Ordained on the evening of 7th March
1876 in Tay Square Church, after being located in the West Port for a
considerable time, so that, though his status was now raised, there was no
change in his field of labour. In the early part of 1878 it was intimated
to the Presbytery that Hawkhill Free Church had been purchased for
behoof of the West Port congregation. On 3rd February they removed
to the newly-acquired place of worship, which had been erected in 1855 for
the Reformed Presbyterians, but passed over with them to the Free Church
at the Union of 1876, when it assumed the name of Martyrs' Church. The
parent congregation still stood by them, keeping the stipend at ,£200, and
this arrangement lasted five years. The membership of Hawkhill had now
increased from 55 to three times that number, and they believed themselves
able to provide £120 of the stipend. Other £40 was granted by the Home
Board, besides £2.0 in name of house rent, and the surplus brought for a
time another ^40. Four members of Tay Square session who had acted
as elders in the mission church were now relieved of that service, and
minister, office-bearers, and people were thanked for their long-continued
liberality and kindness to the minister and congregation. Dr M'Gavin
also bequeathed ,£400 to Hawkhill Church.
The place of worship which they acquired cost ^1850, and it is seated
for 400. To reduce the debt the Home Board allowed a grant of ,£250
shortly after possession was taken. In 1880, with the help of another ^100
from the Board, and ^500 from the Loan Fund, the purchase money was
paid, and the people hoped to raise ,£1000 within the next two years, and
it was announced to the Presbytery that "the congregation were now
debtors to the Synod alone." But larger outlay must have followed, and
in 1887 there was a final effort, "for the purpose of paying the debt resting
on the church." A sale of work, promoted by the other Dundee congrega
tions, brought nearly .£650, and thus the burdens of Hawkhill were entirely
removed. In Tune 1888 Mr Taylor required rest, and in September he felt
it necessary to resign. His first intention was to retain his status as senior
312 HISTORY OF U.P. CONGREGATIONS
minister, though he was to have nothing from the funds ; but, believing
that this arrangement would not be for the interests of the congregation,
he demitted simpliciter. On 6th March 1889 the tie was dissolved, the people
testifying " their high appreciation of his self-sacrificing labours as their
pastor and teacher." Mr Taylor resided in Dundee after retiring, kept up
connection with his old congregation, and died, 2gth November 1893, m
the sixty-fifth year of his age and eighteenth of his ministerial life.
Though the membership of the congregation increased considerably the
first two years after they removed to Hawkhill Church, and rose above 200,
there had been a serious decline since then, owing, perhaps, to Mr Taylor's
failure of health, and instead of ^120 of stipend they could raise only ^90.
The Mission Board was wishful to effect a location for the time, and the
proposal was favoured by a majority of the Presbytery. But the people were
bent on having a minister without delay, being satisfied that aught else " would
be most injurious," and after some delay the difficulties were got over.
Second Minuter. — ROBERT H. WYLLIE, from Kilmarnock (King Street).
The call was signed by four elders and 131 members out of a communion roll
of 145. Mr Wyllie was ordained, i6th December 1889. In 1891 he was
proposed for Alyth; and obtained a majority at the moderation, but the
Presbytery deemed it better to allow the call to drop. He died, 2Oth March
1900, in the fifty-first year of his age and eleventh of his ministry. The
membership in the beginning of the year was 147, and of the ^187, los.
received by the minister the people contributed ^88. A younger brother
of Mr Wyllie's is minister in Peterhead.
RYEHILL (UNITED PRESBYTERIAN)
THIS was a case of Church Extension pure and simple. So early as 1871
the Elders' and Managers' Association in Dundee agreed that steps ought
to be taken to have a new congregation organised in the west end of the
town. The matter slumbered till the beginning of 1876, when, the attention
of the Presbytery being called to the need for a church in that suburban
district, a small committee was appointed to stimulate local interest in the
proposed endeavour. A meeting of such as favoured the movement was
convened without delay, and as the outcome a petition, signed by 19
members and adherents of the United Presbyterian Church, was laid before
the Presbytery on 22nd February praying that a preaching station be opened
in Perth Road, a hall having been obtained there as a temporary place of
meeting, and the Presbytery to be relieved of all responsibility for expenses.
No objections being offered by neighbouring sessions the opening services
were held on Sabbath, 5th March, the Rev. John Brand, Bell Street, who
had been the prime mover in the Presbytery, taking the lead. As showing
the upper-class material at the basis the collections on that occasion amounted
to nearly ^30. It suggests a contrast with causes like those of Butterburn
and Hawkhill in their feeble beginnings.
On 3 ist October 1876 the station was formed into a regular congregation,
the members numbering 43. They had now removed to their own church
hall somewhat farther to the west, and were at a distance of half-a-mile
from Tay Square, the nearest regular U.P. Church. On the evening of
Thursday, 24th January 1877, six elders were ordained and a session con
stituted, and this was followed up by a request for a moderation.
First Minister. — JAMES DRUMMOND, who had been ordained at
Alexandria, Dumbartonshire, four years previously. Inducted, 3rd May
1877. Though there were only 56 members signing the call the stipend was
PRESBYTERY OF DUNDEE 313
fixed at ^500, with payment of sacramental expenses, proof positive that
the congregation of Ryehill was cradled in the midst of abundance ; but
a building of corresponding quality was still needed to complete the goodly
proportions. So, some six months after Mr Drummond's induction, it was
resolved to go forward with the erection of a place of worship, which was
not opened till the evening of Friday, 2oth February 1880, when Principal
Cairns preached his massive sermon, since published, on "His name shall
endure for ever." The collections that evening and the following Sabbath
amounted to over ^1500. The entire cost exceeded ^7000, and the sittings
are 650.
But though Ryehill had large resources within itself the continuous
pressure came to be felt, and in 1886 the minister asked the sympathy and
assistance of the Presbytery in raising ^1000 during the year, to secure ^2000
promised conditionally by certain members of the congregation. The object
must surely have been gained and the burden of debt removed, as the
income returned for that year was nearly ^3500. On 5th December 1888
Mr Drummond wrote the Presbytery resigning his charge, " as the one
solution to the troubles in Ryehill." When the congregation met they
acquiesced in their minister's demission, while " they gratefully acknowledged
his abilities and his past services to the congregation," and on iQth December
he was loosed from his charge. In May 1891 Mr Drummond's name was
placed on the probationer list by deed of Synod, on the cordial recommenda
tion of Dundee Presbytery, and he was inducted into Burnheacl, Dumfries
shire, in February 1893.
After being vacant for a few months Ryehill congregation made a
premature attempt to call a minister. The stipend was now ,£100 less than
before — ^400, with ^15 for incidental expenses. On the moderation day
three ordained ministers were proposed, and the votes were 49, 34, 14, giving
the highest an absolute majority of one. But instead of the trifling advan
tage being pressed it was resolved by 56 to 48 not to proceed further, and
by the end of the year they were in a position to go on with unanimity.
Second Minister. — JAMES AITKEN, M.A., who, after fifteen years' ex
perience in three successive charge^ — Castle-Douglas, North Shields, and
Lothian Road, Edinburgh — was inducted to Ryehill, I7th April 1890. The
membership in the beginning of that year was returned at 268, and it now
approximates to 500. The stipend was raised ^'50 in 1894, making it what
it now is, ^450. In 1899 Mr Aitken published " The Abiding Law : Twelve
Addresses on the Ten Commandments," and next year he had the degree
of D.D. conferred on him by St Andrews University.
PARK CHURCH (UNITED PRESHYTERIAN)
THIS congregation originated in the wish of the Presbytery's Extension Com
mittee to have a church formed in a north-east district of Dundee. To meet
their views 76 members, along with their minister, the Rev. James George,
were disjoined at their own request from Wishart Church on gth April 1890
and erected into a new congregation. In former days it was customary for
the Presbytery in such a case to preserve the tie unbroken between pastor
and people, but now the rules of the Church prescribed a different order.
First Minister. — JAMES GEORGE. Inducted, I5th May 1890, over a
wing of his former congregation, from which he had never in reality been
severed. Still the edict was read, and at the close of the service " the
name of Mr George was entered on the roll." To give consistency to these
proceedings they ought to have been preceded by a regular moderation and
314 HISTORY OF U.P. CONGREGATIONS
a regular call. But innovations in rules and forms are not always improve
ments. In the return at the close of that year Park Church had a member
ship of 145, which was nearly double the number who came forward at the
outset ; but the resources of the congregation were unequal to the demands
of their altered position, and the stipend for 1891 was reduced from ^350 to
,£160. This was Church Extension on the shady side. Each of the next two
years there was a rise of ,£20, making ^200 in all, but this figure could not
be maintained, and since 1894 it has been only .£170. The membership, on
the other hand, has grown year by year, and it amounted at the close of
1899 to 235. They met at first in a hall in Park Avenue, from which they
removed to a hall of their own, built at a cost of ,£1200. On the afternoon
of Saturday, 23rd December 1899, the new church was opened by Dr John
Robson, the Moderator of Synod, and on Sabbath the services were con
ducted by Principal Salmond of Aberdeen and the Rev. James Aitken of
Ryehill, Dundee. The sittings are 680, and the cost was ^3200, of which
^1000 was raised previously by the congregation, and ^500 was received
from the Church Extension Fund, besides .£250 formerly allowed for the
hall. When the remaining burden is cleared the way will be opened for a
larger inflow of prosperity.
LOCHEE ROAD (UNITED PRESBYTERIAN)
ON Sabbath, nth January 1891, this station was opened in the interests of
Church Extension. Between Lochee church and the nearest of our Dundee
churches there was an interval of more than a mile and a half, and the
Presbytery had for five or six years been looking to that locality as a fit
centre for a new cause. Unfortunately, there was no temporary meeting-
place available, and hence delay and vain endeavours before they could get
a beginning made. At last property was bought for a site, and a house
converted into a hall, with accommodation for between 200 and 250 people.
The cost of altering and fitting up wast .£500, of which the Mission Board
furnished ^150, leaving to the Presbytery of Dundee to provide the other
£350. On 4th March 39 Church members, who had been identifying them
selves with the station, petitioned to have sealing ordinances dispensed
among them. This was agreed to, and the petitioners were placed under
the supervision of School Wynd session for the time. On 8th June 1892
the status of a regular congregation was reached, the members being 86.
By the close of the year they numbered 122, and were contributing at the
rate of nearly ,£100 per annum, other ,£50 for the support of ordinances
coming from the Evangelistic Fund. At this time a probationer was
carrying on the work at Lochee Road, but as 1893 advanced the people saw
their way to provide ^90 of stipend, and the next resolve was to end the
location and hear candidates.
First Minister. — JOHN BlSSETT, who had been six and a half years
minister of Muiredge Church, Buckhaven. Inducted, 27th February 1894.
The return for that year gave a membership of 160, and for 1895, 200. On
3oth September 1897 the new church, with seats for 700, was opened. The
building itself, including the hall, cost ^3500, and the ground ^700. Of
this ^2400 has been paid, leaving in July 1899 ,£1800 still to be raised. The
membership at the close of that year was 290, and the stipend from con
gregational funds
PRESBYTERY OF DUNDEE 315
BLAIRGOWRIE (ANTIBURGHER)
THE Secession in this locality took shape on i6th April 1746, when six men
and twenty women from the parishes of Rattray and Bendochy acceded to the
Associate Presbytery of Dunfermline. They were ordaining Mr Johnstone
at Dundee that day, and, should Coupar-Angus share in the young minister's
labours, the Seceders in Rattray, four or five miles off, would enjoy the
benefit. At the Breach in 1747 Coupar-Angus and the parishes around took
the Antiburgher side and got sermon for themselves. In this state matters
continued ten years, when a disruption took place in the parish church of
Rattray. Mr James Smith had been presented to the vacant charge by
the Earl of Kinnoul, but not till after the statutory six months were expired,
and on this ground the settlement was resisted, but Mr Smith was ordained
by orders of Assembly, 5th May 1757. The party opposed to the intrusion
must have got sermon from the Antiburgher Presbytery of Perth almost
immediately, for they have a baptism entered on the 26th of that month.
In Dr M'Kelvie's "Annals" there is mention of a petition for supply having
come before that Presbytery in September 1757 from 106 men and 106
women, and this statement is too circumstantial to have been given without
good authority, though no confirmation thereof is now to be found. A
session was constituted on I3th February 1758, "there being two elders in
accession." The church was finished before the winter of 1759, as there is
mention at this time of the session having met at the " New Kirk." In May
1759 ten members of Coupar-Angus church residing in the parish of Rattray
were disjoined with their families at their own request, "that they might
have an opportunity of strengthening the hands of the congregation there."
First Minister. — JOHN HENDERSON, who seems to have belonged to
the bounds of Stirling Presbytery. Having been missioned by the Synod
to Pennsylvania he was taken on trials for licence, but he drew back, and
procedure came to a stand. The appointment being allowed to drop, a
field of labour opened up for him in the home church, and he was ordained
at Rattray, 24th March 1762. There were four elders already, and eight
were added to the session before the end of the year. At the communion
in May 1763 there were 20 accessions. That season 38 of the members
joined in covenanting work, in 1766 there were other 38, and 52 in 1773,
making 128 in all ; but there, as elsewhere, a goodly proportion would not
have "clearness" to go forward to this duty, and though spoken of as a
term of communion among the Antiburghers there was great forbearance
exercised towards those who professed to be waiting for more light. In
1766 the Seceders in Alyth were severed from Coupar-Angus and annexed
to Rattray, and two years later five members were received by certificate
from Coupar-Angus session, the disjunction being agreed to without demur,
as the parties pleaded " that they were now old and unable to travel so far."
Thus the process of building-up went on, but in April 1788, at a meeting of
Presbytery, the elder from Rattray craved pulpit supply " on account of Mr
Henderson being in distress." He died, 23rd September 1789, in the
twenty-eighth year of his ministry.
The first they called during the vacancy was Mr William Syme, from
Edinburgh (Nicolson Street), but the matter stood undetermined for six
months, and then came notice from Kelso Presbytery of a competing call
to Newcastle. The Kelso brethren also intimated "that Mr Syme on his
way from Newcastle had gone into a Dissenting meeting-house in the north
of England, where he heard sermon one part of the day and preached the
other," and they left the matter in the hands of Forfar Presbytery. The
offender appeared at a meeting in Dundee, admitted the truth of the report,
316 HISTORY OF U.P. CONGREGATIONS
acknowledged that what he had done " was sinful and wrong in every point
of view," and got off with an admonition. The Synod, in April 1791, ap
pointed him to Newcastle, not much, perhaps, to the regret of the more
rigid among the people of Rattray. Mr Syme was minister of The Close,
Newcastle (now Blackett Street), for nearly half-a-century, and died, 5th
November 1837. Dr George Brown has described him as a "man of talent,
but eccentric and vain."
Second Minister. — THOMAS WOOD, from Mid-Calder. The call was
signed by 63 male members, indicating a totality less than was to be looked
for, but in the latter part of Mr Henderson's ministry, through the formation
of Alyth congregation, there was a serious loss sustained, and since then
there had been a narrowing in on the Lethendy side for a like reason. Mi-
Wood was ordained, i6th April 1793. The money arrangements involve a
condition of social life which has passed away. The stipend was to be ^50
a year, along with the payment of rent for manse and glebe. The people
were also to drive six bolls of coal for the minister's household from
Dundee, a distance of twenty miles, "and twelve cartloads of peats from
such moss as they can be most properly got at." A new church, with 340
sittings, had been built in the village of Old Rattray during the vacancy, and
the stipend of ^50 was first raised to ,£57, and in 1807 to ^70, and believing
this to be too little, they were aiming at a further advance. In a consider
able number of country parishes at that time the living was scarcely larger ;
in Arngask, for example, it was set down in the last decade of the century
as about ^70, including the value of the glebe ; and in Moneydie the whole
income was calculated at .£80, or in an extraordinary year at ,£90. All
seems to have gone on prosperously with Mr Wood for a time, and during
the first three years of his ministry the accessions averaged eighteen or
nineteen, but there were troubles ahead. Towards the end of 1800 three
neighbouring ministers were requested to assist the session in dealing with
two men and four women who had been absenting themselves from their
own place of worship. The parties were called in one by one and reasoned
with, but to no purpose. They complained that occasional hearing was
practised by several of the members, and also promiscuous dancing, and
" they vented a great deal of most bitter reflections and invectives against
both minister and session." It was agreed to suspend the group from
sealing ordinances, the effect of which would be to necessitate a journey
to Kirriemuir, to wait on the ministry of the Rev. James Aitken. It also
led to this, that when a Constitutionalist congregation was formed at
Coupar-Angus it had a branch in Rattray, Mr Wood's session furnishing
one of the elders.
These things impaired Mr Wood's comfort and made him determine to
retire from the scene of turmoil. Though a number of the disaffected had
withdrawn, others remained, and he was satisfied that his usefulness in
Rattray was over, and " to stay under such a conviction he would consider
very undutiful." For these and similar reasons he tabled his demission on
I2th April 1810. This was met by a paper from five of the elders requesting
the Presbytery to continue Mr Wood's ministry among them ; but the con
gregation at a meeting held to consider the situation was nearly equally
divided. Three elders and 29 male members were afraid that if Mr Wood
remained " it would neither tend to his own comfort nor the furtherance of
the gospel," while 30 members adhered to the petition given in on the other
side. The two parties were at one, however, in declaring that no member
of the congregation could allege anything against their minister's doctrine or
life. The decision was deferred from time to time, but nothing brought
relief to. Mi" Wood's mind, and on i8th September he was loosed from his
PRESBYTERY OF DUNDEE 317
charge, and returned to the probationer list, where his name stood for
twenty years. In 1812 he had the offer of Boghole (now Moyness), but he
was so decided against accepting that he would not even return to the
bounds of Elgin Presbytery to have the call presented to him. In 1815 he
was residing with his family near Bathgate, and went over very regularly for
a time to supply the Antiburgher congregation of Bo'ness, which was unable
to maintain a minister and unwilling to pass out of existence. In 1830 his
name appeared on the roll of preachers for the last time, and the next two
years he received a grant of ^20 from the Synod Fund. He died at Bath-
gate, according to the Scotsman, 1st August 1832, aged sixty-six. The
parish register attests instead that the Rev. James Wood died, 2nd August
1832, aged sixty-four. Where the name is wrong we are entitled to distrust
both the date and the age as given.
Third Minister. — JAMES AIRD, from Newmilns. Ordained at Rattray,
jist March 1812, at the ripe age of thirty-nine. George Gilfillan has spoken
of Mr Aird's "profound and oftentimes highly-finished discourses, most
awkwardly rendered in his address." In making their choice the congrega
tion showed their taste for solid instruction, though not adorned with the
graces of delivery, and sometimes, according to the same authority, "hope
lessly obscure." In numbers they were seriously down at this time, as is
indicated by only 48 male members having signed the call. The stipend
named was ,£80, with rent paid for manse and glebe, and also driving, as
before. The Presbytery stipulated for other ,£20, and the people came up
.£15, but could venture no further. Although Mr Aird was advanced in his
views on the relation between Church and State, he kept in other respects by
the old ways. In the second year of his ministry covenanting was engaged
in at Rattray, 51 of his people entering the bond, and three ministers besides
himself taking part in the work. When the Union of Burghers and Anti-
burghers was drawing on, the congregation petitioned in favour of the
movement, and simultaneously with this Mr Aird took up his pen to prove
that covenanting ought to form an essential article in the Basis, a condition
to which it was certain the Burghers would never agree. For a time he
made common cause with the Protestors and kept aloof from the United
Synod, giving as a reason the want of " sufficient security for the maintenance
of the public cause of the Secession," and it was not till September 1822 that
he took his seat in the court. Mr Aird's strong Voluntary proclivities may
have kept him back from placing himself under what proved to be a more
conservative flag every way.
The account given of Mr Aird's services reminds us of earlier Secession
times. There was the lecture in regular course in the forenoon, and in the
afternoon a sermon, generally one of a series, on some branch of doctrinal or
practical theology. The system conduced to habits of study and to the building-
up of the people in solid acquaintance with Bible truth. In certain respects the
work of the session under Mr Aird's moderatorship appears to advantage.
When parties who had become bankrupt were dealt with one thing insisted
on was that " if divine providence put it in their power they would pay all
their just debts without evasion." In one case the debtor would not submit
to inquiry, but he returned, and after prayer by the moderator he was
"exhorted to act with justice and honesty in his civil affairs and to behave
as a good member of this church in time to come." It was religion applied
to business life. Thus Mr Aird went on till the summer of 1834, when
illness came, from which recovery was only partial, and on i6th August he
died, in the sixty-second year of his age and twenty-third of his ministry.
Fourth Minister. — DAVID HOGG, son of the Rev. William Hogg, Had-
dington. Ordained, I2th August 1835, the services being conducted in the
3i8 HISTORY OF U.P. CONGREGATIONS
open air before a large assembly. On the following Sabbath Mr Hogg's
father, in introducing him, preached from the text : "And thou Timothy, my
son, be strong in the grace which is in Christ Jesus." At this time the
congregation was about to remove to a new church, with 600 sittings, on the
outskirts of Blairgowrie, three-fourths of a mile to the west, a more important
centre of population, from which a considerable proportion of the membership
was drawn. The Old Statistical History towards the end of the century gave
sixty families of Seceders in the parish of Rattray and 100 persons of all
ages in that of Blairgowrie. In less than a year and a half Mr Hogg
tendered the demission of his charge, and the congregation having received
notice of his intention unanimously acquiesced. The commissioners ex
plained that their minister was seldom able to preach, and they were mostly
supplied by Mr James Hay, a son of Mr Hay of Alyth, who had withdrawn
from probationer life, and was residing in the neighbourhood. There were
no arrears of stipend to be made up, but the people agreed to give Mr Hogg
,£40 as a parting gift. On 3ist January 1837 he was relieved of the de
pressing burden.
Owing, perhaps, partly to change of scene Mr Hogg was able for proba
tioner work in a few months, and next year he was called to Chirnside, but
the movement was arrested. When the report of the moderation was given
in, a petition was presented from the congregation praying that, as divisions
prevailed among them, and as only 98 members out of 260 had subscribed
the call, they might be allowed to withdraw it. Rumours as to incapacity
for sustained work at Rattray may have come in to undo the effects of his
pulpit appearances. His name remained on the preachers' list for other
eight or nine years. He was also located at Aberlady, where his services
were much appreciated. Having emigrated to New Zealand he began to
labour among the early settlers in and around Wanganui in December 1851,
where a church was formed, of which he became the minister, but as there
was no Presbytery in that region he was never formally inducted. In 1865
he retired on account of failing health, and died, 2nd June 1880, in the sixty-
ninth year of his age and forty-fifth of his ministerial life. The present
minister of the Presbyterian Church, Wanganui, adds : " Though never
enjoying the best of health Mr Hogg endured the hardships of the pioneer.
There are now four Presbyterian churches and three ministers in the area of
Mr Hogg's district. The evidences of his faithfulness are very numerous."
Fifth Minister. — JOHN PATERSON, from Cambusnethan, a brother of the
Rev. Robert Paterson of Kirkwall. A call had been previously given to
Mr William Bruce, but he promptly declined, preferring Cowgate, Edin
burgh. Mr Paterson was ordained, 22nd May 1839. The number of
callers was 140, and the stipend ^105, with a house, the same as before.
During the recent vacancy the Original Burgher congregation in Blair
gowrie, formed in 1830, had come to grief. The minister fell into bad
repute, the building passed into the hands of the Established Church,
and the members were dispersed. This gave a more open field for the
United Secession congregation, with their new church and their young
minister. But, so far as we can gather, the strain of regular pulpit work
told on Mr Paterson's ardent temperament and may have rendered him
unduly sensitive. Little differences arose in the session, and on 2nd July
1844 Mr Paterson intimated to the Presbytery by letter the demission of
his charge. He explained that his hands had been weakened by disturbing
influences and that he required relief for a season from whatever might be
injurious to mental tranquillity. Sympathy was expressed with both minister
and people, and on 3Oth July, Mr Paterson adhering to his purpose, the
bond between him and Rattray was dissolved. In June 1848 he was called
PRESBYTERY OF DUNDEE 319
to the newly-formed congregation of Blantyre, but he preferred to devote
his after life to labours of a kind for which he may have judged himself
better adapted. In 1852 he opened a boarding and educational institution in
Aberdeen, which he transferred to Dollar in 1864. During his University
course he had acquired distinction as a student, and he now turned his
scholarly attainments to congenial account. At Dollar he also did large
service to the U.P. cause, when the church there was in process of formation.
He died in Glasgow after a very brief illness, I7th March 1878, in the sixty-
ninth year of his age. In 1874 Mr Paterson published the Life of his brother,
the Rev. Dr Paterson of Kirkwall.
Rattray congregation when this vacancy began was in an unhappy state,
and at an early meeting the Presbytery was confronted by a letter from two
of the elders resigning office. There was also a paper sent in, signed by
22 members, containing material which prompted the sending of a minister
to hold session at Rattray, "and endeavour to bring the parties af variance
into a state of reconciliation and co-operation." It ended, so far as the
Minutes go, with the observance of a Fast Day among them. In May 1845
they addressed a slimly-signed call to the Rev. W. B. Berwick, junior
minister of Bell Street, Dundee, but after some delay, as is explained under
the proper heading, he elected to remain where he was. They next called
Mr Thomas Montgomery, who accepted Ayton (Summerhill).
Sixth Minister. — ROBERT RUSSELL, from Carmvath. The stipend was
now to be ^no, with the manse, and the call was signed by 154 members
and 59 adherents. Meanwhile Kennoway came in with a larger array of
names, but Mr Russell held to Rattray, where he was ordained, 23rd June
1847. In 1871 the congregation changed its name from "Rattray" to
" Blairgowrie." Eight years after this Mr Russell had a membership of
242, and a stipend of ,£170, with the manse, while the total income for the
year was close upon ^300. In October 1894 he wrote the Presbytery
stating that, as he was approaching the close of his seventy-fifth year, he
felt himself getting in among the infirmities of age, and in the interests of
the congregation he was prepared to stand aside and make way for youthful
vigour and energy. He was accordingly enrolled as minister-emeritus on
6th November, the congregation regretfully acquiescing, and agreeing to
present him with between £ 1 50 and ^200 instead of an annual allowance.
He then surrendered the manse and removed to Stirling, where he died,
3 1 st March 1897, in the seventy-eighth year of his age and fiftieth of his
ministry. His son, the Rev. Alexander A. Russell, is minister of Johnshaven.
Soon after Mr Russell's retirement the congregation made a second attempt
on Bell Street, Dundee, but the Rev. J. G. Walton, like the Rev. W. B.
Berwick forty years before, declined the proposed transference to Blair
gowrie.
^Seventh Minister. — DAVID ARNOT, M.A., from Kinross (West). Or
dained, 2nd May 1895. The present membership is about 250, and the
congregation is self-supporting, the stipend being ,£186, with the manse.
KIRRIEMUIR (ANTIBURGHER)
THE first mention of Kirriemuir I have met with in our old records occurs
in the Minutes of Abernethy session, I3th July 1773, when a petition for
assistance came before them from that place. The church, with 500 sittings,
is said to have been built for them before this by Mr William Arrot, pro
prietor of Dumbarrow, at his own expense, and without any security that
they would ever pay him back. This is the account given in an interesting
320 HISTORY OF U.P. CONGREGATIONS
sketch of the congregation's history, entitled "The Auld Lichts of Thrums" ;
but, though Mr Arrot was "occasionally present" when the first elders were
ordained, and seems to have identified himself with the congregation's
welfare, there is reason to question whether he was so very generous.
Had the people been relieved of all outlay for building operations at this
stage there was no reason why they should have petitioned the Synod for
aid when as yet they had no minister to provide for, or why Perth Presby
tery should have gathered in collections for their behoof from the several
congregations within the bounds. We find besides from the collection book,
which begins some years later, that interest on borrowed money was paid
regularly, sometimes to the amount of £11 a year, Mr Arrot being one of
the principal creditors. As for the story that the laird of Dumbarrow
" came forward, and literally built a church for the people of Kirriemuir,"
and when it was finished " handed over the key to them," it is quite in
keeping with the man-els which tradition evolves out of airy material.
On loth July 1775 a session was formed by the ordination of two elders,
and in the following year other two were added. In 1777 the congregation
called Mr James Punton, whom the Synod appointed to Hamilton (now
Saffronhall).
First Minister. — JAMES AITKEN, from Perth (North), but belonging to
Forgandenny parish. Called also to the collegiate charge of his native con
gregation, but owing to dissensions therein Kirriemuir was preferred — only
some members of Synod were doubtful whether their call ought not also to
be set aside as it was signed by only 29 male members. After this de
cision Mr Aitken was called to Whitehill ; but in April 1778 it carried by
a very great majority to keep by Kirriemuir, " considering the clamancy of
that congregation and the discouragement which a new disappointment would
give them." Mr Aitken was ordained, 2Qth December 1778. His student course
had been early entered on, and when he was only sixteen we find him teach
ing a school at Kinclaven and acting as clerk to the Antiburgher session there.
At the commencement of his ministry he was only in his twenty-second
year ; but under his preaching there was gratifying progress made, so that
in little more than a year and a half the communion roll rose to fully 100.
His stipend at first was not over ^40, and everything had to be on a con
tracted scale, probationers being paid 55. for a Sabbath's services. In 1794
the congregation had 199 communicants, and the stipend was now ^50, "with
house, garden, and driving of coals." But, dissension having arisen over
the introduction of a clock into the church, the membership declined till in
June 1801 it stood at 165. So keen was the contention on this little matter
that when the root of bitterness was about to be removed four objectors ap
peared on the ground accompanied by a notary public, with threats of divers
pains and penalties. But matters of graver moment were now coming to the
front, and these wrought on till the congregation, which could ill afford to
divide, was rent in twain.
About this time the controversy began to stir which led to the formation
of the Constitutional Presbytery, a controversy in which Mr Aitken was
prominent from first to last. In 1792, when the first step was taken in the
direction of a New Testimony, he dissented, and adhered consistently to his
dissent all through. He would allow no interference with those passages in
the Confession of Faith which bear on the magistrate's power in matters of
religion, and with this came in the broader question of national covenanting.
During the twelve years or more that the controversy lasted he kept in un
compromising antagonism to what he reckoned the rising spirit of innovation,
and hence the inscription on his tombstone: "A zealous and steadfast
witness for the principles of the Reformed Church of Scotland."
PRESBYTERY OF DUNDEE 321
When the crisis in the Synod was drawing on it became clear that there
was to be a disruption at Kirriemuir. In 1804 a member of the congrega
tion, wishing baptism for his child, claimed the right to give a qualified assent
to the Confession of Faith in terms of a recent Synodical enactment, but Mr
Aitken told him "he would not alter a single word of his usual form." The
Presbytery, when the grievance was brought before them, took up question
able ground, declaring that, whatever mode of expression the minister might
use in baptising the child, the parent was not to be understood as adhering
to the Confession in any other sense than that expressed by the foresaid
Act of the General Synod. Then two of the elders having been excluded
from the exercise of their office for refusing to surrender the box containing,
besides certain moneys, the title-deeds of the church, the Presbytery ordered
them to be restored, but the moderator and a majority of the session pro
ceeded to fill up the blanks by a new election. Mr Aitken also ceased to
attend meetings of Presbytery, and in ordaining the newly-elected elders he
omitted a part of the formula, and engaged them to subjection to neither
Presbytery nor Synod. It was also alleged against him that "malcon
tents from all parts of the Secession were admitted to the communion
table," and no doubt Kirriemuir would be the gathering-point on such oc
casions for the " Old Light " Antiburghers from other congregations far and
wide. It came to this that, finding Mr Aitken had disregarded the summons to
appear before them, the Synod, on 28th August 1806, after drawing out a
long list of irregularities laid to his charge, put the question, Depose or
Suspend ? and it carried by a considerable majority, Depose. In this respect
Mr Aitken had precedence in time over his two brethren, Professor Bruce
and Mr M'Crie.
On Sabbath, 2ist September, the Rev. David Black of Dunfermline, clerk
to the Antiburgher Synod, appeared at Kirriemuir to intimate the sentence
and preach the church vacant. Mr Aitken conducted public worship that
day in the open air to a large audience. The party adhering to the Synod
kept possession of the meeting-house, but the minister learned that his
hearers numbered only 24 or 25. At the close of the afternoon service Mr
Black "desired the elders to meet with him at his lodgings," when four at
tended, and the session of the " New Light " congregation was constituted. It
was agreed to petition the Presbytery for sermon, but how they were to main
tain ordinances was a pressing question, as little would come in the shape
of ways and means from an array of empty benches. During the next five
weeks they had only a single day's supply, and the other four Sabbaths would
have to be tided over by attendance at Forfar, five miles off, or by coming to
gether for prayer and Christian converse. The Presbytery, in drawing up
reasons for a Fast, lamented the causeless separation some had made. " Several
Church members," they said, "have deserted ordinances, the cause among
our hands has been greatly reproached, and the hearts of tender Christians
deeply moved." But by-and-by sermon was kept up in the old church at
Kirriemuir with few interruptions, and oftener, perhaps, than the little flock
could well afford to pay for.
Mr Aitken's adherents had now to set about the building of a church,
but they managed to retain possession of the manse. The new place of
worship, with 400 sittings, cost ,£700, of which nearly ,£500 remained as debt
on the property for at least twenty-four years. Though they had long the
advantage in numbers the balance was bound to turn to the other side if the
minority surmounted their initial difficulties. The " Old Light " congregation
had cut itself off from the sources of increase, and though sympathisers from
other congregations might gather into Kirriemuir for the time the cause was
certain to become weaker and weaker. Mr Aitken died, 24th September
322 HISTORY OF U.P. CONGREGATIONS
1834, in the seventy-eighth year of his age and fifty-sixth of his ministry.
Two years after this the communicants were 196, while those of the rival
congregation were 280, and the disparity was to become greater as years
passed. Of Mr Aitken's pulpit style Dr John Duncan has recorded an in
teresting peculiarity, characteristic of early Secession times, and specially on
communion occasions. " He had two tunes, his quotation tune (in quoting
scripture), which he used as often as he could, and his ordinary one for his
own words. I have heard him sing : ' The Lord God of gods, the Lord God
of gods He knoweth, and Israel he shall know' as splendidly as they do it
in the synagogue." Of Mr Aitken Dr David Brown also writes : " Well do
I remember his noble figure, for he was one of the most imposing men to
look at, and his deep, rich voice was music in my ears." Mr Aitken was
married to a daughter of the laird of Kinmundy, which may partly account
for the accession of that historical family to the Constitutional Presbytery.
Mr Aitken's son, the Rev. John Aitken, was long minister of the Original
Secession Church in Aberdeen.
Before the close of 1807 the New Light party at Kirriemuir called
Mr James Inglis, but the male members signing were only 18 in number,
and there was an adherence of other 15 men not in full communion. It
may have been a relief to Mr Inglis when a competing call from Midholm
was announced, and this being preferred by the Synod Kirriemuir got
another year and a half to ripen for a moderation.
Second Minister. — JOHN FRANCE, a son of the Rev. John France of
Buchlyvie, and a brother of the Rev. James France of Moniaive. Ordained,
nth April 1810. In 1812 the members, male and female, were about
60, and they were giving their minister a stipend of ^80. The strain was
borne for a half-dozen years, and then, "owing to the fewness of their
numbers and the depression of trade," they required a grant of ^10 from the
Synod. On 5th November 1816 Mr France tendered his demission, ex
plaining that the congregation was unable to support a gospel ministry,
and begging the Presbytery " to relieve him from the pain, anxiety, and
distress of mind he had laboured under for a considerable time past."
The commissioners having acquiesced, the Presbytery dissolved the pastoral
tie, but were glad to find that there was no appearance of alienated affection
on either side. After itinerating among the vacancies for two years Mr
France was at his own request missioned to America by the Synod in May
1819. Having joined the Associate Antiburgher Synod of the United
States he became pastor of Glade Run and Franklin Road Churches,
Butler County, Pennsylvania, in April 1820, and remained there till 1841,
when he retired. He died in 1861, aged about eighty-seven, having been
born in 1774, as is shown by a return he sent in to the Friendly Society
for Widows and Orphans. This sets aside a slightly earlier date given
by Dr Scouller in his " Manual," a book from which the above particulars
are partly drawn.
After a considerable pause Kirriemuir congregation called Mr James
Paterson, ultimately of New Broughton, Jamaica, but the Synod appointed
him to Auchtergaven. They could not now go above £jo of stipend,
without a house, but when exception was taken to the latter point in the
Presbytery some members, including Mr James Wilkie, who was one of
a family which had taken the lead on the New Light side from the very
first, "pledged themselves to furnish accommodation to their minister so
long as he continued in private lodgings."
Second Minister. — WILLIAM RAMAGE, who had recently resigned
Sanday, in Orkney, after labouring there four years. Inducted, I3th
April 1819. The people were in better spirits now, and found them-
PRESBYTERY OF DUNDEE 323
selves able to give .£80 of stipend. However, the Presbytery, looking
on this sum as inadequate, referred the case to the Synod, which agreed
to grant Kirriemuir £20 for three years, should this be needed to make
up the minimum. In 1836 Mr Ramage was able to report a membership
of 281, which implied an average gain of 12 each year since 1819. In
the interim there had also been a manse built, and the debt resting on
the whole property was only ,£100. By repairs on the church or similar
extras this sum rose to ^240, but it was liquidated in 1845, the congrega
tion contributing ^160 and the Board ^80. They had now surmounted
early obstructions, and were out into a large place. In the beginning of
1850 application was made for a moderation, with the view of having a
colleague to Mr Ramage. They spoke of him as their aged and infirm
pastor, from which it is to be inferred that he was much debilitated, though
only in his sixty-fourth year. No token as yet of anything wrong, only
the stipend arrangements so far as concerned the senior minister had an
ungracious look. He was to have ^40 a year and the manse, but only
so long as he was able to preach once a day. The moderation was deferred,
and a committee appointed to visit Kirriemuir, a step which led to a
summary winding-up. It was found vain to attempt reconciliation ; investiga
tion would only stir bitter feeling and open old wounds, and it was not
advisable that Mr Ramage should labour longer among them. It was
deemed enough that the people agreed to pay him a slump sum of ,£150 and
that he agreed to demit his charge. These conditions being complied with
the resignation was accepted that same day, the 5th of February 1850, and
the church pronounced vacant. Mr Ramage removed now to the neighbour
hood of Blairgowrie, where he had a small property called Mount Ericht,
and where he and his family joined Mr Russell's church. He died, 4th
September 1857, but instead of being in his eightieth year, as has been
stated, he was only in his seventy-second. Though the parting was very
unhappy his memory, I am assured, was afterwards revered at Kirriemuir
and his words of instruction gratefully recalled.
On Mr Ramage's resignation being accepted, the Presbytery granted
the moderation previously asked for, and it issued in a call, signed by 221
members, to Mr George Morris, who accepted Dairy, Ayrshire. They next
called Mr James Muir, but he also declined, and after some months
obtained Bridge-of-Allan.
Fourth Minister. — ALEXANDER M'LEAN, from Greenlaw. Called
also to Dalreoch and then to Shiels, but this call was not sustained as he
had only preached one Sabbath. Last of all came Whitehaven, but the
signatures from Kirriemuir were nearly as many as the entire membership
of the other three put together. Ordained, 4th March 1851. On Sabbath,
3rd April 1853, the present church, with sittings for 580, was opened by the
Rev. William Reid of Lothian Road, Edinburgh, who had been Mr M'Lean's
minister in his student days, and the debt of ^290 which remained was
wiped off in 1861 under the stimulus of a grant from the Liquidation Board
of ^50. In 1865 the manse, which had been built for Mr Ramage, was
renovated at a cost of ,£350, of which ^215 was raised by the people, and
,£135 came from the Central Fund. In 1885 Mr M'Lean felt himself in
capacitated for full work, and on i8th November he was placed as an
annuitant on the Aged and Infirm Ministers' Fund, but in three days the
arrangement was upset. He died on the 2ist of that month, in the sixty-
fifth year of his age and thirty-fifth of his ministry.
Fifth Minister. — GEORGE ROBB, M.A., from Elgin (Moss Street). Mr
Robb had been assistant to Mr M'Lean for some time, and was newly
called to be his colleague when death intervened. Ordained, I4th January
324 HISTORY OF U.P. CONGREGATIONS
1886. The return for 1899 gave a membership of 277, almost equal to what
it was in 1836, though the population is much lower, and the stipend was
^225, with the manse.
KIRRIEMUIR (RELIEF)
IN the Journal of a Tour through the North-East of Scotland, by the
Haldanes in 1797, we have a view of Kirriemuir and its religious privileges.
It was a communion Sabbath, when the parish minister was likely to be in
his most evangelical mood. " He represented the gospel as a contract be
tween God and man of which the equitable condition was repentance and
sincere, though imperfect, obedience, which God, he added, was too just
and too good not to accept." "Immediately after 1500 persons, daily
acquiescing in such doctrine, professed to commemorate the death of
Christ." It may have been aversion to Moderatism of this stamp which
prompted an application for sermon to the Relief Presbytery of Perth from
a number of Kirriemuir people on 28th June 1792. Supply was granted,
and in less than a year a call was proceeded with, though they had no
session as yet nor any regular communion roll. In such cases it was
customary in the Relief Church to grant the right of voting at a first election
to those who subscribed a certain sum for the building of a place of worship.
First Minister. — THOMAS MEEK, a licentiate of the Church of Scotland,
who was admitted as a probationer into connection with the Relief in
February 1793, and was sent forthwith to supply at Kirriemuir. Ordained,
2nd October thereafter, the stipend being ^80 in all, which was better at
least than preacher life in the Establishment, but the advantage gained was
not to be long enjoyed. In a few months there was a pro re nata meeting
of Presbytery at Kirriemuir, but, though the Minute of their proceedings
was twice ordered to be engrossed, only blank paper remains to tell of what
was done. Whatever may have emerged suspension from office did not
follow, but on 28th April 1794 three commissioners appeared from Kirriemuir,
and a letter was read from Mr Meek promising to demit his charge if the
congregation would pay his stipend for the quarter then beginning. The
,£20, the price of divorce, must have been paid, since at a meeting of Presby
tery on 5th May the resignation was accepted. Thus in little more than six
months his connection with Kirriemuir was wound up, and neither in the
Relief nor in the Established Church do we meet with Mr Meek again.
Second Minister. — JOHN EADIE, who was introduced to Glasgow Presby
tery for licence by Mr Bell of Dovehill Church. Having preached a
Sabbath at Kirriemuir he was called without further ceremony and ordained,
I4th January 1795. As for stipend, the managers found that owing to the
state of the funds they could not go beyond ,£70. At next meeting Mr
Eadie got permission to choose elders and have a session constituted, a
statement which implies that this important part of Church machinery had
still to be supplied. The arrangements all through were of the extemporised
kind, and in less than four years there was a general collapse. In August
1798 the people asked advice of the Presbytery as to their affairs, but at the
interim meeting held for that purpose Mr Eadie did not appear, though he
got notice to attend. On 6th September two commissioners from Kirriemuir
gave in a paper representing their inability to support their minister, and the
Presbytery agreed to meet on the ground a fortnight after for fuller investiga
tion, whereupon " the commissioners gave in a declinature in their own name
and in the name of their constituents." When the Presbytery met at
Kirriemuir on 2oth September the doors of the church were locked against
PRESBYTERY OF DUNDEE 325
them, and the preses, who was sent for, refused to grant access, alleging
that he had not the power. Having ascertained that the congregation
adhered to the declinature given in at last meeting, they declared them out
of connection with the Relief body and the relation between them and their
minister dissolved.
Among other papers which came before the Synod in 1799 bearing on
Kirriemuir affairs there was one described as a certificate of Mr Eadie's
imprisonment, but we must surmise that it had been for nothing worse than
debt. After parting from Perth Presbytery he got extracts of the Minutes
"respecting his affair," and when he applied for a full certificate it was
agreed " that they could grant that gentleman none other than he had
already received." He then petitioned the Synod to put this matter to
rights, but they merely left it to the different Presbyteries to grant him such
appointments to vacancies as they might think proper. Over his case, as
well as over that of his predecessor, there hangs an air of mystery, but when
we next meet with him it is in a different latitude. On a reference from the
Established Presbytery of Paisley with regard to Mr John Eadie the General
Assembly of 1805 declared that "his having been a member of a Dissenting
Synod did not exclude him from being taken on trials for licence ; yet, as he
had shown unsteadiness unbecoming the views of a divinity student, that
should not take place till he had been six years regularly exemplary in his
adherence to the Established Church." All we know further comes from
the following notice which is found in a Glasgow newspaper for 1841 : — " Died,
at 63 George Street, I7th November, the Rev. John Eadie, for upwards of
thirty years classical teacher in Glasgow." Few who knew him in that
capacity may have been aware that he was at one time the minister of a
Relief congregation in Kirriemuir.
For their behaviour towards Mr Eadie, to say nothing of closing the
church doors in the face of the Presbytery, the Synod of 1799 declared the
congregation out of connection with the Relief body in all time coming, and
the Rev. Alexander Inglis, one of their probationers, having preached to
them in defiance of that sentence, he also was pronounced in a state of in
terminable exclusion. This decree of the Relief Synod, however, like the
laws of the Medes and Persians, admitted of being checkmated. When a
petition from 20 people designating themselves the Relief congregation of
Kirriemuir came before the Synod in 1803 it was explained that should a
new congregation be formed the petition, if altered to that effect, would be
considered. As for the old elders or managers, if any of them wished to
connect themselves with the new formation they would, on appearing at the
Synod's bar with suitable acknowledgments, be received back into fellowship
with the Relief Church. But nothing practical followed, and the place of
worship passed for a number of years into the possession of " Haldane's
people." In 1814 certain persons claiming connection with the Relief interest
in Kirriemuir overtured the Presbytery of Perth to have the property re
deemed, but though two of the members were appointed " to execute that
business" it ended in nothing. Last of all they petitioned the Synod of
1815 for pecuniary aid, but the answer was that, "while they sympathise with
the good people of Kirriemuir, they are sorry they cannot possibly grant
them a collection." With this the flickering light went out, to be rekindled
under better auspices after the lapse of thirteen years.
KIRRIEMUIR, BANK STREET (RELIEF)
IN the Minutes of Perth Relief Presbytery for 3rd November 1828 the name
of Kirriemuir appears anew. The Rev. John Cross of Dundee had on his
326 HISTORY OF U.P. CONGREGATIONS
own responsibility sent a probationer to officiate for a Sabbath in that town,
and appearances, he stated, were encouraging enough to promise the reviving
of the old Relief cause. The Presbytery appointed a committee to take the
oversight of the movement and provide supply for Kirriemuir. Nine weeks
of a preacher from Edinburgh intervened before next meeting, and by that
time the roots were beginning to take hold. Some aid was also opportunely
obtained from money collected for behoof of forming congregations. On
9th June 1829 the people petitioned to have the Lord's Supper dispensed
among them, the moral character and church standing of the applicants to
be attested by nine of the leading men. On Monday, I3th July, the Rev.
David Reston of Coupar-Angus met with the people by appointment of
Presbytery, and Kirriemuir was henceforth to have a place in the list of
Relief congregations.
First Minister. — JAMES STIRLING, from East Campbell Street, Glasgow.
Ordained, 2oth July 1831. The stipend was to be ^80, but he never received
less than ^100. The congregation, meanwhile, had a lease of the old Relief
chapel, the Independents who had long occupied it having dwindled down
to a few families, who had no minister, and only met together on Sabbath for
mutual exhortation. But the place ere long became too strait for the new
tenants, having been much reduced through part of it being transformed into
a dwelling-house.* They now purchased a public hall at the cost of ^515,
which, when fitted up with galleries, had accommodation for 600, and there,
under the name of Bank Street congregation, they still worship. The
expense connected with the transformation raised the outlay to .£820, but
in the midst of their early difficulties they were never burdensome to others.
For three successive years at the beginning they got ^15 from the Synod
Funds, and in 1845 they received ^30 under the Debt Liquidating Scheme,
and these sums appear to have been all they ever drew from the Central
Funds of the Relief Church. But though Kirriemuir was not a favourable
field for Dissent, and the ground was preoccupied by the Original Secession
and United Secession Churches, Mr Stirling was successful in drawing a
goodly congregation round him. There were not more than 40 members
when he was ordained, and within six years he reported 350, which made
his the largest of the three. His stipend was also in advance of the others,
being ,£120, but there was no manse, and never has been. In 1865 the last of
the debt was cleared off, the people having raised ,£350, and other ^50 being
received from the Liquidation Board. Mr Stirling died, 28th March 1870,
in the sixty-fifth year of his age and thirty-ninth of his ministry. " He was
for a lengthened period in very infirm health, but had so strong a desire
for his work as led him to attempt to preach up to or near the time of his
decease." On one point Mr Stirling upheld views which have never met
with much acceptance among the ministers of the U.P. Church. He em
braced the theory of Pre-Millenarianism in his student days, when it was
eloquently propounded by William Anderson in Glasgow, and by Edward
Irving far and wide, and, like the Bonars of the Free Church and others,
he remained under its fascination to the end.
Mr John Boyd was called to succeed Mr Stirling, but he stopped further
procedure, and out of several vacancies chose Skelmorlie.
Second Minister. — JOHN A. MURRAY, who had been colleague and acting-
minister at Burntisland for five years, but resigned in 1868. During his
second probationership he was called to Warkworth, in Northumberland,
but the call was not sustained owing to want of harmony. A more attractive
field of labour awaited him at Kirriemuir, into which he was inducted, loth
* At the Disruption the unoccupied building was rented by a Free Church con
gregation. It was known as " The Little Kirk," and is now used as a meal mill,
PRESBYTERY OF DUNDEE 327
May 1871. The population of the parish had suffered large decline during
the preceding twenty years, and this must have told seriously upon the
membership of both congregations. The stipend in Bank Street was now
to be ,£130 from their own funds, with ,£30 of supplement, but the people
gradually improved their position. In 1890 it was intimated that they had
reached the self-supporting point. The membership in the beginning of
1900 was returned at 236 and the stipend at ,£204. Mr Murray, who had
been in feeble health for some time, died suddenly on 26th June thereafter,
in the sixty-seventh year of his age and thirty-eighth of his ministry, and
the congregation was vacant at the Union.
ALYTH (ANTIBURGHER)
ON 1 5th January 1745 two elders from the parish of Alyth acceded to the
Associate Presbytery of Dunfermline and gave in an adherence to a call
from Dundee to Mr James Johnstone. At his ordination, on i6th April
1746, other two men from Alyth were received into connection, and along
with subsequent adherents would afterwards rank with the Coupar-Angus
branch of Dundee congregation. In the early part of 1763 the Seceders
about Alyth applied to Coupar-Angus session for a disjunction, that they
might be annexed to Rattray, where a minister had been recently ordained,
but Coupar-Angus being vacant at the time they were advised to wait till
they could be better spared. This the commissioners refused to do, and the
case went to the Presbytery, which after a delay of three years agreed to
disjoin and annex, considering that the applicants were decidedly nearer
Rattray than Coupar-Angus, "without any waters intervening." At the
petition there were 16 names, all men except one. Thus for the Seceders of
Alyth the place of worship was first at Dundee, 15 miles distant; then at
Coupar-Angus, 7 miles distant ; and then at Rattray, 4^ miles distant.
In 1771 the Praying Societies in and about Alyth petitioned the session
to grant them a regular share of their minister's labours, but all they got
was three Sabbaths in the year, and it was not till 1781 that they reached
independent existence. That is the date the old tokens bear, and the first
entry on the baptismal roll is on i8th November of that year. It was about
this time that the meeting-house, a plain building with sittings for 270, was
erected, and on I2th June 1782 five elders were ordained, and, along with
another who had been disjoined from Rattray, were formed into a session.
First Minister. — JAMES HAY, from Abernethy. The call was signed by
40 male members, and 26 were added to the roll between that and his
ordination. But at this point disappointment was threatened through Mr
Hay being called to the collegiate charge of the North Church, Perth. This
call, however, was not harmonious, and on that ground the Synod gave the
infant cause the preference, and Mr Hay was ordained, nth November 1783.
During the first two years of his ministry there were 86 accessions, so that
the membership by this time can scarcely have been under 200. As usual
in Secession congregations last century the church-door collections were
taken in charge by the session, and at Alyth they rose to an average of ^i
each Sabbath, including communion occasions, of which the greater part
went to the funds of the congregation, except during a short period when the
heritors shifted over upon them the support of their own poor. The stipend
which Mr Hay had at first is nowhere given, but in 1806 the Presbytery
complained that Alyth people were deficient in their duty as to ministerial
support, and this led to an advance of ^20. In 1812 the stipend was raised
to ,4100, with a house, and at this point it stood till after Mr Hay's death.
328 HISTORY OF U.P. CONGREGATIONS
In the earlier part of Mr Hay's ministry the peace of the congregation
was much disturbed, and the name of James Baxter, merchant in Alyth,
stands prominent amidst the turmoil. It was in his house that the session
was first constituted, and for a course of years he figures as their foremost
man. What follows will illustrate the waywardness of human nature on its'
ecclesiastical side. In view of the communion in April 1788 a female
member had been warned by one of the elders to appear before the session,
and when she failed to come forward he expressed his suspicion that James
Baxter's hand was with her in this matter. Indiscreet language passed
between the two when outside, and at a subsequent meeting one of the
members characterised the conduct of both parties as scandalous. James
seized hold of the word, kept by it, and refused to let it go. He suspected
that the other elders also looked on him as "a scandalous person," rejected
the moderator's advice to have these differences buried, and intimated his
resolve to lay his grievances before the Presbytery. They accordingly met
at Alyth, when Mr Jamieson of Forfar preached from the text : " Pray for
the peace of Jerusalem." High dissatisfaction was expressed with both
parties in the original quarrel, and James Baxter was told to stand aside,
meanwhile, from the exercise of his office. The session had brought up other
things against him, such as charging them " with washing their hands in his
blood." At a meeting in Forfar three weeks afterwards James made
acknowledgment of sinful passion, and was rebuked. In a few months the
services he had done them came into remembrance, and on a petition from
a majority of the male members of the congregation he was restored to his
seat among his brethren. There was quietness now till 1802, when the strife
was renewed on another footing.
James Baxter now became the centre and the head of an "Old Light" party
among the Antiburghers in Alyth. His case being brought before the
Presbytery he was dealt with for following divisive courses and for re
fusing to surrender the title-deeds of the property. He had also given in a
lengthy paper to the session, which they pronounced little else than a libel
from beginning to end, his own minister coming in for his share of aspersions.
But James was in the defiant mood now, and a motion carried to depose him
from office and suspend him from the membership of the church. But
Alyth went in largely at this time for the getting up of weak opposition
causes. In September 1802 some residenters petitioned the Relief Presbytery
of Perth for sermon, "with a view to forming a congregation," but after getting
supply for two or three Sabbaths they abandoned the attempt. In October
1803 a preaching station was opened by the Original Burghers, and it was
kept up in a way for twenty-eight years, though it was never in a state to
call a minister. As for James Baxter and his group of followers, they would
have to travel on Sabbath to Kirriemuir, nine miles off, where the Rev. James
Aitken was taking up strong ground against the New Testimony. Having
united with some like-minded brethren in Coupar-Angus and Rattray they
were formed into a congregation in 1809. In 1833 they obtained a minister
for themselves, but he only remained among them four years. In 1838 the
report to the Commissioners on Religious Instruction placed the communi
cants at between 30 and 40, and not long afterwards the church of the
Original Seceders, a house fitted up with sittings for 200, was closed. Such
were the workings of disrupted Secessionism at Alyth. But we return now
to the parent congregation.
In 1831 Mr Hay became incapacitated for discharging any part of his
ministerial duties, and steps were taken to provide him with a colleague.
In April 1832 Mr George Hutton was called, whom the Synod without a vote
sent to Linlithgovv (East).
PRESBYTERY OF DUNDEE 329
Second Minister. — ROBERT HOGG, from Hamilton (now Saffronhall).
Ordained at Whitehaven, 27th June 1821, and resigned, nth April 1832.
Inducted to Alyth, 22nd May 1833. The junior minister was to have ^90 in
all, and Mr Hay not less than ,£45, with the manse. But the arrangement
was cancelled by the death of the senior minister on 4th October 1833, in the
seventy-ninth year of his age and fiftieth of his ministry. Of Mr Hay's
family four sons became theological students, but only one reached the
status of an ordained minister. This was the Rev. Joseph Hay of Arbroath.
Of the others the oldest had to stop short in his preparatory course ; the
second retired early from the probationer list owing to the state of his
health ; and the youngest died when a student. One of Mr Hay's daughters
was the wife of the Rev. William Ramage of Kirriemuir. It is surprising
that no memoir of Mr Hay ever appeared, a man widely known, much re
spected, and of weight in the Church's councils.
It is to be gathered from the session records that Mr Hay's sagacity
toned down the rigid features of Antiburgher discipline. Irregularities in
the shape of dancing were generally met by a private warning, and wound
up with the promise of circumspection for the future. An encroachment on
the Fourth Commandment, through one of the members helping to carry in
a cartload of lint on a Sabbath morning, was ascribed mainly to want of
reflection. The father of a family was reported to have countenanced a
vagrant woman in using charms for the recovery of his daughter, " who had
been seized with an uncommon trouble." It was admitted that the woman
administered something in the name of the Three Persons in the Trinity,
and had also ordered the Bible to be laid under the girl's head by night.
The father having owned that he should have given explicit testimony
against these things was simply exhorted to be more on his guard hence
forth. Persons received into fellowship with the " witnessing congregation "
in acceding to the Testimony seem only to have been asked by the moderator
whether they accepted the principles therein contained "according to the
measure of their light and knowledge."
It was Mr Hay whom the Antiburgher Synod commissioned to occupy
Potterrow pulpit on the Sabbath after Mr M'Crie's deposition, intimate the
sentence, and declare the church vacant. In the Life of Dr M'Crie it is
stated that on reading the notice of a certain death he remarked : " Well !
there's a man dead who took the trouble of coming eighty miles to depose
me from the ministry." The remark must surely have changed shape before
it passed into print. Mr Hay no doubt went along with his brethren in the
wrong complained of, but the announcing of the sentence involved neither
special guilt nor special responsibility.
In 1838 Mr Hogg returned the membership of his congregation at slightly
over 200, nine-tenths of these residing in the town or within the parish.
The stipend was ^100, and a manse had been built at a cost of ,£270, of
which about ,£100 was contributed at the time by the people. What re
mained, with an earlier burden of ^70, made the entire debt ,£240. Before
1845 this was reduced to ,£217, and that year the whole amount was cleared
away, with the aid of ,£100 from the Debt Liquidating Board. In the first
year of his ministry at Alyth Mr Hogg published a discourse on Ecclesi
astical Establishments, displaying vigorous gifts both of thought and ex
pression. Prior to this he was known as the author of a work of greater
breadth, entitled "The Economy of Grace, viewed in connection with the
Propagation of the Gospel."
Third Minister. — JOHN DUNLOP, from Campbeltown. Ordained as
colleague and successor to Mr Hogg, ist March 1866. The stipend was to
be ^100, with ^15 for house rent, and the senior minister was to have
330 HISTORY OF U.P. CONGREGATIONS
,£32, ios., with the manse. Mr Hogg died on the 6th of the following month,
in the sixty-ninth year of his age and forty-fifth of his ministry. On I4th
February 1869 the new church, built on another site, was opened, at a cost
°f JoI03°) and in 1876 the present manse was built, the expense being ,£870
in addition to the price got for the old manse. Of that sum ,£570 was raised
by the people, and ^300 came from the Manse Board. At the communion
in August 1874 there was feeling stirred over the question of communion
wine ; but the session resiled from the change they had introduced, even
the elder most in its favour agreeing to the concession for the sake of peace,
and thus an inbreak on their numbers was prevented. In the beginning of
1890 Mr Dunlop's health gave way, and his altered appearance in April of
that year bore witness to the effects. However, he resumed work again, and
assisted Mr Rose of Dundee at his communion on Sabbath, 26th October.
He conducted the evening service without perceptible failure of energy, but
he was found dead in bed next morning. He was in the fifty-third year of
his age and twenty-fifth of his ministry.
There was danger now of harm being done through a divided call, 45
having voted for the Rev. Robert H. Wyllie of Hawkhill, Dundee, and 34
for Mr J. G. Fairley, afterwards of St Paul's, Aberdeen, but the Presbytery
declined to sustain, the number signing being only 59 out of a membership
of 152. This was followed by a call to Mr Peter C. Bryce, who preferred to
remain in Selkirk as assistant to the Rev. John Lawson, and got Inver-
keithing some time after.
Fourth Minister. -— JOHN A. HUTTON, M.A., from Dunbeth, Coatbridge.
Ordained, I3th April 1892. Having accepted a call to be colleague to the
Rev. George F. James of Bristo Church, Edinburgh, he was loosed from his
charge on 2oth July 1898. The membership at the close of the preceding
year was 180, and the congregation had reached the self-supporting point.
Fifth Minister. — JOHN KEDDIK GRAHAM, M.A., from Hamilton (Saffron-
hall). Ordained, 8th February 1899. At the close of that year there were
1 86 names on the communion roll, and the stipend was ^184, with the
manse.
LIFF (BURGHER)
THE seat of this congregation was five miles N.W. from the centre of
Dundee, but the place of worship has disappeared, though the manse still
remains. It was within this parish that Messrs Thomas Mair and James
Fisher observed a Fast on the first Thursday of May 1739, the earliest
service of the kind held in that neighbourhood under the auspices of the
Associate Presbytery. Petitions had come in from Dundee, Fettercairn, and
Liff craving "a day of fasting in these bounds," and wide bounds they were,
Dundee and Fettercairn being three dozen miles apart. The Caledonian
Mercury reported that the meeting was held within a mile of Dundee ; that
Mr Fisher preached from the text : "The Lord hath founded Zion, and the
poor of His people shall trust in it" ; that the day was stormy; and the
narrator added : " They have moved their camp to Fettercairn." Some ten
men from Liff had acceded formally to the Secession prior to this, so that
School Wynd Church had a small branch in that parish from early times,
though it was not till 1785 that an attempt was made to form a congregation
there, when a dispute about the right of presentation to the parish church
terminated in the settlement of the patron's nominee on I2th May of that
year.
On 8th February preceding, some of the parishioners, in view of what
PRESBYTERY OF DUNDEE 331
was coming, applied for sermon to the Burgher Presbytery of Perth. Their
number, according to the Old Statistical History, never exceeded 120, and
of these a few families had always been Seceders — Liff having sent in
tributaries to School Wynd, Dundee, from the very beginning. The station
was opened by the Rev. James Husband of Dunfermline on the first Sabbath
of March 1785, and next year there is reference in the Presbytery Minutes
to the disjoining of some members from Dundee to be annexed to the con
gregation of Lift
First Minister. — JOHN AUCHINCLOSS, of whose earlier days we only know
that he was admitted to the study of divinity by the Presbytery of Perth and
Dunfermline. The stipend named was .£50, with a house and "a chalder of
coals bought and driven from the shore of Dundee," and the call was signed
by 73 members and 38 adherents. The preacher was already on trials for
ordination at St Andrews, but the Presbytery gave Liff whatever advantage
a decision in their favour might happen to bring, and on ist February 1787
Mr Auchincloss was ordained at Liff. The Old Statistical History states
that the church and manse were built before the call was issued, and that
there had been a great beating up for contributions, but this was written
by the parish minister. Within little more than a year Mr Auchincloss knew
that his character was at the mercy of his servant, and after other two years
foul whisperings were abroad. They reached the ears of some of his
co-presbyters, who communicated with him on the subject, and in his
replies he virtually acknowledged guilt, though he seems to have thought
the affair would be hushed up. But at a meeting of Presbytery in Liff
manse on 29th June 1790, after both parties had made full confession, Mr
Auchincloss was deposed, and the pulpit was to be preached vacant on the
following Sabbath. At their next meeting certain elders from Liff informed
the Presbytery that the sentence had not been intimated, because, when the
officiating minister was about to read the paper, a woman whom they did
not know snatched it from his hand, and he himself reported later on that
the greater part of the document was torn away, and he had to give the
substance of it from memory. There were also two petitions forward, one
from Mr Auchincloss and one in name of the congregation, pleading to have
the sentence reviewed, but instead of complying the Presbytery referred the
whole case to the Synod. There was now a split into two parties, "the
one supporting the sentence of the clergy, the other the rights of the
minister." So the Old Statistical History gives it, and the writer had the
satisfaction of adding : " Some of them in consequence of the late differences
have returned to the Church."
On a subsequent Sabbath Mr Fraser of Auchtermuchty appeared at Liff
to conduct public worship, but, finding " that access could not be had to the
meeting-house without public disturbance on the Lord's Day, as Mr
Auchincloss was to preach in it," he removed to a large barn near by
belonging to one of the elders. At the meeting of Synod in September 1790
Mr Auchincloss pleaded indisposition as his reason for absence, but the party
adhering to him had representatives forward to uphold his cause. The
case was so very clear that the Synod without a dissenting voice confirmed
the decision of the Presbytery. In May 1791 Mr Auchincloss appeared, to
try the hopeless task of making himself out an ill-used man, but it ended
in the appointing of a committee " to deal with him for his recovery."
Higher censure was delayed, and he returned to Liff to resume sacred
functions. On 7th February 1792 a petition was laid before the Relief
Presbytery of Perth from the congregation of Springfield, in the parish of
Liff, praying to be taken under its inspection. One of the supporters was
John Cooper, who had been Auchincloss's right-hand man as the case was
332 HISTORY OF U.P. CONGREGATIONS
going on. The inference is that their deposed minister had now left them
and that they were seeking to get into another connection. Two members
of the Relief Presbytery were appointed to preach to them, but the second
appointment was not fulfilled, and Liff is never mentioned again in the
Relief records. We also find that the Burgher session of Dundee had some
trouble with a refractory member later on, "who had given countenance to
Mr Auchincloss and promoted the sale of his false and malicious libel against
our principles and the proceedings of the Presbytery and Synod." The
pamphlet we have not seen, but the title was : " The Cry of Injured Innocence."
The Auchincloss case, however, derives its chief importance from the
bearing it has on the legal rights of Dissenting churches. After redress
failed "Injured Innocence" in the courts of the Church he raised an action
of defamation against certain parties, including " the members of Presbytery
concerned." They had dissuaded his people from hearing him preach ; they
had applied to the sheriff of Forfar to have him removed from the meeting
house ; and one of them had put a copy of the Minutes of Presbytery on
his case into the hands of a shopkeeper to be circulated. On 24th June
1792 an interlocutor was pronounced to the effect that it is not competent
for the Court of Session to review the proceedings of Dissenting churches,
" whose sentences are pronounced by them in their ecclesiastical character."
The pursuer now presented a reclaiming petition to the Inner House, in
which he modified his position and attitude. It was argued for him now
that though the defenders as a Presbytery had a right to exclude him from
their number, still, if he could show that he had sustained injustice, not as
a Dissenter but as a subject, he was entitled to claim redress. He also
detailed the circumstances of his story, with the view of showing that under
colour of judicial proceedings there had been the carrying out of a malicious
conspiracy to ruin him. As for the confession he made, it had been wrung
from him ; the acknowledgment found in his letters referred to a minor
offence ; and the Minutes of Presbytery being unsigned the contents were
of no legal value. It was very ingenious, but it left the fact that he sub
mitted to deposition unexplained. "The Lords," says Baron Hume,
" seemed in general of opinion that as the Burghers were tolerated by law
their proceedings were liable to review, and if it could be shown that the
charge, though made in a judicial form, was in effect a calumny the de
fenders were answerable," but they were at one in thinking that the pursuer's
own letters were a sufficient answer to all he alleged. So the former
interlocutor was adhered to. The expenses on the gaining side had to be
defrayed from the Synod Fund, and they were so considerable that, fearing
they might startle sessions, the Synod recommended members to collect
privately, "to diminish the sum in the printed list." Of Mr John Auchincloss
Dr M'Kelvie has recorded that he removed to Stockport, in England, where
he taught a school, and that he was the author of a small work, entitled
"The Divine Origin of the Scriptures." He died, 29th May 1800.
For a number of years Liff congregation was supplied by preachers, but
towards the end of 1796 they moved for another minister. To appearance
they had not suffered so very seriously from recent convulsions, the stipend
promised being £10 higher than before, and the call signed by 63 members
and 1 12 hearers.
Second Minister. — GEORGE WlGTON, from Penicuik. The call from
Liff was to come before the Synod in competition with another from
Jedburgh, but the people allowed it to drop. Matters now took a sur
prising turn through Mr Wigton intimating to the Presbytery of Kelso
that he could not assent to the formula of ordination, but though this barred
procedure at Jedburgh it did not prevent Liff congregation giving him a
PRESBYTERY OF DUNDEE 333
second call. The Presbytery of Perth after conversing with him found that
there was nothing to prevent him being minister at Liff, and he was or
dained, loth April 1798. Within two years the affairs of the congregation
went back, and there is reference to members having left the society. The
collections, indeed, averaged over £i each Sabbath, but the seat- rents only
brought £8 a year, and the debt on the property was close on .£400. On
2oth January 1801 commissioners appeared before the Presbytery setting
forth the inability of the congregation to support gospel ordinances and
requesting to have the pastoral tie at once dissolved. Mr Wigton also
pressed for immediate action, and without further ceremony he was loosed
from his charge. Those of his people who remained faithful to the Secession
joined the membership of School Wynd, Dundee, and in this state matters
continued till 1826, when a congregation was formed at Lochee, in Liff
parish.
The sale of the property did not realise what was needed to meet the
liabilities. In particular, a sum of ^50, lent without interest from the Synod
Fund at a time when there was the wish to give Liff every encouragement,
remained unpaid. In April 1804 it transpired that the property had been
sold and some of the creditors paid in full, while the Synod had got nothing.
The parties were now petitioning to have the ^50 remitted. The Synod
felt they were not at liberty to forego their claims to money contributed for
religious or benevolent purposes by the congregations under their inspection,
but in 1806 they accepted ^35 in lieu of all demands.
After being loosed from Liff Mr Wigton acted as a probationer ; but he
seems to have got dissatisfied, and could not be relied on to fulfil his ap
pointments. In September 1805 he withdrew from the list, and in course
of time he settled down as an apothecary in Edinburgh, and was connected
with Nicolson Street Church, at least in Dr Jamieson's days. He died at
Clerk Street, 2ist August 1849, ar>d in the newspaper announcement he is
designated Dr George Wigton.
NEWBIGGING (BURGHER)
THIS is the name of a hamlet in the south-west corner of Monikie parish,
seven and a half miles E.N.E. of Dundee. The earliest application for
sermon came before the Burgher Presbytery of Perth on 5th August 1788,
and from that time supply was kept up with much regularity. It appears
from the records of Forfar Presbytery at a later time that the people ob
tained an acre of ground in 1789, on which they built a church which was
finished in 1790, and then a manse in 1792. "It was a piece of moorland
at first, thickly covered with heath and broom." For this, besides £10 of
purchase money, they were to pay an annual feu duty of £i. Here they
afterwards erected a couple of dwelling-houses, which were let, and ultimately
disposed of, to the lightening of their burdens and the advantage of the
congregational funds. A few families in the locality who belonged to
School Wynd Church, Dundee, gave strength to the movement for a church
at Newbigging, but most of the members must have come from outside the
Secession. Among the leaders was Francis Dick, who joined the congrega
tion almost at the commencement, and while yet a youth was ordained to
the eldership along with three others. After taking an active part in the
affairs of the Church for years he threw himself into Christian work of a
wider kind, and then went over to the Independents. His success as a
lay preacher had brought him into line with the Haldanes, and paved the
way for the transition. Having passed through a course of training at
334 HISTORY OF U.P. CONGREGATIONS
Dundee under Mr Innes, and then at Edinburgh, he became a regular
evangelist and pastor, labouring with great devotedness at Cupar-Fife,
Quebec, Denholm, and other places. He died in Edinburgh, 23rd August
1847, in the seventy-eighth year of his age. He now ranks among the
"Fathers of Independency in Scotland" ; but it was as a devoted elder in
the Secession Church of Newbigging that his activities for good had their
first development.
First Minister. — JAMES HARVEY, from Cambusnethan, where his father
was an elder. Mr Harvey's experiences when on trials for licence were
unique. The Presbytery of Edinburgh, after his course was finished, de
layed taking him on trials, but as he was about to reside within the
Glasgow bounds they offered to transfer him to that Presbytery if he were
so inclined. This was done, but Glasgow Presbytery remitted him back
to those he came from, being of opinion that, as their Edinburgh brethren
recommended Mr Harvey to the Synod for licence, they were the proper
parties to discharge the duty required. This eagerness to shirk responsi
bility indicated something abnormal. In February 1786, his trial exercises
having been sustained, Edinburgh Presbytery was brought face to face with
the question of further procedure. " Members had all along doubted of his
ability to acquit himself in prayer or preaching with due deliberation, and
especially of his being able to behave himself in such a prudent and manly
manner as is necessary to the critical station of a Dissenting preacher."
Two motions were put to the vote : Not license, or, License with certifica
tion that if his delivery and behaviour is not answerable to his position the
licence will be withdrawn, and the former carried. This being intimated to
Mr Harvey "he, in no small apparent perplexity, modestly protested
against this deed." The Synod, impressed, perhaps, by his lamb-like
bearing, and aware of his .linguistic attainments, sustained the appeal, and
the Presbytery at their first meeting, after reading the orders of Synod,
licensed Mr Harvey to preach the gospel.
Towards the end of 1790 the people of Newbigging took steps to obtain
a minister, though they could only promise ^50 of stipend, a free house
and garden, " with a horse to the Presbytery, and to bear all horse
carriages." Their choice fell on Mr James Harvey, and he was ordained,
26th April 1791, after being nearly five years on the preachers' list. In
1794 the inability of the people to support their minister was brought under
the notice of the Presbytery, and from the report of a committee which
visited Newbigging we learn full particulars. They found the membership
and the regular attendance to be about 44, and though 1 20 seats were let
they yielded only £\\ a year. The total income did not reach ,£45, and
this was at least ,£18 short of the expenditure. The Presbytery counselled
the people to cultivate affection towards their minister, a duty which it might
not be easy to fulfil in the face of undignified peculiarities. On 5th January
1796 Mr Harvey gave in a paper to the Presbytery demitting his charge,
and mentioning how disagreeable it was for him to be a burden to his people,
and also that his ministry among them was seriously wanting in success.
There were entanglements in the shape of stipend arrears, but on 22nd
April the demission was accepted, the congregation having declared their
resolution to pay up the balance due to Mr Harvey as soon as possible.
For a year after this he was employed as a preacher, but in April 1797
the Synod notified to him that it would be inexpedient to give him ap
pointments after their next meeting.
On that terminus being reached his intention was to go to America to
preach the gospel, and Perth Presbytery agreed to ask the Synod Treasurer
to pay his fare from the fund for pious and charitable purposes, but the
PRESBYTERY OF DUNDEE 335
proposal was not entertained, the impression no doubt being that to mission
Mr Harvey to America would serve no practical end. He now became a
teacher of Oriental languages in Glasgow. In 1815 it was agreed to grant
him ,£20 a year from the Synod Fund, and in 1817 Glasgow Presbytery
obtained additional assistance for him in his " distress and indigence."
The annuity of £20 was continued to the end, but it passed latterly through
the hands of Mr Kidston of Glasgow, " that it might be more effectually
applied for the purpose intended." In September 1826 Mr Kidston reported
to the Synod that since last meeting " God has removed by death the
Rev. James Harvey, late of Newbigging, who has left two orphan children
altogether unprovided for." It is a doleful story all through.
After Mr Harvey's severance from Newbigging the congregation was
vacant for nineteen years, and successive disappointments were their stepping-
stones through this dreary period. In 1797 they called Mr John Richardson,
but he was slow to come forward with his trial exercises, and before they
were entered on a call from Freuchie was announced, which the Presbytery
preferred. A year later they called Mr John Stewart, afterwards Dr Stewart
of Liverpool, whom the Presbytery appointed to Pitcairn. In 1803 they
called Mr John Campbell, whom the Synod appointed to Tarbolton, at the
same time recommending Perth Presbytery to cherish Newbigging under
their present disappointment. After a pause of six years they called
Mr James Paterson, whom the Synod appointed to Airth. In 1811 they
came into competition with Dunning for Mr James Smith, but though the
latter was a struggling place it had 93 callers to set over against 31 from
Newbigging, and was unanimously preferred by the Presbytery. In 1815
they called Mr George Donaldson, afterwards the pulpit orator of School
Wynd, Dundee. At the Synod their claims were nowhere, but they got
what, perhaps, was more befitting — £20 to aid them in repairing their meeting
house. That the congregation, dependent year after year on an intermittent
supply of preachers, with an occasional visit of an ordained minister to
dispense sealing ordinances, still survived bespoke inherent vitality.
Second Minister. — WILLIAM GRAHAM, from Glasgow (now Cathedral
Square), whose prior history, like that of his predecessor, requires to be
recorded. He entered on his divinity course at Alloa in 1782, but left at
the end of three weeks to take up his school. We hear no more of him
till 1786, when he appeared before the Antiburgher Presbytery of Glasgow
acknowledging that he had for some time been hearing ministers of other
denominations, but he wished now to be restored to his former communion.
Mr Ramsay testified to his general character; only he was suspected of being
naturally fickle and unsteady, or, as he himself put it, " simple and easily
imposed on." They rebuked him, and he was to be kept on trial for a
time before being attested anew as a divinity student. In 1787 he came
up from Anderston to attend another session at the Hall. Then he is lost
sight of till 26th October 1803, when he was ordained over an Independent
church at Darlington, in England. In August 1810 he and his congregation
applied to be admitted into connection with the Burghers, and Dr Young of
Whitby having sent up written testimony to Mr Graham's character, his
faithfulness as a minister, and the purity of his motives in making the
application, the Synod agreed to grant the prayer of the petition. In 1813
he demitted his charge, and in September 1814 the Synod accepted his
demission, and Darlington congregation disappeared. Mr Graham was at
the same time allowed ^20 by the Synod for the support of his family, and
his name being put on the probationer list he was inducted to New
bigging, i gth July 1815, though he can scarcely have been less than midway
between fifty and sixty. During the six years' incumbency which followed
336 HISTORY OF U.P. CONGREGATIONS
the membership of Newbigging fell from 50 to 19, and the debt was in
creased by ,£300. In June 1821 Mr Graham's stipend of ^80 was ,£110
in arrears, but the people were ready to pay him in full if the relation
between him and them were brought to an end. He stipulated, among
other things, for two years' possession of the manse, stable, and garden,
rent free, and declared that, if this were not immediately agreed to, "he
would continue in his charge." The Presbytery conceded the point, unless
the manse should be required for a successor, and his money claims being
met on the spot the connection was dissolved, 6th November 1821. After
the two years were expired he left almost under constraint and removed to
Glasgow. He died at Kirkintilloch on 2oth June 1828, while itinerating
as a preacher.
Third Minister. — JOHN ECKFORD, from Morebattle congregation.
Ordained, 5th August 1828, which implies a prior vacancy of nearly seven
years. In the interval the funds had improved, till the receipts reached
over ^100 a year ; but there were heavy requirements in the shape of
repairs on the church, so that, with a burden of debt to face, the people could
not undertake more than ,£75 of stipend, with manse and garden. In
the report of the Debt Liquidation Scheme for 1840 we have particulars
of the progress the congregation made under Mr Eckford's ministry. In
stead of 20 there were now 130 names on the communion roll, and the
stipend had been advanced to ,£90. In 1830 the church was renovated,
and for this the people raised ^85 and received ,£20 from the Synod, but their
debt amounted to more than ,£400, of which one-fourth had come down from
1792. An effort was now made to have this lessened, the Board promising
,£120 if the people raised ^110. In 1845 the whole amount was got quit
of by a similar effort and by aid in a like proportion, the sums being ^110
from the Board and ^92 from their own exertions. Thus far all was well,
but in 1850 the stage darkened. In the November number of the Magazine
for that year it was stated that the Presbytery of Arbroath had taken up
in private the distressing case of a.fama affecting the moral character of one
of their ministers and that he was not in a condition to be present. The
issue was that on i5th January 1851, after a trial extending over three days,
the Rev. John Eckford, who was a widower with a young family,. was de
posed from the office of the ministry. The records further bear that he
sailed for America in the following June and that he had refused to meet
with the committee appointed to deal with him. In Canada he became a
superintendent of schools, and was often engaged supplying a station at
Brantford. He died at West Brantford, 22nd October 1881, in the eighty-
second year of his age. Mr Eckford was the maternal uncle of the Rev.
James Eckford Fyfe of Kilmalcolm, whose family name is entwined with
the earlier history of Newbigging church. The congregation now called
Mr Robert Nelson, but he was already under call to Pitcairn, which he
accepted.
Fourth Minister. — ALEXANDER MILLER, from Glasgow (St Vincent
Street). Ordained, 26th October 1852. The call was signed by 106
members and 91 adherents, and the stipend was to be ^80, with manse,
garden, and ^5 in name of expenses. In 1858 this was raised to ^95,
which, with .£25 of supplement, made ,£120. In 1870 the two sums were
,£102, los. and ,£55, making ^157, ios., whjch was the minimum stipend
then aimed at. But through decline in membership, answering to decline
in population, the congregation required its proportion reduced to ,£95
about twelve years ago, the communion roll not being much over 100.
On 6th November 1895 Mr Miller was enrolled minister-emeritus.
Fifth Minister.— GEORGE WYLIE HOWIE, M.A., from Dundee (Bell
PRESBYTERY OF DUNDEE 337
Street). Ordained, roth June 1896. The membership for 1899 was II2>
and the stipend from the people ,£90.
FERRY-PORT-ON-CRAIG (ANTIBURGHER)
IN answer to a petition for sermon from a considerable number of people in
and about this place the Antiburgher Presbytery of Kirkcaldy on 2jrd
September 1806 appointed four of their number to preach there on suc
cessive Sabbaths, Mr Browning of Auchtermuchty to commence on Sabbath
week. After this supply was kept up continuously, and in May 1807 a
committee reported that they had examined and received into communion
three individuals, two of whom had been elders in the Established Church.
These, with some others who acceded to the Testimony, were congregated
at an interim meeting of Presbytery on nth July. It was next announced
that they had built a place of worship at a cost of fully ,£160, most of which
was already paid, and they wished collections from the several congregations
to assist in fitting up the church with seats. From this narrative it is to
be gathered that the congregation of Ferry-Port-on-Craig owed its origin
mainly to parties who withdrew from the parish church. It was stated in
the Old Statistical History eleven years before this that there was only
one Seceder in the whole parish, and he had recently come from Dundee.
It is known, however, that some families from Balmullo congregation, which
had joined the Constitutionalists, came early in, and helped to strengthen
the young cause. In August 1807 arrangements were made for the ordina
tion of elders, and on the fourth Sabbath of May 1808 the communion was
observed for the first time, three of the Presbytery dividing the services
among them.
First Minister. — ADAM BLAIR, from Haddington (West), but a native of
Gladsmuir parish. Ordained, I5th August 1809. There were on the com
munion roll at this time, besides two elders and four deacons, 24 male and
32 female members. When the call was brought up the people could not
go beyond ,£72, but " they would endeavour to make it ^80 by applying
to other congregations, and if they found themselves able they would not
make the application." On 3ist May 1810 the four deacons were ordained
to the eldership, "having been regularly elected," and that same day 2
men and 22 women, after being approved by the moderator, declared
their accession to the Secession Testimony. From this point there is a
long blank in the history of the congregation. In 1836 the number of
members in the parish was given at 50, the others amounting, it is
probable, to not quite so many, being drawn chiefly from the parishes of
Leuchars and Forgan. During Mr Blair's ministry the self-supporting
level was scarcely maintained, occasional grants of ,£10 or ,£15 being re
quired from the Synod Fund. He died, 28th November 1840, after a few
days' illness, " having preached in his usual manner on the preceding
Sabbath." He was in the sixty-first year of his age and thirty-second of
his ministry. Of Mr Blair, George Brunton, referring to certain members
of Cupar Secession Presbytery, wrote after his death : " He is also gone,
and his sunny smile no longer gladdens the company of the brethren. His
broad humour was often more effective than the most pointed wit, and never
so offensive ; it made him a cheerful companion without ever creating for
him an enemy or costing him a friend. His discourses were a rich mis
cellany of learned scraps, stray readings, quaint remarks, and original
thoughts, without any order save what was given them by an all-pervading
and masculine piety, which forced everything to bear on tke great end of
his ministry."
338 HISTORY OF U.P. CONGREGATIONS
Though Mr Blair went heartily into the Union of 1820, and, while the
negotiations were going on, published a sermon entitled " Reunion of
Christian Brethren," he and his congregation kept on conservative lines,
using only the Psalms in public worship, and in 1830 the session wished the
Presbytery to forbid any exchange of pulpits with ministers of other deno
minations. In reporting on the proposal for Union with the Relief they
declared themselves opposed to free communion, and required fuller informa
tion as to discipline and terms of membership before they could pronounce
on the question. But we may believe that with their first minister's death
this order of things would pass away. For a long course of years Mr Blair
was engaged collecting materials for his " History of the Waldenses," which
was published in two large volumes in 1833. This work was described at
the time as containing a great amount of information, but ill-compacted, and
wanting in the graces of composition.
Second Minister. — WALTER MUCKERSIE, from Bethelfield, Kirkcaldy.
The first call he declined, as well as another from Gatehouse, but after the
lapse of half-a-year the congregation renewed their call. At first they only
offered ^70 of stipend, as they had arrears of a similiar amount to make up
to their late minister's widow, but they now named ^80, and the signatures
had risen from 77 members and 14 adherents to 87 members and 42
adherents. Accordingly Mr Muckersie, preferring it to the collegiate
charge at Galston, was ordained at Ferry- Port-on-Craig, 8th June 1842.
At the communion a few weeks afterwards there were' 14 accessions, and
before the end of next year there were 54, making a total membership of
140. In 1844 the present church was built, with sittings for 450, and in 1845
the debt was cleared off, ,£240 being raised by the people and ^90 received
from the Board. On gth May 1864 Mr Muckersie, who had been active in
evangelistic and revival work, accepted an invitation to Taylor Street Mission
Church, Glasgow.
Third Minister. — ALEXANDER JACK, from Dennyloanhead, a nephew
of the Rev. William Spiers of Buchlyvie. Ordained, 9th November 1864.
The call was signed by 165 members, and the stipend was to be ^150, with
the promise of a house. Within a few years the congregation built a new
manse at a cost of almost ^1000, of which the whole amount was raised by
themselves, except ,£120 received from the Manse Board. Mr Jack died,
i6th August 1899, in the sixty-second year of his age and thirty-fifth of his
ministry.
Fourth Minister. — THOMAS A. FRASER, M.A., from Leith (St Andrews
Place). Ordained, 3oth November 1899. The membership at the close of
the year was 188, and the stipend ,£200 with the manse.
LOCHEE (UNITED SECESSION)
ON 2nd November 1824 a petition for sermon, subscribed by twenty persons
in Lochee and its neighbourhood, was presented to the Secession Presbytery
of Forfar. Of the subscribers 3 were members of Mr Fraser's con
gregation, Dundee, and the other 17 were from outside the Secession.
They had fitted up a hall as a place of worship, and Mr Fraser reported
that he preached there by request on the evening of the third Sabbath of
September, and as Clerk of Presbytery had been sending supply to
Lochee ever since. The petition was granted, and it was agreed not to
leave the people to bear their burdens unaided at this stage. Lochee was
a growing place— it was two miles from the centre of Dundee — and it had
in it a sprinkling of Secession families sufficient to form the nucleus of
PRESBYTERY OF DUNDEE 339
a promising congregation, School Wynd having the means of disjoin
ing from 40 to 60 members to strengthen the new cause. The Burgher
church of Liff had been a mile and a half farther out, and at the break-up
there several had renewed connection with the parent church in School
Wynd. At Lochee they would have a church in the eastern division of
their own parish.
All went on smoothly thus far, but some unpleasantness arose by-and-by.
It happened that at the Union of 1820 the two congregations in Dundee
were continued under different Presbyteries, School Wynd belonging to
Cupar and the Overgate to Forfar. Through their connection with Mr
Fraser, Forfar was the Presbytery from which sermon was obtained for
Lochee, and the minister and session of School Wynd were not recognised.
After some months Mr Donaldson brought the matter before Cupar
Presbytery. He stated that he quite approved of the movement, but he
considered that Forfar Presbytery in opening a station at Lochee without the
office-bearers of his church being consulted had acted on a wrong principle.
In their reply to the communication from Cupar, P'orfar Presbytery
engaged to give due notice to both sessions in Dundee before organising
a congregation in Lochee, " if that event," they added, " shall take place
in our day." In the letter, however, there was a little of the snappishness
by which such documents are apt to be disfigured. This affair, slight in
itself, may have left some traces of alienation behind it. Accordingly, when
in the beginning of 1826 a petition to be congregated came up from Lochee,
of the 53 applicants it was found that 20 were from Mr Fraser's church and
33 from other communions, but there was not one from School Wynd.
Notice of the application having been sent to Mr Donaldson and his
session in a very friendly letter, and no objection being offered, services
were held on Thursday, 25th June, which I take to have been the Fast Day
in the place, and 41 persons, whose names were read over, were declared
to be now erected into a congregation. Five of their number were then
chosen for elders, all of whom accepted, and were ordained in due time.
In July 1826 it was intimated to the Presbytery that subscriptions to a
considerable amount had been obtained for the building of a church, and
on ist February 1827 it was opened, with sittings for 550. The cost was about
^800, and of this sum ^500 remained a burden on the property in 1835,
but it was in course of being reduced. The assistance the people were
encouraged by the Presbytery to look for never came to much. A request
for collections from congregations within the bounds was evaded "owing
to the depressed state of trade," and a petition on their behalf for £20 from
the Synod Fund was refused. The impression might be that, with a large
and growing population around, theirs was not a necessitous case, and
they learned the lesson of self-reliance all the better.
First Minister. — DAVID MARSHALL, from Auchtergaven. There was
no great strength of membership to show as yet, the number who signed
being only 51, but along with these there were 131 adherents. They hoped
to make the stipend ,£90, with sacramental expenses, and they would
endeavour, as soon as practicable, to provide the minister with a house, or
give £10 instead. The call being sustained the people wished the settle
ment hurried on, but notice came of a rival call from Fenwick, and another
followed from Edenshead. When the three were brought before the Synod
in September 1827 Mr Marshall expressed a mild preference for Lochee,
partly because it was first in the order of time, and the court decided
accordingly — "a greater number having voted for that congregation than
for the other two." Ordained in the new church, 26th December 1827,
and the Rev. George Donaldson of Dundee was present as a corresponding
340 HISTORY OF U.P. CONGREGATIONS
member. His session had intimated their wish to be on friendly terms
with the young congregation of Lochee, and though they still held by the
principle they formerly laid down their minister's presence was a pledge
of concord.
Ten years after this Mr Marshall reported fully 400 communicants, of
whom a few were from parishes to the north-west and north, such as Mains
and Lundie, but the bulk of the members resided within the bounds of Liff
or Dundee. Eleven families came from over four miles. Mr Marshall's
stipend was ,£132, and the people were "nearly all of the poor and working
classes." The minister of the quoad sacra parish described the inhabitants
as consisting at that time, with few exceptions, " of labourers, operatives,
and handicraftsmen, having no means of subsistence but their own industry."
But increase in numbers went on till the place of worship became inadequate,
and in 1856 it was remodelled and enlarged to accommodate 700 at a cost
of over ,£1000. Ten years later Mr Marshall became unable for regular
work, and in March 1866 the people asked the Presbytery for supply of sermon,
" with the view of choosing an assistant and successor to their highly
esteemed and severely afflicted pastor."
Second Minister. — ARCHIBALD BROWNING CONNEL, M.A., son of the
Rev. David Connel of Bo'ness, and grandson of the Rev. Archibald Browning
of Tillicoultry. The arrangements were that the junior minister should have
,£175, with a manse, and Mr Marshall, who was to have no responsibility for
any part of the work, ^100. Mr Connel was ordained, loth July 1867. A
new church, with sittings for 1050, was opened by Dr Eadie on Sabbath, 24th
September 1871. The cost when all was calculated came to nearly ^6000,
and the opening collection was over ^1000. The former place of worship
passed into the hands of the Establishment, and it is now St Luke's qitoad
sacra church. Mr Marshall died, 24th September 1873, aged seventy-five,
"after a faithful ministry of forty-six years." In 1890 Mr Connel received
the degree of D.D. from St Andrews University, and on 7th March 1900
he was enrolled minister -emeritus. In the beginning of that year the
membership was 626, and the stipend ,£362, with the manse.
NEWTYLE (UNITED SECESSION)
IT having been reported to the Presbytery of Forfar that many people about
Newtyle wished sermon from them, a station was opened there on Sabbath,
7th September 1834, by the Rev. Matthew Eraser of Dundee. The popula
tion of the place was on the increase, and there was no Secession church
nearer than Alyth, six or seven miles distant. An attempt had been made
by the Antiburgher Presbytery of Forfar to form a congregation there in
1790 in answer to a petition from twenty-two persons in the parishes of
Newtyle, Auchterhouse, Lundie, and Nevay, but sermon was intermittent
and the movement died away. Between that and the next mention of New
tyle in the Presbytery Minutes there was to be an interval of thirty-three
years. Church courts, especially on the Antiburgher side, were not eager in
those days to originate congregations in localities where they were likely to
have a struggle for existence, the understanding being that people valuing a
pure gospel ought not to grudge a journey of six or eight miles to obtain it.
But kindlier tactics now prevailed, and, without being specially petitioned
for, preachers were sent regularly to Newtyle and aid furnished to meet
expenses. In August 1835 the Presbytery reported to the Home Board that
a neat and commodious chapel had been erected, with accommodation for
400 people, and it was stated to the Commissioners on Religious Instruction
PRESBYTERY OF DUNDEE 341
in 1836 that the cost was a little over .£250, of which all except ^80 had
been paid. The collections for the half-year amounted at this time to be
tween ^20 and ,£30, and the preachers were changed " once a month or so."
In view of having a communion roll made up a member of Presbytery was
appointed to preach a Sabbath at Newtyle and converse with any who might
wish admission to Church fellowship, and the preacher in location was to
give parties similar opportunities. Then on Sabbath, I5th May 1836, Mr
Hogg of Alyth conducted the services, and next day he was joined by Mr
Fraser from Dundee and Mr Marshall from Lochee, their work being to
examine candidates for communion privileges. This done Mr Fraser
preached, after which Mr Marshall "gave a brief history of the rise and pro
gress of the station, and by prayer constituted the congregation." Along
with a few who had lines from other churches those approved of numbered
53. In February 1837 the congregation called Mr David L. Scott, who after
a brief pause accepted Dumfries (Loreburn Street). A session was con
stituted before this, the leading name being that of John Lyon, who had
previously held office in Alyth congregation.
First and last Minister. — JOHN MuiR, from Ayr (now Darlington Place).
Ordained, 6th February 1838. At the close of that year the return to the
Mission Board gave a membership of 80, and an attendance of about 200 in
summer and somewhat less in winter, but at the Disruption of 1843 the
whole aspect of affairs was changed through a station being opened in con
nection with the Free Church. The attendance was now put at 100, and
though the membership more than held its own the state of the funds
required a reduction of the stipend to ,£55 instead of the ^60 engaged for at
first. This with a supplement of ^35 made only ^90 in all, but in 1855
these figures were increased ^5 each. The people were never in a position
to provide a larger proportion. In 1864 a manse was built at a cost of ,£800,
of which .£330 was received from the Central Fund and ,£470 raised by the
people and their friends, most of it being obtained by the exertions of the
minister. But even under the Augmentation Scheme the stipend was never
over ^120, with the manse. In October 1871 Mr Muir wrote the Presbytery
asking to be relieved of active ministerial duty. That fearful ailment, angina
pectoris, had been warning him that his work was done. On igth December
his resignation was accepted, but he was to retain his status as a member of
Presbytery, with the occupancy of the manse during the remainder of his
life. He died, igth January 1874, in the sixty-seventh year of his age and
thirty-sixth of his ministry. On Sabbath week his long-attached friend, the
Rev. George Gilfillan, preached the funeral sermon, in which he resuscitated
a magnificent discourse on "The Congregation of the Dead" — one of five
which he published in the early part of his ministry. After Mr Muir's death
his widow, a daughter of the Rev. Dr Thomson, Holm of Balfron, rented
the manse and resided in it for a course of years.
The congregation was now much reduced and the population one-fourth
less than it had been thirty years before. Besides this the Free Church of
Newtyle, long in a state of minority, was now fully equipped, and it was
better not to struggle for joint possession. But the people wished the loca
tion of a preacher or student among them, which was agreed to, the condition
being that the salary should be _£jo a year — one half from the congregation
and the other from the Mission Board. A succession of students followed
during the next eight years, but there was no permanent reviving. So far
from this the yearly reports bore tokens that the end was coming nearer and
nearer — members 47, 12 of them more than two miles distant; then 36,
several not able to attend for years. At last, on 2ist October 1879, the
Presbytery received a letter from an elder at Newtyle stating that the attend-
342 HISTORY OF U.P CONGREGATIONS
ance was falling off, that they were unable to pay their part of the salary,
and "suggesting that the church should be closed at once." On i8th
November a committee met with the congregation, but of the 26 members
only 3 were in attendance. Last of all the moderator of session, Mr Dunlop
of Alyth, preached at Newtyle on Sabbath, ist February 1880, and closed
the church as a place of worship. The building was sold for ,£150, of which
there remained a free balance of ^124. This latter sum was paid over to
the Home Committee to be applied to evangelistic and debt liquidating pur
poses, the promise being that any case from Dundee would be favourably
looked at in the distributing of the money. That any of Newtyle congrega
tion retained connection with the U.P. Church is unlikely. Distance counts
for more, and denominational preferences for less, than they did even half-a-
century ago.
BROUGHTY FERRY, UNION CHURCH (UNITED SECESSION)
ON 2nd May 1837 the Rev. Matthew Fraser of Dundee reported to the
Presbytery of Forfar that he had opened a place of worship at Broughty
Ferry on the second Sabbath of April. The population of the village at this
time was about 1 500, and the Secession families among them attended at
Dundee, four miles off. The building in which they first met belonged to a
neighbouring proprietor, the well-known Thomas Erskine, Esq., of Linlathen,
and it had sittings for fully 300. It had been erected by Robert Haldane as
an Independent chapel, and they were to have the use of it gratuitously.
After a trial of five months their prospects were such that the Presbytery
gave them encouragement to persevere, and grants were obtained from the
Home Mission Fund to help with the working expenses. On the evening of
1 6th July 1838 they were formed into a congregation.
First Minister. — JOHN ROBB, from Wellington Street, Glasgow. The
stipend they undertook was ^60, and there was to be a supplement of ,£20.
The ordination took place, 2ist May 1839, and during the first year of Mr
Robb's ministry the membership rose from 32 to 73. The report to the
Mission Board also bore that during summer the church was crowded, and
even in winter the attendance was excellent. But before other six months
had elapsed an adverse current set in. Ministerial indiscretions were
alleged, and among other things it was brought up that Mr Robb had
recently attended sermon in the Established Church and left his own pulpit
vacant. He on his part affirmed that the disaffection towards him was con
fined to five or six individuals, but a paper signed by one-half of the com
municants set this calculation aside. On 7th September 1841 he demitted
his charge, assigning among other reasons that his departure from Broughty
Ferry would lessen disunion in the church besides promoting his own com
fort. At next meeting, on the 2ist of that month, the resignation was
accepted at the request of both parties, and Mr Robb was enjoined " to act
cautiously for the future." He now returned to the probationer list, and on
29th October 1845 he was inducted to Ramsay, Isle of Man, a feeble out
post of the U.P. Church with a membership of 27 and an attendance of 60.
On 29th November 1849 'he withdrew from the discouraging situation, and
in 1850 he entered on a location at Prestatyn, in Wales, where he remained
five years. He then settled down as a home missionary in Bootle, Liverpool,
and was an elder in Derby Road Church. He died on 5th November 1873
in his sixty-third year.
In January 1842 a call from Broughty Ferry to Mr John Whyte was
withdrawn, as he had intimated to the people his acceptance of Boghole (now
PRESBYTERY OF DUNDEE 343
Moyness). In April a call to Mr A. D. Kinninmont was dealt with in the
same way, in consequence of learning from him that he was resolved not
to accept.
Second Minister.— LAURENCE GOWANS, from the North Church, Perth,
a brother of the Rev. James Gowans, formerly of Kilwinning. Ordained,
8th February 1843. The stipend from the congregational funds was now to
be .£80 instead of ^60. Mr Gowans was beyond the average age when
he got licence, and his first wife had died of consumption. He himself was
laid aside from work for nearly a year when a preacher by what appeared
to be the same malady, and it may have been on this ground that a minority
of 22 petitioned the Presbytery to pause before proceeding with the settle
ment. He had his choice of Ellon, in Aberdeenshire, but may have deemed
the climate of Broughty Ferry better adapted to his requirements. As it
was, nine months had hardly elapsed when he caught cold, and the old
symptoms reappeared. His last sermon was from the text: "Whatsoever
thy hand findeth to do, do it with thy might," etc. He died, 6th February
1844, in the thirty-sixth year of his age and first of his ministry.
During this vacancy also there were two unsuccessful calls issued, the
first to Mr John B. Johnston, who went to Newcastle, and the second to
Mr John B. Ritchie, who went to Aberdeen.
Third Minister. — DUNCAN OGILVIE, from Keith. His father was a
leading man in the First congregation there, but his mother was a member
of the other, and to the latter he himself acceded when he came to years.
As a preacher he was stationed for a time at Stamfordham, in Northumber
land, where a congregation of some 50 members had recently come over
from connection with the Established Church of Scotland. A call followed,
but Broughty Ferry was preferred, and the ordination took place, i8th June
1845. The membership at this time was only 66, and the .£100 of stipend
included everything. But Mr Ogilvie had been only two months in Broughty
Ferry when steps were taken to secure aid in the building of a new place
of worship, and after a time the work went on. Union Church, with nearly
400 sittings, was opened on 22nd September 1847, the first after the Union
of that year, and hence the name. On 8th November 1859 Mr Ogilvie
accepted an invitation to undertake mission work in Portsburgh, Edinburgh.
A graphic article of his which appeared in the denominational magazine
shortly before, entitled " A Wanderer Reclaimed," may have helped to guide
the committee in their selection. During the past fourteen years the popula
tion of Broughty Ferry had been more than doubled. The congregation had
also grown into strength, and when the vacancy occurred it was intimated
to the Presbytery that they were to be henceforth self-supporting.
Fourth Minister. — HUGH TAYLOR HOWAT, from Edinburgh (Nicolson
Street). Ordained, 8th November 1860. Mr Howat was also called to Sutton,
in Cheshire, but the preference went as was to be expected, and Mr W. G.
Fraser, the rival candidate at Broughty Ferry, got Sutton soon after. On
9th May 1864 Mr Howat accepted a call to Everton, Liverpool, where he
was inducted on 2nd June. In 1870 he was called to Oxendon, London,
but declined, and in 1882 he received the degree of D.D. from New York.
He died at Liverpool, the place of his birth, on I7th April 1888, in the fifty-
second year of his age and twenty-eighth of his ministry. Of the books he
published the best known is " Elijah, the Desert Prophet."
Fifth Minister. — JAMES GRAHAM, from Paisley (Abbey Close), and
a brother of Dr William Graham of Liverpool, afterwards Professor Graham
of the English Presbyterian Church. Ordained, 6th October 1864. Mr
Graham had been called the year before to Boveedy, in Ireland, and in the
early part of this year to South Shields (East), and then to be Dr Harper's
344 HISTORY OF U.P. CONGREGATIONS
colleague in North Leith. In the last case the majority was slight, and
though the call was sustained by the Presbytery he saw meet not to accept.
The stipend at Broughty Ferry, which had been .£150 in Mr Howat's time,
was raised now to ^170, with ^10 for sacramental expenses, and in view of
a new ministry the people set about having a manse built. To meet en
larged requirements the estimated cost of ,£800 mounted up to ,£1400, though
the grant of ^200 from the Manse Fund remained a fixture. In the ninth
year of Mr Graham's ministry the congregation experienced a reduction in
numbers, and still more in money strength, by a party withdrawing to form
what is now Queen Street Church. Within twenty years the town had grown
from a population of 2000 to at least three times that number, and though
commissioners from Union Church gave it as their opinion that there was
ample church accommodation in Broughty Ferry already, they made no
persistent opposition to the movement. For twenty years the old congre
gation kept ahead in numbers, though in other respects they were much
behind.
In 1889 embittered feeling was stirred over a proposal, for which Mr
Graham went strongly in, to have a hall built. A committee of Presbytery
expressed regret that the scheme had been pressed year after year in the
face of so much opposition, but they strongly disapproved of the spirit
displayed on the other side. The breach proving too serious to be healed
the dissentients intimated that at the cost of much painful feeling they must
sever their connection with Union congregation, though not with the U.P.
Church. The consequence was that between 1889 and 1894 the membership
of Union Church came down from 328 to 228, and Queen Street increased
from 1 80 to 250. Meanwhile Mr Graham's health, which had never been
robust, gave way, and in January 1893 he required leave of absence for three
months. Reinvigoration did not come as on like occasions before, and in
September he wrote the Presbytery suggesting the appointment of a
colleague. This proposal lapsed, and on I4th October he was enrolled
minister-emeritus. In view of his removal to Edinburgh a meeting of the
congregation was held on the evening of Thursday, i6th November, to
present him with a farewell address, but the final farewell was nearer than
anyone reckoned. He died on the following Tuesday, 2ist November 1893,
in the fifty-seventh year of his age and thirtieth of his ministry.
Sixth Minister. — THOMAS F. BEST, a native of Bridge-of-Weir, but
belonging from his early youth to Overnewton Church, Glasgow. Mr Best
had previously acted as Mr Graham's assistant or locum tenens, and he was
ordained on 2yth December 1893, within five weeks of Mr Graham's death.
The membership at the close of 1899 was within a few units of 300, and the
stipend was ^200, with the manse.
BROUGHTY FERRY, QUEEN STREET (UNITED PRESBYTERIAN)
ON 4th January 1873 Dundee Presbytery sanctioned the opening of a
preaching station at Broughty Ferry. The petition to that effect was signed
by 45 members and 14 adherents, and it was explained that other members
of the denomination residing at Broughty Ferry sympathised with the
proposal to have a second church formed. It was also stated that the
station would be self-supporting from the first. On the evening of 6th
March the petitioners were congregated, and on 22nd April six of their
number were chosen for elders, of whom five had been members of Union
Church session.
First Minister. — ANDREW CARTER, M.A., from St Ninians, but a native
345
of Chirnside. Ordained, nth November 1873. The stipend was to be
.£210, and the membership was now 61, among whom were several who had
been pillars in the old congregation. They worshipped at first in a public
hall, but on Thursday, iijth June 1876, the new church was opened by
Professor Cairns, with sittings for 550. The cost was estimated at ,£4500,
but it came up to ,£400 more. In July 1878 Mr Carter, whose health had
for some time been precarious, required leave of absence for six months, and
before that period had expired he sent in his resignation to the Presbytery,
believing that it would be dangerous for him to resume work in the climate
of Droughty Ferry. The congregation had to acquiesce, but they decided
to pay Mr Carter another quarter's stipend, which was now ,£75, and an
additional ,£75 was to be raised by private subscription. Thus the connec
tion between them and their first minister came to an end on 8th January
1879. After residing for some years in London, where he was engaged in literary
work, Mr Carter was appointed to the editorial department of the Stirling
Tract Depot, a situation which secured him an important sphere of useful
ness. He died at Bridge-of-Allan, i8th April 1893, one of his last utterances
being, " Christ in the forefront," a fit motto either for life or death. He was
in his forty-fifth year.
Second Minister.— DAVID HEPBURN LAWRENCE, M.A., from St Andrews,
a great-grandson of the Rev. David Hepburn- of Newburgh, and a nephew
of the Rev. William Lawrence, Mount Zion, Jamaica. During Mr Carter's
illness and the vacancy which followed the membership declined from 174 to
100, but the stipend was still to be .£300. Ordained, 7th October 1879.
The call was not quite harmonious, neither was it forthwith acquiesced in by
the minority, but the Presbytery went straight forward, and the course they
adopted was justified by the results. At the close of 1891 the debt on the
property was down to ,£650, and before the semi-jubilee in 1898 the last
remnant was cleared away. In the return for 1899 the membership is given
at 281 and the stipend at .£350.
NEWPORT (UNITED PRESBYTERIAN)
On 1 6th May 1878 twenty residenters in Newport, mostly members of our
Dundee churches, petitioned the Presbytery of Dundee for sermon during
the summer months, their object being to test whether a congregation might
not be formed there. The use of a hall having been obtained the station
was opened on Sabbath, 2nd June, the people undertaking the entire financial
responsibility. In October 37 "persons," members of the U.P. Church,
prayed the Presbytery to form them into a congregation with as little delay
as possible. This was done on Sabbath, 8th December, and on 25th March
1879 three elders were ordained or inducted, one of whom had been a
member of Wishart Church session.
First Minister.— JAMES S. SCOTLAND, from Errol, where he had been
for eight years. Though there were only 43 members signing the call the
stipend was to be ,£250. The Home Committee had promised .£250, to be
spread over five years, and paid in such instalments as might be thought
best. Mr Scotland was inducted, loth September 1879. On Thursday, i8th
May 1882, the new church, with sittings for 400, was opened by Dr John
Ker. It cost over .£2000, of which only ,£250 came from the Church Exten
sion Fund. At the close of 1899 there was a membership of 120, and the
stipend was .£250. The income for the year was over .£400, nearly .£100
being for missionary and benevolent purposes.
346 HISTORY OF U.P. CONGREGATIONS
DOWNFIELD (UNITED PRESBYTERIAN)
THIS was opened as a preaching station by the Rev. John Brand of John
Street Church, Glasgow, on 6th September 1885. Public worship was held
in a hall newly erected, of which the proprietor, D. R. Irons, Esq., had
offered the Presbytery the free use, with a view to the formation of a con
gregation. The village is in the parish of Mains and Strathmartin, more
than two miles from Butterburn, the nearest United Presbyterian church,
and in and around it there was at that time a population of about 900. It
was also ascertained that some 30 members of the denomination resided
there, of whom the majority were favourable to the proposed movement.
On the day after the opening services 22 persons met and agreed to make
formal application to the Presbytery for sermon, which was regularly kept
up from this date. Next summer members connected with the station to
the number of about 40 were placed under the care of Ryehill session " that
they might receive sealing ordinances," their own wish being to go on
meanwhile without being congregated. In October 1886 members and
adherents to the number of 72 invited Mr Brand, who had recently retired
from the heavy strain of his Glasgow ministry, to come and labour among
them. They had been formed into a congregation on the nth of the pre
ceding month, but they did not feel prepared as yet to go forward with a
regular call. Their prospects, however, were good, and the money contributed
during the year was close on ,£180. Mr Brand shortly afterwards entered on
ministerial work at Downfield.
In the early part of 1889 the congregation proceeded with the erection of
a permanent place of worship. The cost was set down at ,£1200, but when
the estimates were returned they were found to outrun that sum very con
siderably. The people subscribed among themselves ,£300, Mr Brand
undertook to raise other ,£200, Miss Tawse, a lady who had made over a
cottage and grounds for behoof of the new cause when it began, gave ^400,
and a grant of ^300 was expected from the Mission Board. It was opened
free of debt on Sabbath, 26th September 1889, by Dr John Smith, Broughton
Place, Edinburgh, with sittings for 450.
In September 1890 steps were taken to have the relationship between
pastor and people fully recognised, and hence a moderation was asked for,
the stipend from their own funds to be ^150, and the roll of members was
certified to number 83. The application was unanimous, but that did not
prevent some ill-timed talk about hearing more candidates. All, however, went
forward, though not without some friction, and the induction ceremony took
place on the evening of 25th December. Thus after five years of preparatory
training Downfield congregation reached its full majority. Mr Brand died,
after a brief illness, on 28th October 1900, the Sabbath before the Union, in
the sixtieth year of his age and the thirty-fourth of his ministry. The
membership of Downfield was now 120, and the stipend from the people as
before, with ^26 of supplement, making ,£176 in all. There was also the
MONIFIETH (UNITED PRESBYTERIAN)
ON Sabbath, 4th July 1897, a preaching station was opened at Monifieth
under the auspices of Dundee Presbytery, the officiating ministers being
the Rev. George Smart, Dundee, and the Rev. G. W. Howie, Newbigging.
Monifieth, which is situated fully two miles north-east of Broughty Ferry
and three miles south-west of Newbigging, had a population at this time
PRESBYTERY OF DUNFERMLINE AND KINROSS 347
of 2600, and in addition to a Free and an Established church it was felt that
there was ample room for another. After services had been kept up with
success for eight months a petition to be congregated was presented to the
Presbytery, signed by 81 members and 10 adherents, but it was deemed
better to place the station for the time under the care of the minister and
session of Newbigging. On i7th May 1899 a hall, seated for 300, and built
at a cost of ,£850, was opened free of debt, and on 5th July the station was
congregated, with a membership of 106 at the end of the year. During the
previous year the ordinary income was ,£130, in addition to ,£221 raised to
meet special outlay. At the Union in October 1900 the probationer in
charge of the congregation was Mr Alexander 13. Connon, B.D., with the
prospect of a permanent relationship.
PRESBYTERY OF DUNFERMLINE AND KINROSS
DUNFERMLINE, QUEEN ANNE STREET (BURGHER)
RALPH ERSKINE, with whom this congregation originated, was ordained to
the collegiate charge of Dunfermline parish, 7th August 1711. Like his
brother in Portmoak he took an active part in the Marrow Controversy,
upholding the interests of gospel truth and a full and free salvation. When
the four Brethren were suspended he made common cause with them in so
far as one not involved in the same condemnation could, and was present
with them at Gairney Bridge on the eventful 5th of December 1733. After
much hesitation and searchings of heart he acceded to the Associate
Presbytery on I7th February 1737, giving in a paper at the same time in
timating that he did not by this intend to withdraw from ministerial com
munion with those pious ministers of the Establishment who were groaning
under or " wrestling against the defections of the times." From this date
Dunfermline is to be looked on as a stronghold of the Secession. We find,
accordingly, from the Old Statistical History that toward the end of the
century out of a population in the parish of 9550 the Burghers alone
numbered 4200. More remarkable still, according to a census compiled by
one of the parochial clergymen in 1844, while the Establishment had 4000,
young and old, and the Free Church 2500, the United Secession had 8000.
When Mr Erskine withdrew from connection with the judicatories of the
Established Church it was fitted to disturb the relation between him and
his colleague. This was the Rev. James Wardlaw, who, though the second
minister, was a man eight years older than himself. Three days after
joining the Associate Presbytery Mr Erskine recorded that he knew his
colleague was displeased with this step, and on the 22nd he talked with him
in a friendly way, declaring he had made no secession from him, and saying
they ought to abstain from every word that would import any difference
thus far between them, and next Sabbath he spoke indirectly from the pulpit
to the same effect. All kept smooth till Sabbath, 7th May 1738, when he
entered in his diary : " Afternoon, my colleague fell upon Secession before
his close, alleging in his sermon that though the defection in Israel was
universal yet Caleb and Joshua went not out from them." It was the style
of argument that went current at that time in favour of adherence to the
Established Church in spite of her corruptions. In December Mr Erskine
found his circumstances trying, his colleague " differing from our way of
testifying, and some people leaving him, and he crying out against them."
But Mr Wardlaw had good reason to complain of the attitude the Seceding
34& HISTORY OF U.P. CONGREGATIONS
Brethren were taking up, if, as Currie of Kinglassie affirms, " when they came
to Dunfermline to supply Mr Ralph Erskine's charge in time of his indis
position they remained at home in their chambers in time of Mr Wardlaw's
sermon." But by-and-by there was a partial severance. On I3th December
1739 Mr Erskine began to preach to his own adherents in a tent or in a
barn at alternate diets when he was free, taking his place in his own pulpit
as before.
Sentence of deposition being now threatened, those who were friendly
to the new cause had begun to subscribe for the building of a church some
time before, and by the end of the year ^1060 is said to have been col
lected. We further learn from the Caledonian Mercury that the foundation
of their large meeting-house was laid on 24th July 1740. It was opened in
June 1741, but though sentence of deposition was pronounced on the eight
Brethren a year before Mr Erskine still took half the services in the parish
church. Mr Wardlaw died in May 1742, and it is gratifying to add that
his colleague, though differences had come in to mar the harmony which
had long prevailed between them, did honour to his memory after all was
over and bore ample testimony to his numerous excellences. Steps were
now taken to enforce the sentence of deposition. The General Assembly
in May 1742, learning that Mr Ralph Erskine and two of his brethren still
kept possession of their pulpits, "resolved to apply to the civil government
for a redress of this grievance." They also appointed the writing of letters
to the magistrates of these burghs exhorting them to give countenance to
such disorders no longer. With the aid of the Caledonian Mercury we may
give the result. On Sabbath, 6th June, Mr Hardie of Culross appeared to
preach in room of Mr Wardlaw, deceased, and Mr Ralph Erskine, deposed.
All went on quietly in the forenoon, but during the interval a crowd filled
the passage between the session-house door and the pulpit, and no person
appeared who had authority to suppress the tumult. A way was opened for
Mr Erskine, and Mr Hardie had to retire. Next Sabbath the Presbytery's
deputy took possession of the pulpit before the time, and Mr Erskine being
at Stirling his substitute did not press forward. On the third Sabbath Mr
Stark of Torryburn was to preach, and disturbance was apprehended, as the
salters and colliers were coming to back their minister. In view of this a
civic functionary went on Saturday to Mr Erskine and expostulated with him
on the impropriety of attempting to force himself into his old pulpit. He
yielded, and next forenoon in his own meeting-house exhorted his hearers
to give no disturbance. " So," our authority says, " no disorder happened in
the church, though there was a little army of Seceders about town."
During the strife regarding the Burgess Oath Mr Erskine urged forbear
ance, and all onwards advocated that side of the question both with tongue
and pen. Indeed, on the essential merits of the question he went further
than most of his Burgher brethren, contending that the religious clause in
the foresaid Oath was expedient as a Protestant safeguard. The pamphlets
he published on this subject need not be specially condescended on ; enough
to remark that the Breach brought out his liberal spirit to greater advantage.
In a discourse which he preached at the opening of the Burgher Synod the
year after the rupture he traced that disaster partly to the " untenderness "
they had shown to evangelical brethren they left behind them in the Estab
lished Church, "friends to the same reformation cause," though not enlight
ened to witness for it in the same way. This was in keeping with the ground
he took up when he declared on joining the Associate Presbytery that he
was not withdrawing from ministerial communion with those godly ministers
of the national Church who were wrestling against the defections of the
times. He said now : " If in this respect the bond of brotherly love was too
PRESBYTERY OF DUNFERMLINE AND KINROSS 349
soon broken, the Lord is righteous in ordering such a breach among us as
threatens the destruction of this temple." He adds, reflecting on brethren
like Messrs Moncrieff and Gib : " Though all of us were not equally charge
able this way, yet we have been too indulgent to such as were so." The
great trial in Mr Erskine's family life was in connection with this question,
when his son John struck out on the other side. The severance had an
almost tragic end, as is related under Leslie (West).
Infirmities began to tell on Mr Erskine at a comparatively early age,
and a colleague was required. His son James seemed marked out by
Providence for the place, but, much to the grief of both father and son, the
Synod decided that Ebenezer Erskine required immediate assistance more
than his younger brother. Non-compliance was threatened, but respect for
ecclesiastical authority prevailed, and in the beginning of 1752 James
Erskine was ordained as colleague to his uncle. On 6th November of that
year his father died, in the sixty-eighth year of his age and forty-second of
his ministry. Of the manifold productions of Mr Erskine's pen the best
known and most valued are his " Gospel Sonnets," published in 1734. These
quaint, memorable, and sometimes highly poetical effusions did much to
unfold and illustrate gospel truth in our fathers' days. His collected works,
chiefly sermons, passed through numerous editions. Less solid and com
pact than those of his brother in Stirling, they rise occasionally to higher
strains of eloquence, and, delivered as they were with fervour of spirit and
sacred unction, they must have been powerfully impressive. Besides Mr
Erskine's two sons already referred to, Henry, the oldest, was minister at
Falkirk.
Second Minister. — JOHN SMITH, who had been fourteen years in Jed-
burgh. Inducted, r6th July 1760. Before reaching this point the congrega
tion passed through a vacancy of seven years and issued five unsuccessful
calls. The first was in July 1753, the second in December 1754, and the
third in November 1755, all addressed to Mr Smith. The second was
resisted by upwards of 100 of the members, and the Presbytery recommended
the Synod not to sustain it. Dunfermline congregation they at the same
time admonished to study harmony, " without which they could not expect a
comfortable settlement with any minister whatever." On the first and third
occasions the Synod continued Mr Smith in Jedburgh, guided probably by
his own inclinations. The fourth call came out for Mr Shirra of Kirkcaldy
in August 1756, but he stated that his convictions were in favour of remain
ing where he was, and his wishes were given effect to. The attempt was
renewed in 1757, but the translation was again vetoed. In January 1758
Mr John Belfrage, preacher, was chosen by a majority, and a scene of
confusion followed. A report got into circulation through a brother preacher,
Mr Arnot, afterwards of Kennoway, that Mr Belfrage had misconducted
himself when a student by engaging in a dance, and had even attended a
class to fit himself for that exercise. The Synod, after administering rebuke,
appointed him to Falkirk. Thwarted elsewhere, the congregation in the
beginning of 1760 fell back harmoniously on Mr Smith, and secured the
transportation by a majority of one. The charge being so very weighty it
became needful to make it collegiate, and in 1775 a moderation was applied
for, with the promise of .£60, " without diminishing the stipend of the present
minister."
Third Minister. — JAMES HUSBAND, from St Andrews, where his father
was one of the founders of the Burgher congregation. Ordained as colleague
to Mr Smith, 7th February 1776. The senior minister died, 7th December
1780, in the fifty-eighth year of his age and thirty-fifth of his ministry. His
widow, Marion Wardlaw, a granddaughter of the Rev. James Fisher, sur-
350 HISTORY OF U.P. CONGREGATIONS
vived him forty-two years. Their youngest daughter was the wife of her
cousin, Dr Ralph Wardlaw of Glasgow. The only production of Mr Smith's
pen which remains to us is a brief memoir of Professor Swanston, prefixed
to a volume of his discourses. After his death the entire burden rested for a
time on Mr Husband, but in 1783 the congregation called Mr James
Peddie to be his colleague, whom the Synod appointed to Bristo Church,
Edinburgh. The Presbytery had agreed, at the request of the session and
congregation, to recognise Dunfermline as a regular collegiate charge,
"considering the greatness of their number and their sufficient ability to
support two ministers."
Fourth Minister. — JAMES M'FARLANE, from Bridge-of-Teith. Or
dained, 9th February 1785, the call being signed by 622 communicants.
Mr Husband's stipend was to be ^80 as before, and Mr M'Farlane's ,£70.
The relation between the two colleagues was smooth and pleasant through
out, and the bond was ultimately strengthened by a close marriage tie. In
1793 Mr M'Farlane was called to the newly-formed congregation of Greenock
(now Trinity Church), but his attachment to his people was strong, and
strongly expressed, and the Synod unanimously refused to translate. The
building of the present church was begun in 1798 and finished in 1800. It
cost ^2306, and was seated for 1642. The old church, a little to the south,
was cleared away. The two ministers were in some respects unlike. In
the courts of the Church Mr Husband, who received the degree of D.D.
from Marischal College, Aberdeen, in 1817, took a leading part, and, as we
read in the Memoir of Dr James Peddie, "stood in the very first rank
among the public men of the Associate Synod." He figured in the New
Light cause at the close of the century, and was active in framing the
Preamble, round which the conflict gathered in the end. He did not,
however, keep his whole congregation with him — 20 of his members
acceding, as we find, to the Original Burgher Presbytery in 1799 and
forming the nucleus of what became a congregation of over 300 members.
Unlike his father-in-law, Mr M'Farlane kept comparatively in the back
ground, and was peculiarly faithful in pastoral duty. We have even heard
that the one colleague was spoken of as " the rich man's minister " and the
other as " the poor man's minister." The entire work was at least done
very efficiently between them. The two were long true yoke-fellows, and
in death they were not very far divided. Dr Husband died, i7th May 1821,
in the seventieth year of his age and forty-sixth of his ministry, and a
troubled chapter began in the history of Queen Anne Street Church.
Before the vacancy occurred Mr James Whyte had been thought of as
a third minister, and now that a colleague was needed for Mr M'Farlane
the bulk of the congregation was bent on having him called without loss of
time. Unfortunately a majority of the session was otherwise minded, and
succeeded in having a meeting of the congregation put off, though it was
pressed for by 935 members and adherents. The plea was that they had a
counter petition before them signed by one-third of that number. The
difficulty being at last surmounted the call came out for Mr Whyte by a
great majority, 418 having voted for him and 208 for the Rev. John Brown
of Biggar. This call, along with six others to the same preacher, came up
for disposal at the Synod in May 1822. These calls ranked as follows : —
Dunfermline with 864 names, including ordinary hearers ; Limekilns with
444 members ; Perth with 385 ; Stirling (Second) with 239 ; Kirkcaldy
(Union Church) with 180 ; Coupar-Angus with 101 ; Balbeggie with 73 ; the
last two having male signatures only. When Mr Whyte was called for it
was found that he was fulfilling appointments near Newcastle, and he had
sent no communication to the Synod. So far as numbers went the claims
PRESBYTERY OF DUNFERMLINE AND KINROSS 351
of Queen Anne Street were much the highest, but their divided state was
urged, and Perth carried by 89 votes out of 150, only 16 being given for
Dunfermline. Believing himself to have been wronged Mr Whyte refused
submission to the Synod's appointment, as is given under Perth (Wilson
Church), and at last the congregation there consented to have the call laid
aside, and this brought Dunfermline to the front anew.
The pulpit became vacant by Mr M'Farlane's death on loth April 1823,
in the sixty-fourth year of his age and thirty-ninth of his ministry. In
a brief biographical notice which appeared soon after in the Christian
Monitor his special friend, Dr Belfrage of Falkirk, wrote as follows : — "The
injurious treatment he met with, and the distracted state of a society so dear
to him, preyed on his spirits, and the vigour of his constitution sank in the
struggle." An impression prevailed among Mr Whyte's friends in the con
gregation that Mr M'Farlane was opposed to their favourite, and that a
majority both in the session and in the -Presbytery were scheming in accord
ance with his wishes. We find, however, that on the moderation day he
sent notice that the congregation's choice would be his choice, and, when
Mr Whyte carried, he put his name to the call. Still, the minister came to
be reflected on, and probably with some reason. Mr Whyte seems to have
been a man of ungenial bearing, and Mr M'Farlane may have feared that he
would not make an agreeable colleague. The mere fact that he came from
the Antiburgher side of the United Church would not amount to much,
though Mr Whyte believed so. Mr M'Farlane left an orphan family, for
whose behoof the congregation voted ^300 at their father's death. Two of
these were ultimately known as Dr John M'Farlane of Clapham, London,
and Dr Andrew M'Farlane of Trinity Church, Greenock.
In September 1823 a second call from Queen Anne Street, Dunferm
line, came before the Synod along with two others — from St Andrews
Place, Leith, and Coupar-Angus — when the Synod agreed without a vote to
prefer Dunfermline ; but Mr Whyte was out of tune now, and in a fretted
state he told them he would not accept. He and the congregation had
suffered ill-treatment at the hands of Dunfermline Presbytery, and till this
was made up for he could undertake no charge within the pale of the
Secession. A committee dealt with him, but without effect, and then met at
Dunfermline by appointment of Synod to put matters right between the
Presbytery and the congregation. Complaints were brought forward in long
array, but with little outcome, and in the end most of them were allowed to
drop, which was accepted by the Presbytery as a token of conciliation. But
Mr Whyte was as far as ever from being appeased, and on reading" over the
Minutes of agreement he pronounced the whole proceedings "a compound
of villainy and Jesuitism," and this was followed by a letter to Dunfermline
Presbytery intimating that he had abandoned a Church in which he had seen
"a lamentable dereliction of principle and honesty." On I4th May 1824 he
wrote one of his friends in Dunfermline intimating that he had connected
himself with the Protestor Synod on the definite understanding that he was
to proceed to America. He expressed himself thus : " After all that has
occurred I cannot go to Dunfermline, and I never will take any other place
in Britain. My dear sir, I have naturally strong feelings. They have been
dreadfully lacerated. I cannot endure the idea of being constantly in a scene
of such deep distress. My soul loves peace."
Attempts were now made, particularly by the Original Secession congre
gation of Perth, to retain him in Scotland, but this only hurried his de
parture for New York. On 6th July 1825 he was ordained at Salem, a small
congregation, though he had a much larger one at command, and there his
brief ministry was fulfilled. He died, after a severe illness of twelve days, on
352 HISTORY OF U.P. CONGREGATIONS
1 3th December 1827, in the thirty-third year of his age. Looking back now
over his brilliant but unhappy course as a preacher we are met by the
question : Whence came his exceptional popularity ? His sermons, of which
a volume was afterwards published, included one on Death riding forth on a
Pale Horse, which told with great effect, we have heard, in his preacher days.
His delivery is said to have been marked by solemnity suited to such a
subject ; but besides this he threw much more of the emotional into his
discourses than was common in Secession pulpits at that time, hard doctrinal
preaching being in the ascendant. It is to be regretted that his connection
with the denomination ended as it did, but his own words partly explain it.
"There is," he wrote, "perhaps no bosom which feels more intensely and
keenly than mine, and, though many of its feelings may seem childish and
feverish to others, they deeply depress and greatly unhinge my mind."
As his anonymous biographer remarks in the Memoir prefixed to the dis
courses published in America in 1829, he was a person of too much sensi
bility for the scenes amidst which he moved.
The congregation now continued in a state of unrest, the two parties in
chronic opposition to each other. At the Synod in May 1825 they brought
forward a call to Mr William Nicol, but with no prospect of success. At the
moderation the final vote stood thus : for Mr Nicol 285, and for Mr James
Forsyth 283. There was an array of harmonious calls to choose from, and of
these Jedburgh (Blackfriars) was preferred. The next move produced a
rupture, and brought the long strain to an end. A leading supporter of
Mr Whyte, who was credited with being mainly responsible for an irritating
pamphlet entitled "The Spirit of the Union," was elected and ordained to
the eldership, and an appeal to the Synod by the opposing party brought
no redress. Then came another moderation, when the Rev. John Ritchie of
Kilmarnock was chosen over Mr Robert Brown, the minority's candidate,
and afterwards their minister. A disjunction was now applied for and
obtained, as will be more fully stated when we come to St Margaret's. This
call was also unsuccessful, Mr Ritchie being appointed by the Synod to
Potterrow, Edinburgh. Contention was now at an end, and the next call
was quite harmonious, but other difficulties emerged.
Fifth Minister. — ALEXANDER FlSHER, from Bristo Church, Edinburgh.
Called also to Kirkgate, Leith, and to be colleague to Dr Jamieson in
Nicolson Street, Edinburgh. When invited to state his mind in the Synod
Mr Fisher expressed in the strongest terms his unwillingness to go to
Dunfermline, but he would cheerfully be ordained over either of the other two
congregations. The case led to a keen and animated discussion, which
occupied two days, and in the end the wish to have Queen Anne Street
comfortably settled prevailed. The vote stood thus : Dunfermline 76,
Leith 56, and Edinburgh 14. This decision, against which 26 ministers
entered their dissent, helped to bring the system of enforced settlements
to an end. Mr Fisher held back month after month, but yielded at last,
partly owing to the congregation testifying that notwithstanding his aversion
to become their minister they were as attached to him as ever. He was
ordained, 2oth March 1827, but he speedily broke down under the strain.
He died, 26th September 1829, in the twenty-seventh year of his age and
third of his ministry. A volume of his sermons, with Memoir by the Rev. John
Brown, Broughton Place, Edinburgh, was published in 1830.
During this vacancy the congregation called the Rev. Archibald Browning,
who had withdrawn from the ministry at Tillicoultry five years before and
was now conducting an academy there with much energy and success, but
the call was declined.
Sixth Minister. — JAMES YOUNG, from Mauchline, Ordained, ist June
PRESBYTERY OF DUNFERMLINE AND KINROSS 353
1831, the call being subscribed by 687 members and 256 adherents. The
stipend was to be ,£210, with manse and garden. In 1838 the communicants
were returned at 1041, and the debt incurred chiefly by the erection of manse
and session-house was ^1650, the stipend being as before. Mr Young took
a leading part in the erection of the statue of his first predecessor in Queen
Anne Street, the Rev. Ralph Erskine, and preached a sermon at that time,
entitled "The Remembrance and Imitation of Departed Ministers." He
died suddenly on 4th December 1869, in the sixty-sixth year of his age and
thirty-ninth of his ministry. On the previous evening he complained of a
sickening pain between the shoulders, but said, as he retired, it all would
be right in the morning. He sank to sleep, and about four o'clock a faint
moan told that the spirit was departing. Mrs Young was the oldest daughter
of Cairneyhill manse, and the Rev. William Salmond, formerly of North
Shields, now Professor Salmond, D.D., in Otago University, is their son-
in-law.
Seventh Minister. — ROBERT FRENCH, M.A., from the parish church,
Kirkconnel, but the family on removing to Glasgow about the beginning of
his college course became connected with Duke Street congregation.
Having declined the collegiate charge of St Andrew Place Church, Leith,
Mr French was ordained at Dunfermline on 5th October 1870, and was
loosed on 4th June 1872 on accepting a call to succeed Dr W. M. Taylor in
Derby Road, Liverpool. In his new sphere of labour he broke down within
a month, and died on 25th October, in the thirtieth year of his age and third
of his ministry. Queen Anne Street congregation were in the unforgiving-
mood when he decided to leave them so very soon, but when notice of his
death came they relented and sent through a deputation to Glasgow to
attend his funeral. In December of that year Mr James S. Rae was called
to be Mr French's successor, but he preferred Ecclefechan.
Eighth Minister. — ROBERT ALEXANDER, who had been eleven years in
Buckhaven. At the moderation 175 voted for Mr Alexander and 119 for
Mr Walter Duncan, afterwards of Dumbarton, but the call was signed by
359 members. Inducted, ist October 1873, the stipend to be ^300, with a
manse. On Sabbath, I2th February 1899, Queen Anne Street Church was
reopened by Professor Orr, after being renovated internally and having an
organ introduced. The entire cost was over .£4000, of which the greater
part was met at the time. At the close of that year the membership was
932, being nearly a third higher than any of the others, and the stipend was
£35O) with the manse.
DUNFERMLINE, ST MARGARET'S (UNITED SECESSION)
ON 23rd August 1825 a petition from 326 members and 152 ordinary hearers
for a disjunction from Queen Anne Street Church came up to Dunfermline
Presbytery by protest against a deed of session refusing transmission. It
was the minority of the congregation seeking to bring strained relations to
an end. At that same meeting the call of the majority to the Rev. John
Ritchie of Kilmarnock was sustained. The petitioners had preferred an
other candidate, and his rejection on the moderation day was the last straw
that broke the camel's back. The Presbytery upheld the protest, granted
the prayer of the petitioners, and erected them into a separate congregation.
The place of worship built in Maygate by the Methodists in 1815 was ready
to their hand, and on the first Sabbath of September Mr Brown of Inver-
keithing preached to them and constituted the disjoined elders into a session.
On 25th October there was a further disjunction of 151 members from Queen
354 HISTORY OF U.P. CONGREGATIONS
Anne Street, so that the new congregation had the communion roll raised to
nearly 500, and among these were the families of Dr Husband and Mr
M'Farlane.
First Minister. — ROBERT BROWN, from Blackfriars, Jedburgh. The
stipend promised in all was ,£183, and Mr Brown was ordained, iyth May
1826. The services were conducted on a green, in presence, it was reported,
of 3000 people. But illness came before a year was out, and Mr Brown
died, igth April 1828, in the thirty-first year of his age and second of his
ministry. A thin volume of his Lectures, Sermons, and Communion Ad
dresses, with a brief Memoir by his former fellow-student, the ,Rev. William
Johnston, Limekilns, was published in 1830. The congregation on 2nd
September 1827 removed from Maygate, which must have been too strait
for them, to a church of their own, with 979 sittings, built, and afterwards
enlarged, at a cost altogether of ^2780.
Second Minister. — JOHN LAW, translated from Newcastleton after being
sixteen years in that circumscribed field of labour. Inducted, ist October
1828. The call was signed by 376 members and 127 adherents, and the
stipend was to be ^200 in all. In Dunfermline Mr Law held a foremost
place among the ministers of the town, and could wield the weapons of
controversy with much effect when circumstances required him. In 1840 he
preached and published three weighty and comprehensive "Sermons on
Baptism," to check the spirit of proselytism which was working with restless
zeal on the other side. He also came forth in explanation and defence of
United Secession principles at a time when feeling was keen between
Churchmen and Dissenters. The congregation all the while prospered
under his care, and in 1838 the communicants numbered about 800, though
the stipend remained as before. The debt was still ^1823, but it was being
gradually reduced by the annual surplus of income over expenditure.
Twenty-one families came from upwards of four miles. The membership
being numerous and widely spread, Mr Law as strength became impaired
felt the burden too much for him. In 1850 Mr George M. Middleton, who
preferred Kinross, was called to be his colleague, and some friction having
arisen in the church Mr Law on nth November of that year accepted an
invitation to the newly-formed congregation at Innerleithen. The speech he
delivered on that occasion was put into print, widely read, and much
admired.
Third Minister. — DAVID RUSSELL, from Glasgow (now St Vincent
Street). Having declined Kilmaronock he was ordained at Dunfermline, 3rd
September 1851. The stipend was to be ,£190, with a manse, and in 1879 it
was given at ^300, though the congregation, which had suffered somewhat
after Mr Law left, scarcely numbered 600. Mr Russell died, 25th May 1891,
in the sixty-seventh year of his age and fortieth of his ministry. His death
arose from weak action of the heart, and his last words were : " Blessed,
blessed," in reply to the question: "Are you happy?" Thomas Carlyle
said : " Blessedness is better than happiness."
Fourth Minister. — JOHN CAMPBELL, translated from Cumbernauld, and
inducted, I7th December 1891. The membership of St Margaret's Church
in December 1899 was 654, and the stipend ,£300.
DUNFERMLINE, CHALMERS STREET (ANTIBURGHER)
ON 1 3th May 1788 three members of Cairneyhill congregation presented a
petition to the session for transmission to the Presbytery, subscribed by 44
members, craving to be disjoined from Cairneyhill, and formed into a
PRESBYTERY OF DUNFERMLINE AND KINROSS 355
congregation at Dunfermline. The session sent it on with a note stating
that they had doubts as to the propriety of doing so, as the subscriptions
were not properly attested, but left the Presbytery to do therein as they
might see cause. Cairneyhill was now on the verge of a vacancy, this being
the last meeting at which Mr Burt presided, and it was a fit time for the
Antiburgher families about Dunfermline to set up for independence. For
three dozen years they had attended ordinances at Cairneyhill, three miles
distant. The petition came before the Presbytery on 2nd June, and was
probably granted without delay. They worshipped at first in a large room, but
a church with 420 sittings was finished in the following year at a cost of
,£700. In March 1789 the Synod of Perth appointed them a moderation,
but enjoined the Presbytery to inquire within twelve months after the
settlement whether they were not able by that time to do more for the
support of their minister.
First Minister. — DAVID BLACK, from Leslie (West). The call was
signed by 46 male members and 16 adherents, and, being preferred by the
Provincial Synod to another call from Comrie, Mr Black was ordained, 27th
October 1789. In 1806 Mr Black published a volume of Sermons, and he
received the degree of D.D. from Georgia, America, in 1816. For a
lengthened period Dr Black acted as clerk to the Antiburgher Synod, and
also to the Antiburgher Presbytery of Kirkcaldy, which offices he held till
some time after the Union of 1820. Shortly before this steps were taken to
provide him with a colleague in the ministry.
Second Minister. — GEORGE BARLAS, from Perth (North). The call from
Dunfermline being carried almost unanimously over another from South
Shields, Mr Barlas was ordained as colleague to Dr Black, I7th October
1820. The senior minister died, 5th November 1824, in the sixty-third year
of his age and thirty-sixth of his ministry. Mr Barlas is understood to have
been possessed of much vivacious energy, and during the attempt to effect a
reconciliation in Queen Anne Street Church, when Mr Whyte was under
call, he took the lead in Dunfermline Presbytery, though he was one of its
youngest members. But, unfortunately, through want of watchfulness over
his habits he had to be laid under suspension in 1831, and a rupture followed
in the congregation. After he was restored to office about three-fifths of
the membership refused to submit to his ministry, while two-fifths refused to
let him go. The result was that on I2th September 1832 Maygate congre
gation was formed, under which heading more will be given.
Third Minister. — ROBERT CUTHBERTSON, from Abbey Close, Paisley.
Ordained, I3th November 1833, the stipend being ,£128 in all. During the
vacancy the congregation called Mr William France, who was appointed
colleague to Dr Ferrier of Paisley. This call was signed by 126 members.
Mr Cuthbertson gave in the demission of his charge to the Presbytery on
6th June 1843, assigning as his chief reason the discomfort he had experi
enced owing to differences among his people arising from the Synod's pro
cedure in the case of James Morison and others. Being fixed in his resolve
he was loosed, 5th September 1843. Though Mr Cuthbertson's sympathies
lay on the New View side he stated that " he had no present intention of
leaving the Secession Church, and felt at perfect liberty to preach what he
believed to be the whole truth of God in connection with her." The next
few years he spent partly in business with a brother-in-law, who was a
draper in Dunfermline. But on gth September 1845 ne intimated to the
Presbytery by letter that he had withdrawn from the communion of the
United Secession Church. In 1852 he was admitted to the charge of an
Independent congregation in Cleckheaton, near Leeds, where he died, i7th
December 1881, aged seventy-six, having resigned his ministerial charge
356 HISTORY OF U.P. CONGREGATIONS
some time before. Mr Cuthbertson was an LL.D. at his death, but when
the degree was conferred, or by what college, we have not ascertained.
Fourth Minister. — ROBERT T. WALKER, translated from Comrie, and
inducted to Chalmers Street, Dunfermline, 6th November 1844. It appears
from Mr Cuthbertson's statement when he resigned that the Atonement
Controversy had agitated the congregation, and when the present call came
out it was thought to indicate a decided leaning towards the New Views.
It was matter of report, however, that after an Evangelical Union church
was formed in Dunfermline Mr Walker gave greater emphasis to con
servative doctrine than he had done before. During the first years of his
ministry in this new sphere there was progress. In 1846 measures were
adopted to have the debt of ,£250 cleared off within a limited time, and
within a year nearly one-half of the sum required was subscribed. But
with larger and stronger U.P. churches on the ground there was little
room for progress, and on loth August 1858 Mr Walker's resignation was
accepted, as he was about to proceed to Ballarat under the auspices of the
Mission Board. Having arrived in Australia when the Colonial Union was
about to be consummated he identified himself with the Anti-Union side for
the time. In Ballarat he laboured, we read, with great acceptance and
success, though not without experiencing trouble through a rupture in his
congregation. In the courts of the Church he was looked on as a leader,
and in 1875 he occupied the Moderator's Chair in the General Assembly.
He died, 24th March 1890, in the seventy-ninth year of his age and fifty-
fourth of his ministry, having withdrawn into the emeritus position seven
years before.
Fifth Minister. — ALEXANDER M. JARVIE, from Broughton Place,
Edinburgh. Ordained, 7th September 1859. The congregation had previ
ously called Mr Peter C. Duncanson, who accepted West Calder. On
1 4th April 1862 the present church was opened by the Rev. Alexander
MacEwen, Glasgow, with sittings for 500, and built at a cost of ^1500.
On 1 5th February 1876 Mr Jarvie's resignation was accepted, as owing to
chronic inflammation of the throat and loss of voice he required to go to
a more equable climate. In December 1877 he was inducted to Ashley,
New South Wales, from which he was translated to the Scots Church,
Sydney, in July 1879, where he died, 3ist October 1886, in the sixty-first
year of his age and twenty-eighth of his ministry. Mr Jarvie was a brother
of the Rev. J. M. Jarvie, Independent minister, Greenock.
Sixth Minister. — WILLIAM GEORGE, M.A., from Bristo Church, Edin
burgh, but like his brother, the Rev. James George of Dundee, he was born
in Canada. Ordained, 28th March 1877. The membership, which was only
about 120 at that time, is now considerably over 200, and the stipend from
the people is .£170, with a manse.
DUNFERMLINE, MAYGATE (UNITED SECESSION)
AFTER Mr Barlas of Chalmers Street Church had been twice subjected to
discipline by Dunfermline Presbytery and placed under suspension a
majority of his people considered that his usefulness among them was at
an end. At first, indeed, the balance went the other way by 65 votes
against 56, but after further reflection 115 to 71 "declared themselves
unwilling to submit themselves to his ministry." At this stage 61 members
petitioned the Presbytery to be erected into a separate congregation and to
have the pastoral bond preserved between their minister and them should
his connection with Chalmers Street be dissolved. The case being referred
PRESBYTERY OF DUNFERMLINE AND KINROSS 357
to the Synod in September 1832 the petition was granted by a majority of
61 to 41. Mr Barlas on emerging from under the cloud seems to have
walked circumspectly as well as mournfully. The congregation also gained
ground during the few years of his ministry that remained. Maygate
church, which had been vacated by St Margaret's congregation some years
before, was bought for him, the price paid being ^440, and the sittings 410.
But in the early part of 1837 his brethren in the Presbytery expressed much
sympathy with him in his state of broken health and were willing to aid
him individually in his Sabbath work. He died on 2gth July of that year,
in the forty-fifth year of his age and seventeenth of his ministry. After
his death the congregation reported 190 communicants, the number having
been more than doubled during the preceding five years, and the debt was
reduced to ^260. The stipend had been from ^100 to ^120.
Second Minister. — THOMAS SMITH, from Bristo Church, Edinburgh.
Of this gentleman we get a glimpse in his student days. Residing within
the bounds of Cupar Presbytery it came out that, though in his third year
at the Hall, he had been attending no Secession church, nor probably was
he much at any other, but after acknowledgments of wrong-doing had been
made he was taken under their inspection. Ordained at Maygate, 24th
April 1838. The call was subscribed by 167 members, and the stipend was
to be ^100. Within a year and a half there was an inglorious winding-up.
A letter came to Dunfermline Presbytery on 26th October 1839, signed by
two of our Grcenock ministers, preferring a serious charge against the Rev.
Thomas Smith of Dunfermline. Brought to the point he acknowledged
that on his way from Glasgow to Helensburgh he got into infamous company
and had been guilty of reckless, riotous conduct besides. Satisfied in some
measure with his professions of penitence and his assurance that he was
henceforth to abstain entirely from intoxicating drinks the Presbytery,
hoping that the evil report would not reach Dunfermline, rested in a solemn
rebuke, and Mr Smith went forth to resume ministerial work. But at next
meeting, on 26th November, a communication was received from Glasgow-
Presbytery intimating that the fania was widespread in the west, and as
the case was flagrant they earnestly requested them to review their judgment
without delay and proceed to higher censure. A letter was also read from
Mr Smith resigning his charge, and being heard he renewed his expres
sions of penitence, but confessed he had broken the promise he gave them
to abstain from all intoxicating drinks. Taking this into account, and
aware that the scandal had become public property in and about Dun
fermline, the Presbytery without further preamble deposed him from the
office of the ministry. His parting request was to have it marked in the
Minutes that he now withdrew the Total Abstinence Pledge which he had
given them, and at this point we lose all trace of his footprints.
Third Minister. — JAMES GIBSON, translated from Whithorn, where he
had been six years, and inducted, 2oth January 1841. The stipend promised
was ^100. Soon after the vacancy occurred the congregation had called
Mr James Robertson, a preacher peculiarly fitted to restore life to a de
pressed and bleeding cause, but he declined, and soon after gave himself
to like work in Musselburgh. Under Mr Gibson there was a goodly increase,
but, believing Dunfermline to be overchurched, especially after the Dis
ruption, and the place too strait for him, he resigned, and though the people
were earnest in their efforts to retain him he adhered to his purpose, and
the resignation was accepted, 2gth June 1847. His name now appeared on
the probationer list, but there was a feeling of satisfaction and relief
throughout the churches when in the beginning of next year he was the
successful candidate for Brechin (High Street), which see. As for Maygate
358 HISTORY OF U.P. CONGREGATIONS
congregation, at a meeting held the week after the church fell vacant they
resolved to dispose of the property, and after discharging all claims and
making three small donations they were to hand over the surplus to aid
Professor M'MichaePs people in building anew place of worship, if the work
were commenced before Whitsunday next year, and if accommodation were
required they were to be invited to worship along with them. The rest is
given under the heading of Gillespie and Maygate United.
DUNFERMLINE, GILLESPIE CHURCH (RELIEF)
DUNFERMLINE, we have seen, became a stronghold of the Secession almost
from the beginning, and fifteen years later it formed the cradle of the Relief.
The majority of the Presbytery were strong on the An ti- Patronage side and
in favour of evangelical doctrine, and had long been so. Mr Wilson of Perth
at the close of his theological course came from the West to receive licence
at their hands, and spoke of them as " an honest Presbytery." Now seven
of their number took a firm stand against the intrusion of a minister into the
parish of Inverkeithing, as will be related in its own place. This was the
origin, not only of Gillespie Church, but of the Relief denomination.
First Minister. — THOMAS GILLESPIE, a native of Duddingston. After
his literary course was finished he studied theology at Northampton under
Dr Doddridge, and was ordained as a minister at large on 22nd January
1741 by him and a group of his Dissenting brethren. Returning to Scotland
he received a presentation to the parish of Carnock from Colonel Erskine,
whose son, Dr Erskine of Greyfriars, Edinburgh, continued his friend during
his life and the guardian of his memory after his death. The offence for
which Thomas Gillespie was thrust out of connection with the Established
Church and made a Dissenter against his will belongs to the history of
Inverkeithing congregation. Enough to remark here that in urging sentence
of deposition for a warning to all concerned Mr Robertson of Gladsmuir,
afterwards Principal Robertson of Edinburgh, came to the front in the
General Assembly for the first time. His argument, of course, was that
conscience is not to be held as an excuse for ministers refusing to obey the
dictates of their ecclesiastical superiors. It introduced a principle which was
to supersede the device of " riding committees " and form a new development
in the reign of Moderatism. On the following Sabbath Mr Gillespie
preached in the open air to a large, far-gathered congregation from the
text : " Necessity is laid upon me ; yea, woe is unto me if I preach not
the gospel."
As the season advanced and winter was drawing on Mr Gillespie re
moved to Dunfermline, three miles to the east, to the shelter of a barn, in
which Ralph Erskine had preached while Queen Anne Street Church was in
course of erection. There a congregation was organised, consisting partly
of his Carnock parishioners and partly of sympathisers in the town, and for
nine years he remained out of all ecclesiastical connection, bearing even the
heavy burden of communion services unaided. In this state matters con
tinued till he found a coadjutor in the Rev. Thomas Boston of Jedburgh.
It was hoped for a time that the sentence of deposition would be uplifted,
but attempts in that direction were always defeated in the Assembly, though
on one occasion by a majority of only 65 to 61. For himself, he took up the
passive attitude, leaving friends to work for him as they best could. But an
outside position was firmly taken up on 22nd October 1761, when Gillespie
and Boston, with an elder from each of their sessions, formed themselves
into a Presbytery at Colinsburgh for the ordination of Mr Thomas Colier.
PRESBYTERY OF DUNFERMLINE AND KINROSS 359
This was the hoisting of the " Relief" banner, with the promise of help to
congregations suffering under the oppressive law of patronage.
With the new society all went well for years, but strife came, and
practical severance into two opposing companies for a time. Gillespie found
himself in keen conflict with several of his brethren on two questions. On
the one hand he was resolved on refusing to admit the Rev. Alexander Pirie,
whom the congregation of Blairlogie were fixed on calling, and whom he
believed to be unsound on essentials, into fellowship with the Relief Presby
tery ; and, on the other hand, he was bent on having Mr James Cowan
ordained at Colinsburgh, whom Baine and others were averse to receive
owing to his narrow communion principles. But this subject is reserved for
separate treatment. Worn out with oppressive labours he died, io.th January
1774, in the sixty-sixth year of his age and the thirty-third of his ministry.
His wife's name was Margaret Riddell, who survived till 27th April 1787.
His principal work is " A Treatise on Temptation," which was published by
Dr Erskine of Greyfriars in 1774 with a laudatory estimate both of the book
and of its author.
Second Minister. — JAMES SMITH, said in Scott's fasti to have been from
Leslie. The call was not harmonious, as we find from a complaint which
came before the Synod in May 1777 against it being sustained. The deed
of the Presbytery was confirmed, whereupon a commissioner protested, and
declared they would trouble the Relief Synod no more but would appeal to
a civil court or to whatever court they thought proper. Mr Smith was
ordained soon after, but the precise date cannot be discovered. The church
in which the congregation now met they had built for themselves the year
before, with 520 sittings. In 1783 Mr Smith published " Historical Sketches
of the Relief Church," in which he animadverted keenly on the defections of
the Establishment, not foreseeing that in less than nine years he was to be
seeking and finding admission within her walls. This was followed in 1788
by "A Discourse on the Necessity, Nature, and Design of Christ's Suffer
ings," a publication which brought him into trouble. But while the case was
pending he was called to Dundee (Chapelshade), and on 27th May 1790 he
was loosed from Dunfermline.
Third Minister. — HENRY FERGUS, M. A., from Cumbernauld. Licensed
by the Relief Presbytery of St Ninians, 25th March 1788, having been intro
duced to that court by Mr Dun of Kilsyth. Ordained, 7th October 1790,
the stipend being ^65 in all. With his pen Mr Fergus did not confine him
self to pulpit preparation, but in 1810 he published a book on "The Laws
and Institutions of Moses," and after obtaining a colleague he widened out
as an author. First came in 1830-2 a "History of the Western World:
United States," in two volumes, and, finally, in 1833 a book of much merit on
" The Being, Perfections, and Government of God." ,
Fourth Minister. — CHARLES WALDIE, from Kelso (East). Ordained as
colleague to Mr Fergus, 3rd June 1830. The senior minister was to have
,£70, with the manse, and his colleague ^80, to be increased to ,£90 or ,£100
according to ability. On igth August 1834 Mr Waldie was loosed from his
charge on accepting a call to Dalkeith (now King's Park).
Fifth Minister. — NEIL M'MiCHAEL, M.A., from Kilmarnock (King
Street). Having declined St Ninians he was ordained as Mr Fergus'
second colleague, iith August 1835. He was to have ^100 meanwhile,
which was to be raised to £130, with house and garden, should he become
sole pastor. Mr Fergus died, 4th July 1837, in the seventy-third year of his
age and forty-seventh of his ministry. In 1841 Mr M'Michael was ap
pointed Professor of Systematic Theology by the Relief Synod, and at the
Union with the Secession in 1847 he was transferred to the Chair of
360 HISTORY OF U.P. CONGREGATIONS
Ecclesiastical History. The lectures he delivered in this latter capacity
presented a large amount of valuable information in a memorable way.
GILLESPIE AND MAYGATE (UNITED)
MAYGATE congregation being now vacant the people, instead of attempting
another minister, went in with Mr Gibson's designs, and on 2nd August 1847
Professor M'Michael informed the Presbytery that, at their kind request, he
and his congregation had removed to Maygate Chapel till their own new
place of worship should be built. On 8th March 1848 a joint meeting of the
two congregations was held, when each of them by a unanimous show of
hands " declared their willingness to be united into one under the ministry
of the Rev. Professor M'Michael, and to bear the name of North Chapel
Street congregation." On the I4th the Presbytery gave their cordial sanction
to the union, and Maygate was dropped from the roll of congregations. The
new church, built at a cost of ^1600, was opened on Sabbath, 4th November
1849, when the collection amounted to fully ^240. In 1866 the debt on the
church was cleared off. Professor M'Michael had the degree of D.D. con
ferred on him by St Andrews University in 1850, and on gth June 1869 he
was presented with a gift of ^1600, partly in recognition of his services to
the denomination in connection with the Aged Ministers' Scheme. He died,
3rd April 1874, in the sixty-seventh year of his age and thirty-ninth of his
ministry. Besides an able professorial lecture on " Hildebrand and his Age"
Dr M'Michael left behind him a volume of lectures on " The Pilgrim Psalms."
A few months after his death the congregation called Mr Daniel M'Lean to
be his successor, but he preferred Alloa (Townhead).
Second Minister. — JOHN W. DUNBAR, M.A., from Ecclefechan. Or
dained at Wolverhampton, 2ist August 1873, having previously declined a
call to Durham. Inducted to Gillespie Church, 24th March 1875, the stipend
to be ^310, with a manse, which was superseded in 1878 by another, which cost
,£1600. The membership at the close of 1879 was 4°°- In March 1884
Mr Dunbar declined a call to Blackheath, London, but on 26th November
he accepted another to St James' Place, Edinburgh. Half-a-year after this
Gillespie congregation called the Rev. David Woodside, Stromness, who de
clined, and in a few months was translated to Woodlands Road, Glasgow.
Third Minister. — THOMAS E. MILLER, M.A., from Bell Street, Dundee.
Ordained, gth December 1885. At the close of 1899 there were 555 names
on the communion roll, and the stipend was .£310, with the manse as before.
CAIRNEYHILL (ANTIBURGHER)
ON 6th August 1747, four months after the Breach, six of Ralph Erskine's
elders petitioned the Antiburgher Synod for a minister to hold session with
them. Compliance was delayed till the meeting in April 1748, when
Mr Mair of Muckart was appointed to preach at Dunfermline and intimate
the sentence passed against their minister. It seems to have been in the
western district of the congregation that most of those who took the Anti-
burgher side were located, and it was at Cairneyhill that they found their
centre of gravity. A praying society in Torryburn had acceded to the
Associate Presbytery on ist November 1737, and others followed on I4th
May 1740 from that parish and the parish of Culross. They craved gospel
ordinances for themselves, but were placed under the pastoral care of Ralph
Erskine. Probably they had never coalesced properly with his congregation,
PRESBYTERY OF DUNFERMLINE AND KINROSS 361
and now they passed over to the Antiburghers and entered on separate
existence. The name which appears in the Minutes is Torryburn at first,
but, the church being at Cairneyhill, on the other side of the line which
divides that parish from Carnock, the name of this village is introduced
instead. In general, however, the designation is the congregation of Dun-
fermline, though that town is three miles distant to the north-east. The
place of worship was built in 1752, with sittings for 400.
First Minister.— JAMES BURT, from Leslie (West). The call was signed
by 62 male members and "6 women who were heads of families." It was
a point stretched in favour of female rights, as it must have been felt hard
to keep widows with their children outside all connection with the formation
of the pastoral bond. Mr Burt was ordained, gth April 1755, and was loosed
from his charge some time in the summer of 1788, but in the absence of
Presbytery Minutes we can give no particulars. At this time the families
that used to walk out from Dunfermline to Cairneyhill were disjoined and
formed into a congregation by themselves, though the mother church could
ill afford to lose them. We only know further that Mr Burt died at Dun
fermline on 1 2th August 1791, in the seventy-fifth year of his age and thirty-
seventh of his ministerial life. In choosing a successor the congregation
joined issue with Burntisland for Mr David Ross, but the latter was pre
ferred.
Carnock, the parish at whose south-west extremity Cairneyhill is situated,
claims a passing notice. There the Rev. James Hog, the most prominent
of the twelve Marrow men, laboured from 1699 till his death, i4th May 1734,
five months after the Associate Presbytery was formed at Gairney Bridge.
There is no reason to suppose that he would have seceded, and joined the
Erskines, though his life had been prolonged, and no accessions were given
in to the Associate Presbytery from the parish of Carnock. It was here also
that Thomas Gillespie was minister, so that Carnock was in a sense the
cradle of the Relief Church, though the cause was transferred in its early
infancy to the town of Dunfermline. In 1781 the Antiburghers, with their
centre at Cairneyhill, had 143 examinable persons within the bounds of this
parish, the Burghers 103, and the Relievers 52.
Second Minister. — THOMAS BLAIR, from Clerk's Lane, Kilmarnock. The
call was signed by 77 male members and 16 male adherents. When a
preacher Mr Blair was missioned to North Carolina, but he did not go, and
the Synod having afterwards preferred Cairneyhill to Strathaven (First)
he was ordained there, I3th September 1791. His first wife was a daughter
of Professor Moncrieff of Alloa, but by her death he was left a widower on
22nd December 1802. Ten years after this he brought himself into trouble
through inebriety, and he was loosed from his charge, I4th May 1813. He
then removed to Ayrshire, where the Presbyteries both of Glasgow and
Kilmarnock dealt with his case, and in September 1818 he petitioned to be
restored to Church fellowship and employed occasionally as a preacher.
Kilwinning session was asked to report as to his walk and conversation, but
the sentence of suspension was never uplifted. He died at Stevenston after
an illness of two days on 8th September 1820, in the fifty-seventh year of
his age.
Third Minister.-— JOHN MORE, from Buchlyvie. Ordained, i3th Sep
tember 1814. The call was signed by 44 (male) members. Some years after
this, the stipend never reaching ,£100, Mrs More, who was a daughter of
Professor Paxton, opened a seminary for young ladies, which came to be
widely known, and helped the family out of money difficulties. The U.P.
Magazine for 1887 gives a lifelike picture of Cairneyhill as it used to be, in
an article entitled " Memorials of a Fifeshire Manse," by Mr W. J. Slowan,
362 HISTORY OF U.P. CONGREGATIONS
Glasgow, Mr More's son-in-law. In 1837 the stipend was .£96, with house,
garden, and a glebe of two acres. The communicants numbered 250, and of
those under Mr More's care, young and old, there were 400 residing in
Carnock parish, 106 in Torryburn, 45 in Dunfermline, 35 in Culross, and 8 in
Saline. The debt still resting on the property was ^300. Year after year
went past at Cairneyhill amidst ministerial and educational activity, till, as
age advanced, the slowing down came. On 3rd August 1864 Mr More's
jubilee was celebrated, when he was presented, among other marks of
respect, with 580 sovereigns. Two years after this his life companion died,
and his own retirement from active duty was arranged for. In July 1866
the congregation called Mr James M. Copland, afterwards of Catrine, who
declined.
Fourth Minister.— D\\ ID BORLAND, M.A., from London Road, Glasgow.
Ordained as colleague to Mr More, 24th July 1867. The stipend from the
people was to be ,£120, and Mr More's retiring allowance, besides the manse,
was to be ^30 a year, or .£25 with the glebe. He died, 2nd January 1868,
in the eightieth year of his age and fifty-fourth of his ministry. His son, the
Rev. John More of Alloa (West), predeceased him by some years ; but he
left three sons-in-law U.P. ministers — the Revs. James Young, Dunfermline ;
William Reid, Newton-Stewart; and Joseph Corbett, Kilcreggan, now Dr Cor-
bett, Glasgow. Mr Borland's connection with Cairneyhill came to a close
on 6th June 1876. The congregation reported that they could not pay the
stipend they had promised, and they would not allow the property to be
further burdened to meet money requirements. It was an indirect way of
bringing disagreements between them and their minister to an end. The
Presbytery met at Cairneyhill six days after to institute inquiries, but Mr
Borland anticipated their proceedings by resigning his charge, and it was
agreed that this superseded all need for investigation. On the 2oth, money
matters having been arranged, and no objections offered, the resignation was
accepted and Cairneyhill pronounced vacant. Mr Borland's name appeared
on the roll of probationers in October following, but unpleasantness arose,
and it was withdrawn at his own request in April 1878, as he had obtained
an educational post in Newcastle, and was about to join the Established
Church. At the General Assembly in 1879 he was admitted, and is at
present a probationer residing in Edinburgh.
Fifth Minister. — JOHN Mom, B.D., from Glasgow (now Woodlands
Road). Ordained on a unanimous call, 3oth November 1876, after declining-
calls to Belfast and Campbelltown (Ardersier). At this time there were 116
names on the communion roll, and the stipend from the people was ,£90,
with manse and garden. For eighteen years the work went on smoothly
and successfully, but illness came, and Mr Moir died, 4th July 1895, in the
forty-eighth year of his age and nineteenth of his ministry.
Sixth Minister. — WILLIAM FORBES, from Aberdeen (Charlotte Street).
Ordained, i6th October 1895. The membership at the close of 1899 was 144,
and the stipend from the people ,£90, with the manse.
INVERKEITHING (BURGHER)
ON 6th May 1752 the Burgher Presbytery of Perth and Uunfermline received
a petition from town councillors, heads of families, and others, to the number
of 127 or thereby, and several in addition adhered at next meeting, declaring
their accession to the Act and Testimony, and craving to be taken under
their inspection. On gth June the petition was renewed, and Messrs Ralph
Erskine and John Swanston were appointed to observe a Fast at Inverkeith-
PRESBYTERY OF DUNFERMLINE AND KINROSS 363
ing on Wednesday, the lyth. The time would be deemed suitable for such
an observance, as an obnoxious presentee was to be inducted into the parish
church on the following day. On 1 2th December a number of earlier Seceders
in the parishes of Inverkeithing, Dalgety, and Aberdour were disjoined from
Dunfermline and annexed to the new formation on the ground that it would
be convenient for them, and would also strengthen and encourage their
brethren in the place. In the following year a church was built, with sittings
for 600, which was afterwards enlarged to accommodate other 200.
The circumstances which led to this new formation were the presentation
of the Rev. Andrew Richardson of Broughton to the parish of Inverkeithing
three years before and the enforcing of his settlement by the courts of the
Church in the face of strong resistance. It was urged on behalf of the
presentee that he had the landed interest on his side and the majority of
the legal callers, besides 22 heads of families. On the other hand, there was
only one elder in a submissive mood, and 150 heads of families declared
themselves hostile. But the Commission of Assembly kept to their point,
and ordered the induction to go on. On the day appointed only 3
members of Presbytery appeared, and it had been decreed in order to test
obedience that not fewer than 5 were to make a quorum. Six of the
absentees gave in a representation at the bar of the Assembly, in which they
pleaded the claims of conscience as their reason for non-compliance. Being
dealt with one by one each kept his ground with more or less of firmness,
and the Rev. Thomas Gillespie of Carnock read a paper for himself, vindi
cating the attitude he had taken up by reference to former Acts of Assembly
bearing on the grievance of patronage. It had been previously carried by
93 votes to 65 that one of the six should be deposed, and now " after prayer
for light and direction" Mr Gillespie was fixed on as the victim by 52 votes
against 4, which were spread out over 4 of the other offenders, 102 declining
to take part. This, it need not be stated, proved the origin of the Relief
denomination. Three of the other culprits having refused to yield a hair's-
breadth were deprived of their seats in Presbytery, Synod, and Assembly for
the offence, and were left in that state for thirteen years. We return now to
the history of the Burgher congregation at Inverkeithing.
First Minister. — DAVID FORREST, from the parish of West Calder and
the congregation of Torphichen, or West Lothian. Mr Forrest's preacher and
ministerial life was filled with contendings of which he has given a full and
particular account in Memoirs written by himself and published the year
after his death. He tells how he was appointed by the Synod to Stow in
preference to Midholm, or Selkirk rather, but refused to submit, holding that
Church courts had no more right to thrust a congregation upon a minister
than they had to thrust a minister upon a congregation. Rebuke failed to
change his purpose, and in hopes that his obstinacy would prevail Midholm
renewed their call. But meanwhile Inverkeithing had come forward and
secured his favour, and, though he was still under the Synod's decree to be
ordained at Stow, Dunfermline Presbytery allowed him to accept Inver
keithing. His ordination was fixed for 2gth January 1755, but when the
appointed day came commissioners were present from Midholm to protest
against the proceedings going on. The Presbytery none the less went
forward with the work, and though the Synod in May found them censur
able the ordination was sustained. But Mr Forrest ten years after this got
into worse trouble. When the famous Stirling Case was going on he turned
his weapons of warfare against Mr Robert Campbell, and got the object of
his antipathy rebuked by the Synod, but he brought the same censure upon
himself for the course he had followed and the spirit he had manifested.
He then libelled his neighbour, Mr Smith of Dunfermline, for failure to
364 HISTORY OF U.P. CONGREGATIONS
assist him at his communion, and, as he alleged, for playing fast and loose
with his promise. Confusion got worse confounded, and on gth July 1771
a friend in that locality wrote to the Rev. George Lawson of Selkirk as fol
lows : — " It is hardly thought that Messrs Smith and Forrest will ever be
brought to an agreement. The latter seems to set himself in opposition
to all terms of reconciliation, and is supposed to have his head towards
another party." But his congregation kept by him, and on 23rd July they gave
in a paper in his favour signed by 468 members. John Birrell of Kinness-
wood was present at that meeting, and, as he entered in his note-book, " saw
Mr Forrest protest and go off." He seems to have been a man on whom
threats and blandishments were alike thrown away, and on 3rd September
1772 he was suspended for contumacy and, we may add, general unruliness.
Three years after this a petition came up from Inverkeithing to the Synod
craving a conference, or the appointment of a committee, that they might
get at the difference between Mr Forrest and his brethren. But his troubled
course was now wearing to an end, and he died, 25th January 1776, in the
fifty-third year of his age and twenty-first of his ministry. In his Memoirs
he makes much of alleged defections on the Synod's part from their avowed
principles, and maintains among other things equally perverse that they did
not make the Word of God the only rule of faith and manners, because when
he was being dealt with they appointed three of their number to seats in the
Presbytery, thereby making it "a hotch-potch court." He also condemns
them for maintaining against the Reformed Presbytery that infidelity doth
not make void the magistrate's legal authority nor free the people from
obedience to him. In keeping with these views he told some of his people
on his death-bed to join the Testimony among the hands of these honest
men, and was visited by two of their number, Messrs Thorburn and M'Millan,
Jun., who came to converse with him. The consequence was that a party
in the congregation joined the Reformed Presbytery, and even had a minister —
Mr Walter Grieve — ordained over them in 1779 on a stipend of ,£35, but he
seems by-and-by to have made Dunfermline his headquarters. We read
also in 1794: "They have no proper meeting-house, and are occasionally
supplied with sermon, though but seldom, by their itinerant preachers." The
bulk of the congregation, however, petitioned the Burgher Presbytery for
readmission a fortnight after Mr Forrest's death and were at once received,
and in a few months they were ripe for a moderation.
Second Minister. — ADAM SELKIRK, from Blackfriars, Jedburgh. Or
dained, 25th December 1776, the stipend to be the same as Mr Forrest had.
How Dr George Brown and Dr M'Kelvie came to state that Mr Selkirk was
suspended for refusing to collect for the Synod Fund, and remained out of
connection till his death, is utterly inexplicable. The Minutes of Presbytery
are complete for that period, and they contain no trace of any such thing.
His name also appears regularly in their sederunts, and at their meeting on
24th November 1778 it is entered that he had died that morning.
Third Minister. — EBENEZER BROWN, second son of the Rev. John
Brown of Haddington, and a full brother of the Rev. John Brown of Whit-
burn. Ordained, 24th May 1780. The stipend four years afterwards was
,£60 and a manse. In 1788 Mr Brown was called to be colleague to Mr
Campbell in Stirling, and in 1800 he was invited to remove to Shuttle Street,
Glasgow (now Greyfriars), both calls having an enormous list of signatures,
but the Synod allowed him to remain among his own people. In 1798 he
was also called to Aberdeen (St Nicholas'), but at his own decisive request
the call was withdrawn. Of Inverkeithing towards the close of Mr Brown's
ministry we read : " The minister of the parish was a large, heavily-built, and
aged man, who had been settled there for nearly fifty years. His predecessor
PRESBYTERY OF DUNFERMLINE AND KINROSS 365
filled the charge for nearly the same period. Both being what were called
Moderates, it was said that the parish had lain in weeds for a century. It
followed that the instruction of the people (adhering to the Established
Church) became a home matter." The writer, though one of their number,
adds: "The Rev. Ebenezer Brown was then living in Inverkeithing. He
was held in such veneration that even the children would advance near to
the middle of the road and take off their caps to him as he passed." In
1821, a time when presentations of the kind were little known, the inhabitants
of Inverkeithing and neighbourhood entertained Mr Brown to a public
dinner and presented him with an elegant silver tea service, value fifty
guineas, as a token of their esteem for him, and specially for his unremitting
attention to the religious instruction of the young. In this way many not
connected with his congregation testified their esteem for him and for his
services to the whole community.
Mr Brown died, 28th March 1836, in the seventy-eighth year of his age
and fifty-sixth of his ministry, having survived the ordination of his colleague
a very few months. The Secession Magazine in reporting his death spoke
of him as "having been for more than half-a-century a distinguished orna
ment of the Secession Church and as leaving behind him the reputation of
one of the most pious men, impressive preachers, and faithful pastors of his
time." His, by all accounts, was natural eloquence in glowing freshness
from the heart, so that he was broadly popular. Indeed, an old friend of
ours spoke of him as the only minister he ever knew whose preaching every
body liked. A volume of his sermons was published in 1838, with a Memoir
prefixed. Mrs Brown was Erskine Gray, a great-granddaughter of the Rev.
Ebenezer Erskine. One of their daughters was the wife of the Rev. John
Simpson, Port Maria, Jamaica, where she died of fever in 1842, and another
was the mother of the Rev. Ebenezer Brown Hill, Free Church minister, first
at Dollar and then at Lochmaben, where he died in 1883, aged fifty-five.*
Fourth Minister. — JOHN DICK FLEMING, a son of the Rev. William
Fleming of West Calder. Ordained as colleague to Mr Brown, i5th
December 1835. On becoming sole pastor his stipend was ^130, with
manse, garden, and a small park. In 1847 Mr Fleming edited a volume
of his father's sermons, accompanying them with a brief Memoir. During
his ministry and all onwards the congregation has retained a firm hold of
Inverkeithing parish. In 1867 the present manse was built at a cost of
;£8oo, besides the price of the old manse, about a fourth being obtained
from the Central Fund. Seven years after this Mr Fleming was laid aside
from public duty by protracted illness, and a colleague was felt to be
required. The stipend arrangements were made on a scale unduly liberal,
the junior minister to have ^200, and the senior ,£100, with the manse, and
each of them ^5 in name of expenses.
Fifth Minister. — THOMAS SCLATER, M.A., from Sanday, Orkney. Called
also to South Ronaldshay, and ordained as colleague and successor to Mr
Fleming, I5th April 1875. In 1882 Mr Fleming's allowance was reduced
with his own consent to ,£80, and the stipend to the junior minister from the
* Their son, Mr John Erskine Brown, who wrote his father's Memoir, received
licence in 1815, but not obtaining a settlement he withdrew from the probationer
list in 1820. He then gave himself to educational work, first in Haddington, then
in Moffat. He also left the Church of his fathers and joined the Baptists. On i8th
October 1869, when residing in Leith, he and his wife were knocked down by a
lorry and seriously injured. They were found lying helpless on the street, and
when the conveyance in which they were placed reached the house the lady was
dead. Mr Brown himself followed on 5th November, in the seventy-sixth year of
his aga
366 HISTORY OF U.P. CONGREGATIONS
people was fixed at ,£120 with the sanction of the Presbytery, making ,£200
in all, a sum more in keeping with the money strength of the congregation.
Mr Sclater died, 4th December 1892, in the fifty-second year of his age and
eighteenth of his ministry.
Sixth Minister. — PETER C. BRYCE, M.A., from High Street, Dumbarton.
Ordained, 6th June 1893. In view of this event Mr Fleming had intimated
that he would now renounce all claim on the congregation for the further
payment of ^80. The young minister also obtained the occupancy of the
manse by his venerable colleague removing to Glasgow, where he died,
nth October 1895, in the eighty-sixth year of his age and sixtieth of his
ministry. That day was also the fifty-second anniversary of his marriage,
his partner during that long period surviving him. The membership in
January 1900 was 289, and the stipend ^200, with the manse.
LOCHGELLY (BURGHER)
ON 23rd August 1763 a number of people in the parishes of Ballingry, Beath,
and Auchterderran petitioned the Burgher Presbytery of Dunfermline for
supply of sermon, and were received under their inspection. Two of the
nearest ministers, Messrs Swanston of Kinross and Shirra of Kirkcaldy,
were appointed to observe a Fast Day among them in the following week,
and Lochgelly, a mere village at that time, was chosen as their centre. In
February 1764 the petitioners asked to be disjoined from the several con
gregations to which they belonged ; those to the west from Dunfermline, six
miles off; those to the north-west from Kinross, at a similar distance ; those
to the south from Kirkcaldy and Burntisland, seven and eight miles respec
tively ; and those to the north-east from Leslie, seven miles distant. This
shows that Lochgelly was fitly chosen to be the seat of the new congregation.
The Secession had got footing in Auchterderran parish so early as 1741
owing to disputes over the appointment of a minister. The patron sur
rendered his rights to the legal electors, the heritors and elders conjoined.
A slight majority declared in favour of Mr Matthew Mitchell, preacher, but
the heads of families generally were bent on obtaining the Rev. Robert
Douglas of Portmoak. The Assembly took the Act of 1690 for determining
who the legal electors were, and decided unanimously that Mr Mitchell was
the rightful presentee, and his ordination followed on 2ist September of that
year. A number of the parishioners, believing that injustice had been done
them, acceded to the Associate Presbytery on gth February 1742. Prior to
this some others, as we find from the Minutes of Leslie (West), had already
sought connection with the congregation there, and now the two sections
were annexed unitedly to the Association in Kinglassie. Others must have
found their way to sister churches more conveniently situated.
At the Synod in April 1766 four calls to Mr James Moir came up for dis
posal, one of them from Lochgelly, along with a petition from a considerable
number of outsiders pleading for his settlement in that place, but Cumber-
nauld got the preference. The first church was built that year, with accom
modation for 500, a very plain structure, which served the congregation for
almost a century.
First Minister. — GEORGE WILSON, from West Linton. Ordained, gth
July 1767. Died in 1772, in the sixth year of his ministry. He was present
at Leslie ordination on i6th September, and his death was reported to the
Presbytery on 3rd November, so that the date must lie between. In the
Perth Magazine for November of that year there is a poetical effusion in
scribed to Mr Wilson's memory by John Birrell of Kinnesswood, into which
PRESBYTERY OF DUNFERMLINE AND KINROSS 367
Michael Bruce's Elegy on M'Ewan of Dundee is inserted almost bodily.
To Mr Wilson the following testimony is borne : — -
"His manners pleasant, affable, and kind,
Soft were his feelings, and humane his mind ;
For candour and benevolence approved,
By every party he was praised and loved."
Second Minister. — DAVID GREIG, from Kinross (West), a younger son of
Lethangie family. Ordained, 29th April 1773. In September 1787 Mr
Greig was chosen clerk of the Burgher Synod, an office which he retained
till his death. At the Union of 1820 he was called to the Moderator's Chair
as the oldest minister in either branch of the Secession. He died, I4th
August 1823, in the seventy-fifth year of his age and fifty-first of his ministry.
The following description of Mr Greig appeared in the Secession Magazine
for 1835 : — " In person he was unusually tall, and bulky in proportion.
Dignity and solemnity seemed to labour for the ascendency in his deport
ment. His manner in preaching was not good in itself — it was rather awk
ward and ungainly — but as a theologian he had few equals and no superior
among his contemporaries." In keeping with this the writer used to hear
him spoken of in that neighbourhood a generation after his death as "Greig
the divine." Of his pen all that remains is a Memoir of his fellow-student,
Andrew Svvanston, prefixed to the first volume of his sermons.
Third Minister. — JOSEPH SCOTT, from Selkirk. Ordained, I2th October
1824. Mr Scott was reckoned a man of great warmth and kindliness of
heart, but his social tendencies proved a snare to him. In the beginning of
1833 the congregation met several times for public worship, and there was
no one to preach to them. The Presbytery required to take up the case,
and on 24th March Mr Scott was loosed from his charge and placed under
suspension. Twenty years afterwards, having been restored to his status by
Melrose Presbytery, he emigrated to America, where he was inducted to
Blanford, Canada. He died, 22nd May 1857, in his fifty-eighth year.
Fourth Minister. — WILLIAM REID, originally from Slateford. Ordained,
1 8th February 1834. Lochgelly at this time was a village with about 650
inhabitants, and Mr Reid, like his three predecessors, had the field entirely
to himself, the parish church of Auchterderran being three miles distant.
Matters continued in this state for other twenty years, and then a Chapel of
Ease was built to meet the growing demands of an increasing population,
and this was followed by a Free church in 1860. Miners had all along been
predominant in Lochgelly, a difficult class to work among. In his preaching
Mr Reid may have been unequal, but there were times, as we well remember,
when he gave utterance to impressive strains of nervous eloquence. The
present church was opened on Sabbath, 22nd May 1864, by Dr Johnston of
Limekilns, with sittings for 450, and erected at a cost of ^1000. This was
followed in 1866 by a new manse, for which the people raised .£560, and the
Board granted ,£285, making ^845 in all. Towards the close of 1868
Mr Reid intimated to the Presbytery that owing to failure of strength he felt
himself unable for the full discharge of his ministerial duties, and the first
arrangement come to was that he should retire from active service but
retain his status as senior minister. At next meeting, however, he stated
that on reflection he was satisfied that it would be better for the interests of
the congregation that he should resign entirely, and on this footing the de
mission was accepted, 2Qth December. On leaving Lochgelly he received a
testimonial of regard, and was to have a retiring allowance of ^40 from
the congregation. He then took up his abode in Glasgow, and occasionally
368 HISTORY OF U.P. CONGREGATIONS
acted as pulpit supply almost to the end. He died, 23rd April 1888, in the
eighty-second year of his age and fifty-fifth of his ministerial life.
Fifth Minister. — JAMES BROWN, M.A., previously of Morningside,
Edinburgh. Returning to the probationer list he was called after a brief
period to Lochgelly with cordiality, and inducted, 28th July 1869. The call
was signed by 178 members and 32 adherents. The stipend was raised in
a few years to ,£170 from the congregation, besides £70 of supplement and
the manse. The membership at the close of 1899 reached 293, and the
stipend had long been ,£180, with the manse.
KINCARDINE (BURGHER)
ON 1 8th July 1775 some people in Kincardine presented a petition to the
Burgher Presbytery of Dunfermline and Perth craving relief, and "giving
an account of their destitute situation from not having the means of grace
faithfully dispensed among them," and Mr Shirra of Kirkcaldy was appointed
to preach to them on Wednesday the 26th. The parish of Tulliallan, to
which Kincardine belongs, had been favoured with the ministrations of Mr
George Mair for a course of years in the early part of the century, and the
people had shown their taste for evangelical doctrine by giving calls both to
Ralph and Ebenezer Erskine. Sermon being now obtained, and a number
of earlier Seceders being disjoined from Alloa (West) to the strengthening
of the new cause, the building of a meeting-house was proceeded with, as
appears from an application to the Synod for aid in July 1776.
First Minister. — JOHN YOUNG, who had been previously under call to
Newtown St Boswells. Ordained, igth March 1777, the stipend to be ^50,
with a house. During his ministry the congregation, though well up in
numbers, was hampered with money difficulties. In 1793 they reported
their members, and adherents above eighteen years of age, as 274. The
stipend undertaken was ,£55 in all, but their income was only ^51, and this
was ^9 short of what they required. A few years after this the session
remonstrated against the proposed change in the Formula, and when the
Breach came, a number, it is likely, withdrew and joined the Original Burgher
church in Alloa, five miles to the west, and some years after they were
formed into a congregation by themselves. In 1803 the examinable persons
above eighteen were 70 lower than before, and the funds afforded a balance
of only ^48 for the support of the gospel. On 1 6th January 1810 Mr
Young's resignation was accepted, the congregation allowing him an annuity
of .£30, which was doubled by the Synod. He died in Edinburgh, i3th
November 1817, in the forty-first year of his ministerial life. Almost im
mediately after he retired the people called the Rev. Alexander Fletcher and
mustered in large force, the call being signed by 298 members, but the
Synod without a vote continued him in Bridge-of-Teith.
Second Minister. — ALEXANDER O. BEATTIE, translated from Leslie
(East) after a brief, but very successful, ministry of four years. Inducted,
aist May 1812. In 1818 Mr Beattie was called to Miles Lane, London, but
the Synod, influenced by his own expressed preference, continued him in
Kincardine. Inspirited by this decision the congregation set about the
erecting of a new church, which was finished in the following year, with
sittings for 750, at a cost of ^1200. In 1825 Mr Beattie received a call to
Glasgow (now St Vincent Street), and the Synod agreed to his translation
by a majority of 20, and on the second Sabbath of October he preached his
farewell sermon at Kincardine. Worship was scarcely begun when part
of the ceiling gave way and "caused a scene of consternation almost in-
PRESBYTERY OF DUNFERMLINE AND KINROSS 369
describable. By the exertions of Mr Beattie order was restored, but he was
petitioned to preach in the open air, which he did to an audience much larger
than the house could have contained. None were seriously injured."
Third Minister. — WILLIAM MONCRIEFF, from Duke Street, Glasgow.
Ordained, I4th November 1826. His ministry was a contrast to that of his
predecessor. On 24th March 1829 the Presbytery of Stirling met at
Kincardine to compose differences which had arisen between minister and
people, and they found that, though nothing affecting either character or
doctrine was involved, there had been improper temper on both sides. The
funds also had suffered, but Mr Moncrieff was willing to give ^10 yearly for
ten years to help the deficiency. The case went to the Synod, and on
5th May a committee of their number met with the Presbytery at Kincardine,
when Mr Moncrieff expressed his readiness to have all past differences
buried, but somehow the concession came too late. A majority of the
members were to leave unless the pastoral relation was severed, and at
a second meeting, on gth June, the alienation of feeling was found to be such
that there was no prospect of a reconciliation. On 23rd July the demission,
as advised, was tendered, and accepted. Arrears of stipend were to be
paid up, with ,£40 besides, and the Presbytery granted Mr Moncrieff a
certificate of full ministerial character, accompanied with kind wishes for
his future. The period allowed him was not to be long. His health was
in a broken state previously, which might partly account for his bearing
among his people, and he died at Glasgow, 2oth April 1830.
Fourth Minister. — JOHN M'FARLANE, son of the Rev. James M'Farlane,
and grandson of the Rev. Dr Husband, Queen Anne Street, Dunfermline.
Ordained, 2gth March 1831. The stipend was to be £1 18, including ^10 for
house rent, whereas at the former moderation it was ^120, with manse,
garden, and expenses. There had also been to appearance a serious re
duction in the membership, the former call being signed by 329 com
municants, and a petition not to sustain by 80 ; whereas Mr M'Farlane's,
though quite harmonious, carried only 300. In 1861 Dr M'Farlane, on
leaving Glasgow for London, spoke as follows : — " I was settled over
Kincardine, gathered and matured under the ministry of Dr Beattie, but
under his successor it was well-nigh scattered to the wind." It is clear,
however, from the 300 who signed his own call that his predecessor left in
time to prevent the full disaster. In 1838 the communicants were about 500,
and the stipend was ,£132, with manse and garden. The debt on the
property was being reduced at the rate of ,£60 or ^70 a year. Of families
connected with the congregation thirty or thereby were from the parishes of
Culross and Clackmannan. On 28th July 1840 Mr M'Farlane accepted a
call to Lauriston, Glasgow (now Erskine Church), where he was to become
largely known as Dr John M'Farlane.
Fifth Minister. — ANDREW GARDINER, M.A., from Milnathort. Having
previously rejected Greenloaning and Moyness Mr Gardiner accepted a
unanimous call to Kincardine, signed by 267 members, and was ordained,
26th May 1841. His appearance in those days and his oratorical delivery
come back vividly upon us, and also a very kindly Memoir of his fellow-
student and fellow-townsman, Mr John Shaw, which appeared in the United
Secession Magazine for 1843. The town was now in a decaying state, and
the process has gone on till the population of the parish is not more than two-
thirds of what it was when Mr M'Farlane left. On 24th February 1863
Mr Gardiner accepted a call to Dean Street, Edinburgh, where the greater
part of his ministerial life was to be spent.
Sixth Minister. — ADAM WELCH, from Galashiels (East). Having pre
ferred Kincardine to Aberdeen (Belmont Street) he was ordained there on
370 HISTORY OF U.P. CONGREGATIONS
igth January 1864. The stipend at this time was ,£130, with manse and
garden, and it was raised £20 in 1867. In 1871 Mr Welch published a
sermon, evincing much argumentative energy, on " The Spirits in Prison," a
subject suggested by certain discussions which were then going on in the
courts of the Church. On I3th May 1874 he accepted a call to Campbelltield,
Glasgow (now Whitevale), and Kincardine became vacant.
Seventh Minister. — ROBERT MUNRO, B.D., from Falkirk (now Graham's
Road). Ordained, i3th January 1875. In 1884 the church tower was sur
mounted by an illuminated clock at an expense of ^170, the gift of the late
Mr Robert Maule, Princes Street, Edinburgh, who had been a member of
Kincardine church in his younger days. Three years afterwards a hall was
built, with rooms attached, at a cost of ^600, the site and a donation of ,£100
being also given by Mr Maule. At the close of 1899 there were 205 names
on the communion roll, and the stipend from the people was ,£165, with the
manse.
LIMEKILNS (BURGHER)
ON 5th September 1782 a protest and appeal came up to Dunfermline
Burgher Presbytery from Limekilns. A large proportion of the people there
were members of Queen Anne Street Church, and they wished now to be
erected into a distinct congregation, the distance from their own place of
worship being about three miles. The disjunction, however, had been re
fused, large as the congregation was, but the Presbytery looked on the
request as reasonable, and on i6th October it was unanimously granted, and
the station was opened on the fourth Sabbath of that month. The church was
built two years after, a site having been promised by the superior of the
village at a merely nominal feu.
First Minister. — WILLIAM HADDIN, from Glasgow (now Greyfriars).
Ordained, 8th February 1785. The stipend was to be ,£50 and a house,
which would be reckoned fair for a beginning cause. Mr Haddin died, i7th
June 1820, in the thirty-sixth year of his ministry. His age he could not give
with certainty, but he was believed to have been in his sixtieth year. His
son, Mr John Haddin, got licence seventeen years after his father's death,
and comes back among our early recollections as a fairly acceptable, but not
very animated, preacher. He remained on the probationer list till 1853,
when he went over to the Baptists, and was ordained pastor of a small con
gregation in that connection in Brown Street, Glasgow. After resigning his
charge in the year 1857 he returned to the Church of his earlier days, and be
came a member of Duke Street congregation, and ultimately of Regent Place.
He died, 3rd February 1893, m trie eightieth year of his age. Among the
members of Dunfermline Presbytery, as it was in former days, his father has
been described as " the pious, meek, and affectionate Haddin, who passed
through the world with little noise, and entered heaven with much rejoicing."
The congregation in the early part of this vacancy set their hearts on Mr
James Whyte, who was then in the beginning of his popularity, but as he
had got licence a year before his time with the view of being missioned
to America the Presbytery saw difficulties in pronouncing him eligible. The
call, however, signed by 340 members and 185 adherents, being referred to
the Synod, was sustained. But in due time he declined accepting it owing
to scruples which a committee of Presbytery were unable to remove. For
one thing, some members of the congregation had struck out in opposition
to the call, and even sent up a paper of complaint against it to the Synod.
It is probable, however, that he was influenced from knowing that the mother
congregation in Dunfermline was stirring in his direction. But Limekilns
PRESBYTERY OF DUNFERMLINE AND KINROSS 371
made a further attempt to obtain Mr Whyte for their minister, and of seven
competing calls which came up to the Synod in May 1822 theirs was second
on the field, but in the end they received only eight straggling votes.
Second Minister. — WILLIAM JOHNSTON, M. A., from Biggar (Moat Park).
At the moderation 126 voted for Mr Johnston and 90 for Mr Meiklejohn,
who was for a short time minister in Greenloaning. Ordained, 27th August
1823, Limekilns being preferred to Lochwinnoch by the Synod. The
stipend at first was .£130, with a manse, though the Presbytery insisted that,
considering the strength of the congregation, it ought not to be less than
,£150, a sum which was reached after a time, and ,£10 besides. The present
church, with sittings for 1056, and built at a cost of ^2000, was opened on
Sabbath, 2oth March 1826, by Mr Johnston himself and by his former
minister, the Rev. David Smith of Biggar. In 1838 the communicants
numbered fully 500, of whom a very few were from the parishes of Inver-
keithing and Torryburn. The debt on the church, of which ^900 still
remained, was being reduced at the rate of some ,£70 year by year. In 1841
Mr Johnston was called to Eglinton Street, Glasgow, and again in 1842,
but remained in Limekilns. More tempting was the invitation he received
in 1850 to become minister of the newly-formed congregation in Shamrock
Street, and being now in his fiftieth year it was likely to be the last. On
loth February 1851 the Presbytery met in Queen Anne Street Church, Dun-
fermline, to get his decision, and Limekilns people were present in full force.
The moment he came to the announcement of his acceptance there was a
general rush towards the door. A chord was touched, and the speaker was
taken aback, and intimated that, if his brethren differed from him in judg
ment, he would willingly remain in Limekilns. At the request of the com
missioners the members expressed their opinions, and though a majority did
not feel at liberty to advise him to alter his resolution he stated that, owing
to the diversity of sentiment among them, it was now his wish and his
determination to remain. Mr Johnston two years before this had the degree
of D.D. conferred upon him by the University of Glasgow, and three years
afterwards he was appointed Moderator of Synod. On 27th August 1873
his jubilee was celebrated, when among other tokens of esteem from his
people and from the Church generally he received a presentation of 1000
guineas. In May of the following year his well-remembered face was seen
and his familiar voice heard in the Synod for the last time. At the evening
sederunt on Thursday, the I4th, when speaking on Disestablishment, he
became seriously ill, and on closing returned to his lodgings, where he died
on Sabbath, the 24th, in the seventy-fifth year of his age and fifty-first of his
ministry. He left three nephews members of the U.P. Synod — Dr John
Brown Johnston of Duke Street, Glasgow ; the Rev. Robert Johnston of
Parliamentary Road, Glasgow ; and the Rev. Thomas Boston Johnston of
Colinsburgh. Memorials of his Life and Work were published in 1876,
ample but not well compacted. He himself wrote a Memoir of his fellow-
student and co-presbyter, the Rev. Robert Brown of St Margaret's Church,
Dunfermline.
Third Minister. — JAMES G. CRAWFORD, from Dunning. Called pre
viously, and after brief intervals, to Logiealmond, Wick, and Stromness.
Ordained at Limekilns, i7th March 1875. At the moderation Mr Crawford
was carried over Mr Walter Scott, now of Stirling, by 113 to 97, but the call
was signed by 199 members and 58 adherents, so that there was substantial
harmony. The membership at the close of 1899 was within a few units of
500, and the stipend had been raised ^50 since Mr Crawford's ministry
began, making it .£250, besides the manse.
TORONTO
372 HISTORY OF U.P. CONGREGATIONS
CROSSGATES (BURGHER)
ON gth November 1802 a paper came up to the Burgher Presbytery of
Dunfermline from people in Crossgates craving supply of sermon, and
Mr Husband was appointed to preach to them on the second Sabbath of
December. On 3oth May 140 residenters declared their adherence to
Secession principles, and at the same meeting 52 members from Dun
fermline (Queen Anne Street) and 66 from Inverkeithing, who had obtained
disjunctions from their respective sessions, were formed into a congregation.
On 2 ist July three elders were ordained, and on 6th September a moderation
was granted, the stipend to be ,£100, with a house and garden, as soon as their
circumstances would allow. The church, with 530 sittings, seems to have
been built before sermon was even applied for. The first call was addressed
to the Rev. John Richardson of Freuchie, but he preferred to remain where
he was, and his wishes were unanimously given effect to by the Presbytery.
This call was signed by 41 members and 119 adherents.
First Minister. — JOHN ALLAN, M.A., from Newcastle (afterwards Barras
Bridge). Ordained, 291)1 April 1804. Mr Allan appears to have been a
man of scientific acquirements, as he delivered lectures in Dunfermline on
Chemistry and Natural Philosophy. But in little more than six years his
ministry came to an end. He died, 6th June 1810, in the thirty-eighth year
of his age.
Second Minister. — THOMAS WILSON, from the neighbouring congrega
tion of Lochgelly. Ordained, 26th November 1811. The call was signed
by 183 members and adherents. In 1838 the communicants numbered 425,
which was an increase of nearly 100 in five years. Of those under the
minister's charge, old and young, Dalgety furnished 473, and Dunfermline,
the parish to which Crossgates belongs, 430, while 199 were from Aberdour,
and 58 from Beath. In 1844 the stipend was ^108 in all, with house and
garden. About that time a debt of ,£400 resting on the property was removed,
the Board contributing one-half. In 1852 it was arranged that Mr Wilson
should have a colleague, and Mr James Skinner arrived at the manse one
Saturday afternoon as the first probationer. He tells how about ten o'clock,
when they were all sitting round the table talking, Mr Wilson began to
complain that there was something the matter with his foot. " He got up
and moved half round the table a few times and then sat down again. He
then said that the feeling was coming up his leg, and in a minute or two that
it was coming along his arm. After a short pause he tried to speak, and
said : ' I fear it is beginning to affect my speech.' We all then, as if by
instinct, saw what was coming." Conveyed to bed he became quite un
conscious, and remained in that state till half-past one in the morning,
when he died. This was on 29th August 1852. He was in the seventy-
second year of his age and forty-first of his ministry.
Third Minister. — ANDREW GRAHAME, from Kelso (First). Declined
Chapelknowe, and was ordained at Crossgates, 7th September 1853. In
1866 the manse, which had stood long, was renovated at a cost of ,£320, for
which the Board made a grant of ,£100. In 1875 there was a membership
of 262, and the stipend from the people was ^175, ios., which the supple
ment raised to .£187, ios., with the manse. In November 1885 Mr Grahame
required constant sick supply, and afterwards got leave of absence for nine
months, but without real or lasting benefit. He died, 7th November 1886, in
the sixty-fourth year of his age and thirty-fourth of his ministry. One of his
daughters was married to the Rev. Alexander Westwater, missionary to
Manchuria.* Crossgates congregation during this vacancy called Mr
* Mr Westwater was from Lochgelly. About the commencement of his student
PRESBYTERY OF DUNFERMLINE AND KINROSS 373
Robert H. Wyllie, afterwards of Hawkhill, Dundee, but as the call was signed
only by 76 members out of 178 the Presbytery did not sustain it.
Fourth Minister. — ROBERT BEGG, B.D., from Cumberland Street,
Glasgow. Ordained, i4th November 1887. At the close of 1899 the
membership was 220, and the stipend from the people ^150, with the
COWDENBEATH (UNITED PRESBYTERIAN)
EVANGELISTIC work was begun in this large mining village in February
1883 with the sanction of the Mission Board and under the auspices of
Dunfermline Presbytery. A wooden erection was available, but in November
Mr Brown of Lochgelly reported in name of the Evangelistic Committee
that they had resolved to build a brick church at a cost of ^300, with accom
modation for 300 people. It was opened on Sabbath, I3th July 1884, by Dr
Scott, the Home Mission Secretary, and within eight months Mr Brown was
able to announce that the entire outlay of ,£360 had been fully met, with the
help of ,£100 from the Mission Board. Hearty thanks were accorded to him
and to his session by the Presbytery for the energetic manner in which they
had furthered the movement from the very first. The station was now under
the care of Mr James Milroy for a few months.
First Minister. — JAMES GILMOUR, B.D., from Cairneyhill. Mr Milroy
having accepted a call to Freuchie Mr Gilmour commenced work at Cow-
denbeath as his successor towards the end of 1885. On I2th April next
year the station was congregated, with a membership of 70, about 30 of
these, including an elder, being disjoined from Lochgelly, 2 of whom went
to form the original session of 4. The organising was probably hastened
by a call from Ellon to Mr Gilmour, which he declined in response to a
pressing memorial for his continuance at Cowdenbeath. Mr Gilmour was
ordained, 7th December 1886, the stipend undertaken by the people being
.£75, with sacramental expenses. At the end of that year there were 96
names on the communion roll. A manse was completed in 1890 at a cost of
^1010. It was a time when, owing to exhausted resources, the Manse
Board could only give aid to the extent of ,£100. The new church, with
fully 500 sittings, was opened on Thursday, 25th May 1893, by Professor
Hislop, D.D., at an expense, ere all was done, of about ^2000, the Board
allowing ^200. The debt remaining was only ,£300, and it was cleared off
in a few years, with the aid of ,£150 from the Board. At the close of 1899
the congregation had a membership of 269, and contributed ^120 of the
stipend, with the prospect of reaching the self-supporting point before many
years.
KINROSS SECTION
MILNATHORT (BURGHER)
THOMAS MAIR, the founder of this congregation, was ordained minister of
Orwell parish on I7th September 1725. Authorities are at one in making-
Mr Mair the nephew of the Rev. George Mair of Culross. This relationship
is testified to in M'Crie's "Account of the Marrow Controversy," in Eraser's
course he was a devoted worker in the Grassmarket, Edinburgh, in connection with
Lauriston Place Church. He was ordained as a missionary to Chefoo, Manchuria,
on 6th September 1881, and died of fever at Moukden, iSth February 1887, in his
fortieth year. His widow is now the wife of Dr R. J. Gordon, Irish Presbyterian
Missionary, Newchwang, China.
374 HISTORY OF U.P. CONGREGATIONS
" Life of Ebenezer Erskine," in Robertson's " History of the Atonement
Controversy," in M'Kelvie's "Annals and Statistics," in Dr George Brown's
" Manuscript Records," and in Scott's Fasti. But Mr Mair's Diary, which
is in my possession, makes it abundantly evident that he was the son of Mr
Mair of Culross, the man whom Boston reckoned " one of the happy instru
ments of a more clear discovery of the doctrine of the gospel in these latter
days." It shows how the channel of historical truth gradually comes to be
choked up. Impressions take the place of facts, and blunders pass from one
writer to another till they get stereotyped. It is more surprising still to find
from the Fasti that Mr Mair was the father of three sons. One of these
is James, the first Secession minister of West Linton, who was a native of
Aberdeenshire, and no connection of the minister of Orwell. Another is
stated to have become a judge in the English circuit, and the third a colonel
in the Rifle Brigade. It is all an entire mistake. Mr Mair lived and died
childless, and William Mair, the minister of Muckart, who was without
dispute a grandson of the Rev. George Mair of Culross, we find from a legal
record was served heir to his uncle, the minister of Orwell, in 1769. This
alone would establish Mr Mair's parentage. Though expelled from Synodical
connection that is no reason for biography expelling him from his father's
family.
Mr Mair, it is well known, was present as a friend and sympathiser when
the Associate Presbytery was formed. He has recorded in his Diary, which
exists only in manuscript, how two of the brethren, Messrs Wilson and
Fisher, called on him on Tuesday, 4th December 1733, and how he accom
panied them that evening to Gairney Bridge. Then he relates how one of
the four, Mr Wilson, had difficulties about the constituting of themselves
into a Church court, and other minute and interesting particulars of that
memorable scene. During the next three years he passed through a succes
sion of mental struggles, mainly from reading " Durham on Scandal," which
made him question whether the Four Brethren, in separating from the
judicatories of the Church, were walking in the footsteps of the flock. But
his way became clear, and, with scanty approval from his session, he acceded
to the Associate Presbytery on i8th February 1737. In 1740 Mr Mair
appeared with his seven brethren, and, as their moderator, read their defence
at the bar of the General Assembly, and, like them, was laid under sentence
of deposition. His adherents, who were largely augmented from other
parishes, now set about erecting the " Muckle Kirk." This building deserved
the name it bore, though Dr M'Kelvie was mistaken in making it accommo
date 2000 sitters. We gather from the managers' books that the sittings
were about 1200. The statement is also incorrect that Mr Mair and his
adherents were expelled from the parish church in 1740, and worshipped in
the open air for the next two years. The expulsion was not effected till
1742, when the General Assembly, finding that Mr Mair, like two of his
brethren, still kept possession of " the kirk," enjoined the Presbytery of
Dunfermline to enforce the sentence of deposition and " to crave the assist
ance of the civil power if necessary." Mr Mair alludes about this time to
the loss of his legal stipend, and to a collection being made by his own
people "for his subsistence in the place," when with few exceptions they gave
liberally. Their own church was now taken possession of.
At the Breach of 1747 Mr Mair took a foremost place on the Antiburgher
side. It was he who, on the gth of April, when strife was at the hottest, read
the protest which was the signal for disruption, and left the Synod, followed
by 22 of the other members, ministers and elders, to meet next morning in
Mr Gib's house. He was also eager to proceed against his Burgher brethren
in the way of censure, and when delay on one occasion was agreed on he
PRESBYTERY OF DUNFERMLINE AND KINROSS 375
and Mr Moncrieff dissented. These things were brought up against him
many years afterwards, when altered circumstances had wrung from him
the bitter confession : " We are verily guilty concerning our brethren."
This brings us to what he called "the strange breach" between him and the
Antiburgher Synod. The heresy charged against him was that of Universal
Redemption. Fraser of Brae, whose colleague at Culross Mr Mair's father
had been, propounded a theory of his own on the subject in a "Treatise on
Justifying Faith." The Saviour, he argued, purchased by His death the
whole human race, the elect for His bride, and the non-elect for His tools.
It was as when a man buys a field ; everything within its boundaries, g.ood
or bad, is his. On this universality he sought a foundation for the unlimited
gospel offer, the preacher being entitled to tell mankind sinners without
distinction that Christ died for them.
In April 1754 the Antiburgher Synod, urged on by Adam Gib, proceeded
to condemn the book on Justifying Faith, which had recently appeared in
print, and had been powerful enough to split the Reformed Presbytery in
two. Mr Mair had special interest in that book. According to Dr M'Crie
he had been employed when a boy, " probably by his uncle," in transcribing
Fraser's work on Faith. Mr Mair's own words are these : " When the
manuscript was put into my hands I came to the distinct remembrance of
my being employed, together with my elder brother and sister, by our father,
to write a copy from the original manuscript then in his hand." This gave
the volume sacredness in his eyes, and to hear the venerable author and his
work denounced as they now were by Mr Gib was in his opinion " truly
shocking." Mr Mair pleaded that he did not subscribe to Brae's scheme of
doctrine in its entirety, but he was prepared to uphold the general ortho
doxy of his father's guide, colleague, and friend. It was very much from
knowing him to be a favourer of the book on Justifying Faith that, as Adam
Gib admits, the Synod were led to deal with the matter at all, and the
difference between them and Mr Mair widened out till in April 1757 they
deposed him from the office of the ministry. His main contention on which he
rang the changes was that in some sense Christ died for all men, and when
urged to be more definite he gave prominence to "common benefits" which
come to all through Christ's death, including even every cup of cold water
enjoyed by the unsaved. The saying, freed from technicalities, lingered in the
district for generations after Mr Mair was gone. The controversy left one
deep mark on the Antiburgher Testimony of 1804, in which the Synod con
demned "the following error, that Christ died in some sense for all men."
Mr Mair petitioned the Antiburgher Synod in April 1766 to be restored,
and expressed his resolution " to keep the unity of the spirit in the bond
of peace." The congregation in September of the following year presented
a like petition, only the initials of their minister's name being affixed, because
"owing to palsy he was unable to write." But there was no getting over
former differences, at least no gainsaying of Adam Gib's iron will, and death
intervened to end the negotiations. Mr Mair died on I4th February 1768,
in the sixty-eighth year of his age and forty-third of his ministry. To evince
his soundness in the faith nine sermons of his were published soon after,
entitled "A Covenant of Duties in no wise inconsistent with a Covenant of
Grace." They were preached years before the controversy began, and had
no bearing on the question in dispute.
Tired of knocking in vain at the door of the Antiburgher Synod some of
the leading men in the congregation, including the father of Michael Bruce
the poet, went down to Kirkcaldy, to the Burgher Presbytery of the bounds,
with a verbal request for sermon, which was granted without the slightest
compunction as to their soundness in the faith. The tide had been tending
376 HISTORY OF U.P. CONGREGATIONS
in this direction since the day when Mr Mair went home from the Synod
which deposed him, saying : " We are verily guilty concerning our brethren."
But his people had to be tutored for the transition from the Antiburghers to
the Burghers by a succession of struggles and rebuffs, and they were not into
smooth waters even yet. The first they called in their new connection was
the Rev. George Thomson of Rathillet, whose antecedents are given under
their proper heading. Mr Thomson used to be spoken of in Orwell locality
as a disciple of Mr Mair's, and there was now a strong resolve to have him
for Mr Mair's successor. The moderation day came, and he was carried
oves the Rev. George Coventry of Stitchel, but there was no opposition
made to the sustaining of the call. Among members of Presbytery, however,
there may have been an undercurrent of aversion to have Mr Mair's angu
larities of doctrine perpetuated at Milnathort, and after some delay the call
was set aside, on the ground that the boundaries between the congregations
of Milnathort and Kinross ought first to have been determined. The effect
of this arrangement was that those families to the north of Quiech water, who
had formerly attended at Kinross, including a large branch from Portmoak
parish, were disjoined and hooked on to Milnathort. The opposition to Mr
Thomson was thus strengthened, and matters were brought very near a
deadlock. However, at a second moderation Mr Thomson was again suc
cessful, the opposing candidate being Mr Low of Biggar. The question of
doctrine was now dragged in, and the Synod confirmed the decision of the
Presbytery refusing to translate. A third call was afterwards brought out for
Mr Thomson, the minority's candidate on this occasion being Mr William
Ballantyne, afterwards of Dundee, and in spite of all efforts to harmonise
them " the two parties seemed fixed in their different purposes." But little
turned the balance now, and at a congregational meeting, the opposition
having mustered strong, it was decided by a majority of votes to drop the
protest against the non-sustaining of the third call and apply for another
moderation.
Second Minister. — THOMAS PORTEOUS, from Biggar (now Moat Park).
The intention was to call Mr George Lawson, and he would have been well
content to go, but Selkirk had intervened, and at the moderation the elders
from Kinross church, "who had quit Mr Lawson," nominated Mr Porteous,
and Mr Thomson's friends found themselves outnumbered. The carrying out
of the call was argued against in the Synod — Alexander Bruce leading the
forlorn hope — but opposition was baffled, and the Presbytery enjoined " to
expede the settlement." Two months after that decision Mr David Greig,
afterwards minister of Lochgelly, wrote from Kinross to his bosom friend at
Selkirk as follows : — " Whether Mr Porteous will come to Orwell is doubtful.
His opposers are as violent as ever, and their minds are so soured with pre
judice that there is little ground to expect that they will ever be brought to
a submission." Mr Porteous was easily annoyed, and "he reckoned himself
most unfit to go there in the midst of a flame which neither Presbytery nor
Synod had been able to quench." Hence there was delay month after month,
but the Presbytery was bent on going forward, and the ordination took place
on 23rd October 1771. That morning the managers met, and "after reason
ing the majority agreed to close the church doors, which was done accord
ingly." Having thus stopped the usual way of access they had no right to
complain, as they did in a pamphlet of theirs, that the callers, " instead of
entering in a decent and Christian manner by the door, like thieves and
robbers broke in by the window." Their contention was that, by an un
worthy artifice of the Presbytery, Mr Mair's congregation had lost the man
of their choice, and it is true that only one elder of what had been Mr Mair's
session signed the call to Mr Porteous, We also find that in June 1773 a
PRESBYTERY OF DUNFERMLINE AND KINROSS 377
number of Orwell people applied for sermon to the Cameronian Presbytery,
and this was the origin of a little congregation in that connection, which after
meeting for a time in Milnathort built a church and had a minister in the
village of Kinnesswood.
Mr Porteous by his fidelity and pulpit power attached many to his
ministry who had resisted and resented his settlement. But towards the
end of the century Orwell congregation got into convulsions on the subject
of the magistrate's power. The proposal to modify the Formula Mr Porteous
along with another minister attempted to keep out of the Synod altogether,
and he continued a consistent supporter of Old Light views to the end. His
session, though not with unanimity, presented a petition to Dunfermline
Presbytery in 1797 for transmission to the Synod, but they refused to send it
on because it contained grievous personal charges against two of the advocates
of innovation, Messrs Dick and Lawson, and the Synod sustained the action
of the Presbytery. It was a time when embittered feeling expressed itself
with painful emphasis in Orwell pulpit, as oral testimony bore. It also was
clear on this, that when the crisis was coming on Mr Porteous at a con
ference with some of his brethren was about to give them his right hand in
token of reconciliation when James Deas, his leading elder, struck in with a
remonstrance. This proved the touching of the points at the parting of the
ways, and kept Mr Porteous on Old Light lines. It was better, as a dis
ruption in his congregation was inevitable either way, and had he remained
with the Synod Balgedie congregation might never have existed. But it
was not till August 1800 that he sent in his declinature, which was ten
months after the New Presbytery was formed. John Birrell of Kinnesswood,
who was one of his elders, wrote in January of that year that he seemed dis
satisfied with the Old Light ministers because they were employing Mr
Williamson, formerly of St Andrews, " who is blamed for some irregularities
in his life." Thus Mr Porteous may have been kept halting between two
opinions month after month, but on 2ist January 1801 he, along with five of
his elders, acceded to the Original Burgher Presbytery. His congregation
was reduced at that time by the loss of a large branch from Portmoak parish,
and by families about Milnathort who withdrew and connected themselves
with Kinross (West).
Mr Porteous died, on nth November 1812, in the sixty-ninth year of
his age and forty-second of his ministry. In his Autobiography Dr Hay of
Kinross recorded : " Mr Porteous was a godly and faithful minister, bold,
zealous, and indefatigable in his Master's work, and I am fully persuaded
that he has gone to be for ever with the Lord. He was somewhat irascible
in temper, but every minister on earth is compassed with infirmity." Of the
congregation we may state further that Mr James Thornton, from Glasgow,
was ordained as successor to Mr Porteous on 27th August 1816. The
church was rebuilt on a greatly reduced scale in 1821, so that it was no
longer the " Muckle Kirk." In 1837 the communicants numbered 300,
whereas the rival Secession congregation in the place had 485. In 1839 Mr
Thornton united, like most of his brethren, with the Church of Scotland,
taking almost the entire congregation with him, but they left at the Dis
ruption. About 1847 some trouble arose in connection with a discipline
case in which the minister made a resolute stand for the accused, much to
the offence of a party in the congregation. On the afternoon of a communion
Sabbath at that time the writer remembers how a troop of malcontents
looked down on the whole proceedings from the front of the gallery and
how Mr Thornton spoke at the close from the words : " I will not drink
henceforth of this fruit of the vine until that day when I drink it new with
you in My Father's kingdom," It was the only time he ever heard him
378 HISTORY OF U.P. CONGREGATIONS
speak, and he recalls his unique delivery, the voice raised on the last syllable
of each sentence. A colleague had now to be got to do the work. The
first was the Rev. John Henderson, afterwards of Port-Glasgow, then the
Rev. (now Dr) Walter C. Smith, who remained there for eight years be
tween his first charge in London and his third in Roxburgh Church, Edin
burgh. It accounts for a volume of his poems appearing under the name of
"Orwell" and for his present abode near Dunblane being similarly known.
He was succeeded in 1859 by the Rev. Alexander Mitchell, M.A. Mr
Thornton died on 3rd September 1874, in the eighty-third year of his age
and fifty-ninth of his ministry. Mr Mitchell died in 1882, and was succeeded
by the Rev. Alexander M. Sutherland, now of Trinity Church, Leith. The
minister at the Union was the Rev. R. W. M'Naughton, M.A., and the
membership of the congregation was 154.
MILNATHORT (ANTIBURGHER)
WHEN Mr Mair of Orwell was before the Antiburgher Synod for heresy in
August 1756 the Scots Magazine in reporting the proceedings says : " Several
of Mr Mair's hearers, some of them elders, having come to see the issue of
matters were surprised at his behaviour and the tenets advanced by him,
and have since deserted his ministry." This testimony is confirmed by an
entry in the managers' books at the Martinmas term, from which it appears
that seat-letters were needed, some of their number having ceased to attend.
More explicit still, it is stated in June 1757 that several of the principal pews
were unlet, those who formerly possessed them having gone off from hearing
with them, and the managers were ordered to let these sittings as occasion
might serve. By this time the party opposed to Mr Mair must have got
sermon from the Antiburgher Presbytery of Perth and Dunfermline, and
from the latter part of 1756 we may date the origin of this congregation.
In October 1759 they petitioned the Synod for ordained ministers to preach
to them, in respect of their peculiar situation, and to a large extent this was
arranged for.
First Minister. — JAMES RUSSELL, from Dennyloanhead. Called also
to the congregation of Crieff and Comrie, but Milnathort was preferred.
Ordained, 3rd April (not 3oth) 1764, and that same year the church was
opened. The signatures at the call amounting to 120 (male) members gives
a favourable view of the congregation's strength at this early stage. Mr
Russell was called to Burntisland in 1768, but without a contradictory voice
he was continued in Milnathort. In his case what seems to have been an
effective ministry came to a troubled close. In January 1784 Mr Russell,
who was a widower, was married to the daughter of a respectable family
in the town, who had been his housekeeper, but there were circumstances
which rendered his deposition from office imperative. The Antiburgher
Synod in the following September instructed the Presbytery of Kirkcaldy
to deal with him from time to time, and restore him to Church fellowship
should they see fit. He withdrew, however, from their communion and
placed himself under the ministry of his neighbour, the Rev. Thomas
Porteous, Burgher minister in the town, and great, we have heard, was the
surprise of the congregation when he first appeared as a worshipper in the
" Muckle Kirk," Mr Porteous and he having been long on terms of unfriendly
rivalry. He afterwards removed to a property of his own at Longcroft, near
Dennyloanhead, where he joined the Burgher congregation of Cumbernauld,
and held office as an elder. That congregation having acceded to the
Original Burgher Presbytery, his son, Mr John Russell, became a preacher
PRESBYTERY OF DUNFERMLINE AND KINROSS 379
in that connection, and having received calls from seven vacancies he was
ordained at Kirkintilloch in 1819, and died, 25th February 1824, in the thirty-
sixth year of his age and fifth of his ministry. Mr Russell himself returned
ultimately to his native congregation at Dennyloanhead, and died in 1835, in
the ninety-seventh year of his age. His third wife was a sister of the Rev.
William Bruce of South Shields, and one of his daughters was married to
the Rev. James Harrower of Denny, and another to the Rev. Peter M'Master,
Established Church, Girvan. In 1790 he published a volume, entitled
" Miscellaneous Essays and Discourses by James Russell, Schoolmaster."
Second Minister. — ANDREW IMRIE, from Ceres (West). Ordained, 24th
August 1785. Eleven years after this the congregation suffered a large
reduction by the formation of Kinross (East), which cost them the loss of
200 members.
Third Minister. — ALEXANDER W. LESLIE, from Dunfermline (Chalmers
Street). Ordained as colleague to Mr Imrie, 25th August 1807. The call
to Mr Leslie is before me, signed by 126 members, all men, and probably
most of them heads of families. In 1816 the church underwent a second
enlargement, so as to give 650 sittings. The old minister towards the close
of the collegiate relation is described by Dr Sommerville in his Autobio
graphy as "tall, thin, and gaunt, with a feeble voice and a slow delivery."
What follows may account for the appointment of a second minister when
Mr Imrie was only threescore, and the people had no superabundance of
wealth at their command. " He was far from popular except with a few,
of whom my father was one." To bring out the old man's merits was now
Andrew Sommerville's endeavour. We may picture to ourselves the fair-
haired youth on Monday at the breakfast hour reciting to a group of Mil-
nathort weavers the substance of the lecture Mr Imrie had given them from
the Song of Solomon on the preceding forenoon, drawing from them the
acknowledgment, " That is excellent," and making him " more popular than
he had been for many years." But the end was at hand now, and Mr Imrie
died after a short illness on 8th July 1819, in the seventy-second year of his
age and thirty-fourth of his ministry.
Mr Leslie, who had hitherto lived in his own hired house, now got pos
session of the manse. In 1837 he had a membership of 485. Of neighbour
ing parishes Arngask furnished six or seven families, and Portmoak still
sent in four or five. Mr Leslie was specially esteemed for pastoral work,
which gave him a warm hold of his people's affections. He died, 25th
November 1848, in the sixty-ninth year of his age and forty-second of his
ministry. His son John got licence in 1835, a°d had his name on the
preachers' list till 1847. He was then laid aside from preaching by a
mental malady, a visitation which distressed his father beyond measure,
if it did not shorten his days. Restoration came, but John never resumed
work again. He died, 2nd April 1867, aged fifty-eight.
Seven months after Mr Leslie's death Dr Hay of Kinross also passed
away, and both congregations being now vacant the time was favourable
for certain readjustments. Since the beginning of the century a consider
able number of families in Milnathort had attended at Kinross (West), and
with few exceptions they by and by got disjoined, adding to the strength of
what was then the smaller congregation. It happened soon after that the
two sister churches divided between two preachers, the Rev. John Brown
Johnston and Mr Robert Selkirk Scott. Moderations took place on the
same week, when Mr Johnston had a majority of 336 to 72 in Kinross and
Mr Scott a majority of 119 to 45 in Milnathort. The division may have
helped to render both calls abortive, especially as in the case of both
candidates there were other invitations going. As for Mr Scott, he was
380 HISTORY OF U.P. CONGREGATIONS
settled soon after at Manchester, and is best remembered now as Dr Scott,
Home Mission Secretary of the U.P. Church.
Fourth Minister. — DAVID YOUNG, from Alloa (Townhead). Called first
to Brechin (City Road) and then to Milnathort, of which he intimated his
acceptance. While matters were in this state he received a call to East
Campbell Street, Glasgow, which after a pause he declined. Perth (North)
followed, but it was more to test the rights of a majority than in hopes of
securing Mr Young for colleague to his uncle. Ordained, I4th November
1850, the call being signed by 308 members. On the following Sabbath Dr
Young introduced his nephew to Milnathort, and at the close of the dis
course remarked that he would fain have seen him elsewhere, though he
cheerfully acquiesced in the issue. In the following year the people built
an elegant and commodious manse for their minister. Mr Young declined
a call to Edinburgh (St James' Place) in 1857, but accepted Glasgow
(Montrose Street) on 8th March 1859.
Fifth Minister. — WILLIAM BOYD, from Paisley (Thread Street). Or
dained, 8th March 1860, the congregation having been vacant exactly a
year. Mr Boyd had been called shortly before to Falkirk (now Erskine
Church), and he was also invited to succeed Dr Fletcher in Finsbury Chapel,
London. The present church, with 700 sittings, built at a cost of ^3000, was
opened on Thursday, 6th May 1869, by Dr M'Farlane of London. After
being twelve years in Milnathort, having accepted a second call to the
great metropolis, Mr Boyd was loosed, 4th June 1872, and was inducted
to Forest Hill, London, on nth July. Received the degree of LL.D. from
Greenville College, United States, in 1875. Resigned, I4th November 1882,
and now resides in Glasgow, interesting himself much in Church work of
various kinds, besides being an elder in Berkeley Street Church.
Sixth Minister. — ROBERT ANDERSON, translated from Ceres (West), and
inducted, I3th March 1873. Received the degree of D.D. from Westminster
College, Fulton, Missouri. Accepted a call to St George's Road, Glasgow,
on gth November 1880.
Seventh Minister. — JOHN REID, M.A, from Ayr (Darlington Place).
Ordained, 2ist April 1881, and loosed on ist July 1884, having accepted a
call to Tay Square, Dundee.
Eighth Minister. — ADAM JOHNSTON MILLAR, from Kelso (First). Or
dained, i gth March 1885. Milnathort congregation, like the town itself,
long resisted the tide of commercial decline, which during the last half
century has told so seriously on Kinross and Balgedie, but it has now
come under the same adverse influences. The membership at the close
of 1899 was 260, and the stipend ^200, with the manse. Mr Millar, it may
be added, is nephew and son-in-law to the late Rev. James A. Johnston of
Springburn, Glasgow.
MUCKART (ANTIBURGHER)
ON 1 7th December 1735 petitions from Muckart and Kinross were pre
sented to the Associate Presbytery for supply of sermon. It was not till
then that the Four Brethren assumed judicial functions, and these were the
first applications of the kind with which they were called to deal. One of the
commissioners from Muckart was Adam Gib, then a student, and destined to
become the leader of the Antiburgher Synod. On I4th November previous
commissioners from that parish had given in a declinature to the Synod of
Perth and Stirling, which was adhered to by too heads of families. This
was the outcome of an intrusion into Muckart parish, the particulars of which
PRESBYTERY OF DUNFERMLINE AND KINROSS 381
we give from the Minutes of the General Assembly. The case was intro
duced by a petition from the Duke of Argyll and other heritors, asking the
enforcement of a presentation issued by George II. in favour of Mr Archibald
Rennie, probationer. They pleaded that the greater part of the landed interest
was in their hands, and this, it was assumed, sufficed to overbear the rights
of the people. The Presbytery, however, were of another opinion, and sus
tained a call to Mr John Hally, a son of the evangelical minister of Muthill.
A counter petition in favour of Mr Hally came up at the same time to the
Assembly from all the heritors except five who were non-resident, and from
the entire session ; it was also concurred in by the heads of families in the
parish without exception. The matter was remitted to the commission, with
full power to cognosce the merits and issue the case. It ended with the
admission of Mr Rennie on i8th April 1734 and the accession of all but the
entire body of the inhabitants to the Associate Presbytery.
The first services at Muckart were not till 3rd August 1737, when Messrs
Wilson and Fisher observed a Fast in that parish, and for several years
Sabbath supply was obtained only at intervals. When in this state numbers
were accustomed worshipping on vacant Sabbaths in the parish church
at Dollar, where there was an evangelical minister. It was in this con
nection that Adam Gib's spirit first came out. Such conduct he pronounced
inconsistent with the Secession testimony and not to be tolerated. As re
presenting a milder type of things, his Professor in Perth writing him on the
subject said : " I wish that those who are offended at such of their number
as hear Mr Gray would rest in signifying their own mind in the spirit of
meekness, and wait, without making any breach among themselves, till the
Lord be pleased further to clear their way." It was like the conservative
and liberal elements in the early Secession struggling together already. But
Muckart people held on, and we find that numbers from the neighbouring
parishes of Fossoway and Glendevon joined with them in the stand they
made. Their church was built in 1740, with sittings for 400.
First Minister. — WILLIAM MAIR, M.A., son of the Rev. George Mair
of New Deer, and nephew of the Rev. Thomas Mair of Orwell. Acceded to
the Associate Presbytery as a student of philosophy on 2ist October 1740.
Soon after obtaining licence he was called to Dalkeith, Mearns, Jedburgh,
and Muckart, and also to be Ebenezer Erskine's colleague at Stirling. The
Synod gave Muckart the preference, and he was ordained there, 5th June
1745. The call was signed by 225 members, and a considerable number
signified their adherence. From this time Mr Mair was in reality the
minister of Muckart parish. Of Mr Rennie Scott's Fasti testifies : " He
never preached in the church except the first Sunday, never had an elder,
never dispensed the Lord's Supper, never had a collection for the poor, and,
with the exception of the dining-room, which he used for the meetings of
his congregation, he let the manse. He entered into a lease of twenty-one
years for the farm of Boghall, in the western part of the parish, and improved
it so much that it brought triple rent to the proprietor when he left it."
When the Breach was about to take place Mr Mair, instead of waiting to
see the worst, returned home, but his sympathies were all along with the
Antiburgher side. In 1768 the meeting-house was rebuilt, the Synod
recommending sister congregations to aid the community of Muckart under
their burdens. Mr Mair died, iyth February 1780, in the fifty-sixth year
of his age and thirty-fifth of his ministry. His volume of Lectures on the
first four Chapters of Matthew, with two Sermons superadded, was published
the year after his death. A little incident bearing on the relation between
Mr Mair and his uncle in the neighbouring parish of Orwell may be in
serted in closing. After being several years under sentence of deposition
382 HISTORY OF U.P. CONGREGATIONS
for alleged heresy Mr Thomas Mair happened one day to meet his old
friend, Mr Moncrieff of Abernethy, in Muckart manse, and controverted
matters came to lie discussed between them. It occurred to Mr William
Mair as he listened that an accommodation of the doctrinal points in dispute
might be arrived at, and after they left he drew up a paper with that intent.
But the document having come into Adam Gib's hands he would have none
of it, and he could only ascribe the authorship to "the good nature for which
Mr William Mair was remarkable." Mr Gib himself would have been
greatly bettered every way by a large infusion of the same quality. Of
course, the well-meant attempt came to nothing.
Second Minister. — ALEXANDER MONCRIEFF, son of the Rev. William
Moncrieff of Alloa. Called also to be his father's colleague, but appointed
to Muckart by a very great majority, and ordained, 2nd July 1782. Mr
Rennie, the parish minister, died in 1786, having held the incumbency fifty-
two years, and under his successor the Established Church gathered up
rapidly. In 1793 it claimed almost exactly half the population, or 264, young
and old, while the Antiburghers were assigned 249, but their numbers were
largely reinforced from other parishes. Mr Moncriefif died, 24th March
1804, in the forty-fourth year of his age and twenty-second of his ministry,
leaving a widow and a young family of nine, one of whom became the wife
of the Rev. David Wilson, Balbeggie. Mr Wilson was called to succeed
Mr Moncrieff, but he was already on trials for ordination at Balbeggie, and
the Synod, much against his will, fixed him down in that unwelcome sphere.
During the pause which followed we find the session recommending the
members to set some time apart for secret prayer, remembering the text :
" Trust in the Lord with all thine heart, and lean not on thine own under
standing." In July 1806 they called Mr William Bruce from Dennyloan-
head, but he held back month after month owing to the state of his health.
In November he accepted, the Presbytery having assured him that they
would not hasten his trials, and the people telling that they were quite
willing to wait. But in May 1807 Mr Bruce wrote the Presbytery that
he was much worse, and, with warm regards to Muckart congregation,
wished to be freed from his engagement, while they on their part intimated
that, if there were no prospect of recovery, it would be better not to be kept
longer in suspense. The call was accordingly laid aside. (For more about
Mr Bruce see Bathgate, Antiburgher.)
Third Minister. — JAMES AFFLECK, from Urr. Ordained, 29th June
1808, the call being signed by 107 (male) members. He died, 2oth December
1810, in the thirty-second year of his age and third of his ministry. This
was Thursday, and he had preached on the preceding Sabbath. Mr William
Spiers was chosen for his successor after a vacancy of two years, but the
Synod sent him to Buchlyvie.
Fourth Minister. — JAMES HARVEY, a native of Bathgate parish, but the
Rev. Archibald Bruce of Whitburn was the minister of his early days.
Ordained, igth October 1813, Muckart having been preferred to Errol by
the Synod.
In 1835 the stipend was ^100, with a manse and a valuable glebe of
13 acres, and for thirty-six years the congregation seems to have prospered
under Mr Harvey. Disaster, however, came in the end for both minister
and people. On 2nd October 1849 a paper of complaints against him was
lodged with the Presbytery by members of Muckart church, and investiga
tion followed. Evidence was taken on the spot, the proceedings lasting on
one occasion till two in the morning and on another till half-past five. The
case ended for the time with a confession of undue familiarity of manner in
various instances, and it was hoped that admonition would bring a peaceful
PRESBYTERY OF DUNFERMLINE AND KINROSS 383
winding-up. But meanwhile it appeared that over against a membership of
270 not more than 50 or 60 were attending the Sabbath services. Worse
still, before hostile feeling had time to cool down it was fed by fresh material
in the shape of charges similar in kind but some of them more specific.
The complainers were now instructed to frame a libel, and the work of taking
evidence was renewed. " Not proven " was the usual verdict, but on one of
the minor points " Guilty " carried by the Moderator's casting vote. Against
this decision an appeal was intimated by the accused, and also by certain
members of Presbytery, Mr Harvey's son-in-law, the Rev. Robert T. Walker
of Uunfermline taking the lead. To ascertain the mind of the congregation
the members were then waited on, and it was found that 46 out of the 267
were willing to remain with Mr Harvey, 147 were unwilling, 60 declined to
express themselves, and 14 had not been met with. Resignation was coun
selled now, and on the congregation agreeing to pay up arrears contracted
during the period of suspension the end was gained. On nth November
1850 the pastoral tie was dissolved. At next ordinary meeting of Presby
tery it was entered that the Rev. James Harvey, late minister of Muckart,
was removed by death on 28th December. He was in the sixty-first year
of his age and thirty-eighth of his ministry. He died in the manse where he
had lived so long.
Fifth Minister. — WILLIAM COCHRANE, from Strathaven (First). The
storm was over now, but the effects were seen in a membership reduced from
267 to 130. The stipend promised was .£86, with manse and garden, and the
ordination took place, gth December 1851. A gradual building-up followed,
but on 2 ist January 1856 Mr Cochrane stated to the Presbytery that on
grounds of health and prospective usefulness he had come to the conviction
that it was his duty to serve his Master in a different vocation. The session
and congregation had been previously warned, and, though regretting the
step their minister had resolved on, they agreed to offer no opposition, and
the Presbytery, while testifying their very high appreciation of Mr Cochrane's
excellences, felt shut up to the necessity of loosing him from his charge.
Mr Cochrane soon afterwards became rector of the Grammar School at
Kirton, near Boston, in England. He has now retired, and is living in
London or its neighbourhood. When in Muckart Mr Cochrane married a
daughter of Dr Bruce of Newmilns.
In 1857 the congregation called Mr David Sidey, afterwards of Auchter-
muchty ; Mr James M'Leish, afterwards of Berwick ; and Mr James
Wardrop, afterwards of Craigend, who all declined, though none of them
had another opening within sight at the time. The membership was now
between 140 and 150, and the stipend promised was ,£100, with manse and
garden, and the prospect of ,£20 from the Supplementing Fund.
Sixth Minister. — ALEXANDER AIKMAN, from Lanark (Bloomgate), a
brother of Dr John Logan Aikman, Anderston Church, Glasgow. Having
declined Forfar he was ordained at Muckart, 5th August 1858. In 1865 the
manse, which had weathered many a storm, was renovated at an outlay of
,£177, fully one-third of which came from the Board. At the close of the
following year the membership was 132, the decline keeping pace with that
of the population. In 1876, though the communicants were down to 1 18, the
stipend from the people was ,£112, IDS., which was supplemented up to
^197, i os., besides the manse. In 1884 Mr Aikman's health broke com
pletely down, and a period of rest having been of no avail he was relieved
from active duty on gth December, but with the status of senior minister
reserved. The congregation out of their limited resources were to pay him
,£15 a year. A location was now spoken of, but after some months the
congregation called Mr Thomas Keir, who accepted Lauder.
384 HISTORY OF U.P. CONGREGATIONS
Seventh Minister. — WILLIAM C. DiCKSON, M.A., from Charlotte Street,
Aberdeen. Ordained, i5th April 1886. The congregation were to pay £70
of stipend in addition to Mr Aikman's allowance of ,£15, and the Board was
to give another ,£70, which the Surplus raised to ,£160, with the manse.
Mr Aikman, who now resided in Edinburgh, having recovered so far as to be
available for pulpit supply, the ^15 he was to receive from the congregation
was, in terms of the original agreement, withdrawn and added to their pro
portion of the acting minister's stipend. At the close of 1899 the sum of ,£85
was still paid, though the membership was only 83, but over against this
diminutive number we must place the lessening population of the parish,
which was now under 500.
KINROSS, WEST (BURGHER)
THE first mention of Kinross in the Minutes of the Associate Presbytery is
on 1 7th December 1735, when a petition from that parish was laid before
them "for preaching and examination." But we find from the Diary of the
Rev. Thomas Mair that at Gairney Bridge on 6th December 1733, when the
Presbytery was constituted, they heard u the petitions of the poor people of
Kinross," and " they gave them such advice as was refreshing and comforting
to them." That parish had been the scene nearly two years before of what
Struthers in his History of Scotland has characterised as "one of the
most scandalous intrusions that ever was made on a Christian congregation."
Wodrow in his Analecta tells further how the people there had "centred
on " Mr Francis Craig, a son of the former minister at Galashiels, and the
oftener he preached to them the more " they were built up in him." Thomas
Boston also speaks of Mr Craig as "a probationer of singular worth."
The call was sustained by Dunfermline Presbytery, but Sir John Bruce, who
claimed to be the patron, and had newly come to the throne, struck in to
prevent the settlement. He objected to Mr Craig as infected with Marrow
views, and as his law agent and apologist explained in a printed pamphlet,
he felt bound by Acts of Assembly to hinder the propagation of these new-
fashioned doctrines, especially in the parish where he resided. The baronet
accordingly lodged a complaint against Mr Craig before the Synod of Fife,
and at the same time a paper subscribed by certain parishioners charged
Mr Craig with imprudences in his preaching, the reference being to certain
Bible texts which he had quoted, and which some of his hearers applied in
a way which he declared " did never so much as once enter into his
thoughts."
It was the Marrow doctrine, however, that the Synod took hold of, and
on this subject they put him through a written examination, one of the
questions being : Do you approve of the Acts of Assembly respecting the
Marrow ? To this his reply was that he knew these to be deeds of the
Church, and " it was his resolution not to oppose or meddle with them in
public or in private." Not being satisfied as to certain points the Synod by
a majority laid the call aside, the more so that Mr Craig had previously
intimated his willingness to be done with it, " that he might be no more a
bone of contention." At this point we lose sight of Mr Craig, only it appears
from the Fasti that he was never ordained to any parish in Scotland. It
was on Mr Thomas Charteris, who soon after became the successor of his
father in Inverkeithing, that Kinross people as a whole now "centred," but
again Sir John Bruce interposed, and wrote the Presbytery that he was
willing to join with the parishioners in a call to any of the candidates, " Mr
Thomas Charteris excepted." Mr Robert Stark was his man, and in his
PRESBYTERY OF DUNFERMLINE AND KINROSS 385
favour a call was signed by Sir John and 36 heritors and elders, and their
number was increased by 16 who afterwards acceded. Still, besides the
great body of the people, a majority of 7 declared for Mr Charteris, but Sir
John's agent reminded the Assembly that "votes are to be weighed as well
as numbered." Presbytery and Synod having refused to sustain Mr Stark's
call the Assembly referred the case to the Commission, which had no such
compunction, and the ordination was compassed by a committee of their
number on 4th February 1732. At next Assembly an appeal taken against
these proceedings was dismissed, and the Presbytery of Dunfermline en
joined to enroll Mr Stark, and forbidden to dispense sealing ordinances to
the dissatisfied among his people.
Though taken under the inspection of the Associate Presbytery at the
close of 1735 the Kinross Seceders were not even favoured with Fast Day
services till January 1737. But Mr Mair was now on the point of withdraw
ing from the Established Church, and, to adopt their own language, " it was
thought proper that we should attend at Orwell till it should please the Lord
to give a door for a more plentiful dispensation of the ordinances of the
gospel among us." As there are only two miles between Kinross and
Milnathort the distance involved no great hardship, but the people never
settled contentedly down at Milnathort. In 1740 they were even granted a
moderation, when a call was issued in favour of Mr James Mair, but West
Linton being in a more necessitous state its claims prevailed. There was
now a pause of six years, and by this time Mr Mair's charge, through acces
sions from other parishes such as Portmoak and Arngask, became so over
grown that those on the south required to be disjoined. This was done on
nth February 1747, and Kinross became the seat of a distinct congregation.
The Breach which followed two months later made a further severance
between the two communities, Kinross taking the Burgher and Orwell the
Antiburgher side.
First Minister. — JOHN SwANSTON, from Stitchel ; born in the village of
Hume. Having received licence from the Associate Presbytery on 4th April
1744 he was soon after appointed by the Synod to Urr in preference to
Stitchel, but he firmly refused to be ordained there. Censure followed, but
without effect, and, perhaps partially by way of punishment, he was sent
over to preach in Ireland. An incident connected with his sojourn in the
sister island deserve-s to be recorded. The Moderator of the Irish Synod
challenged him to discussion, and on a platform erected in the open air,
and in presence of an immense multitude, the two champions discussed the
merits of their respective denominations during the length of a summer day,
"both combatants as usual claiming the victory." In November 1747 Mr
Swanston was called to Kinross, and, the Synod having preferred this call
to two others from Killenny and Balleronny, in Ireland, he was ordained
there, 23rd June 1748. The services were conducted on a green close by
Loch Leven, and that year the church was built which the congregation
continued to occupy till within recent years. A few weeks after the ordina
tion, as is shown by the Session Minutes, about 40 persons in Portmoak and
Orwell craved admission to membership, because they could not submit
to Mr Mair's ministry on account of " the new and unwarrantable terms
of communion " imposed upon them. One of their representatives was John
White of Pittendreich, a name which comes up in connection with Balgedie,
and the little village itself figures in the Autobiography of Dr Andrew
Sommerville and his early fortunes. In the first years of Mr Swanston's
ministry we are able to count up an eldership of fifteen in all. Mr Fisher
of Glasgow having resigned the Professorship in 1764 Mr Swanston was
appointed to that office; and in 1766 the Synod vetoed his translation
2B
386 HISTORY OF U.P. CONGREGATIONS
to Stirling. After preaching in Perth on the evening of a communion
Sabbath he was seized with serious illness, and died on the following Friday,
1 2th June 1767, in the forty-sixth year of his age and nineteenth of his
ministry. A volume of his sermons was published in 1773 with a Memoir
by the Rev. John Smith, Dunfermline, who knew him in early days, and,
like himself, was from Stitchel. His widow survived till 1801, and their son
Andrew will be referred to with some minuteness under Perth (Wilson
Church). Of Mr Swanston himself the Evening Courant wrote at the time
of his death : " He was a very considerable scholar and an admirable
divine ; an eminent measure of humility and modesty, of candour and
integrity, of calmness and prudence, of love to Christ and diffusive love to
man, ran through and dignified his temper, his ministry, and his whole
conversation."
The congregation had now a long period of unrest to pass through, and
all did not come right till a new century was begun. In 1768 they called
Mr Charles Hunter, but he had been bespoke nearly a year before by
Lynturk congregation, and the Synod assigned him to that far-off place.
Then after an interval of seven years, and amidst much opposition, the majority
called Mr James M'Gilchrist, and the case was carried to the Synod, who
dismissed a remonstrance signed by sixty-three persons against the sustaining,
rebuked the leaders, warned the other party not to make their brethren
stumble, and appointed Mr M'Gilchrist to West Linton.
Second Minister. — JOHN KYLE, a native of Langside, near Glasgow.
The call was preceded by two others from Wooler and Queen sferry, but
Kinross had now been vacant ten years, and was preferred. Dissension
still prevailed, and after all things were ready Mr Kyle refused to be ordained,
and when the day was fixed by the Presbytery he protested to the Synod.
This was owing to remonstrances got up against further procedure by a
party in the congregation. But the Synod finding that they had nothing
against Mr Kyle's life or doctrine ordered the Presbytery to go on, and the
ordination took place, on I7th September 1777, in the face of a protest by
four members, who claimed liberty to attend ordinances where they should
see cause. Feeling never died down, and it was ominous that at a meeting
of session on the ordination day only two elders attended ; but a third came
forward, and took his seat some time after. Mr Kyle at this time was a
married man with a family, his wife being a daughter of the Rev. James
Robe, parish minister of Kilsyth, whose name is identified with the Revival
Movement there in 1742. The stipend was to be ^60, with 100 merks Scots
(^5, us. i^d.) for sacramental expenses, and ,£5 for house rent. Matters
went on at Kinross very uncomfortably year after year through the workings
of a factious spirit. A sufficient number of elders could not be had, and in
1787 confusion was intensified. Dr M'Kelvie's account in Dr Hay's Memoir
is that Mr Kyle " unfortunately libelled his neighbour, the Rev. Mr Porteous
of Milnathort, on a charge which he failed to prove," but this is quite a
mistake. It was Mr Porteous who complained to the Presbytery that certain
members of Kinross church had circulated reports to his disadvantage.
A lengthened process followed, and witnesses being examined, the charge
of slander was established, and Mr Porteous honourably acquitted. The
report complained of was to the effect that, when down at Kinross assisting
Mr Kyle on a communion afternoon, the worthy man was under the influence
of drink. Evidence showed that he was under bodily disorder, and was
even seen to stumble in his walk. Dr M'Kelvie refers to circumstances in
which Mrs Kyle was involved, the truth being that she was credited, base-
lessly we should hope, with having drugged the wine cup of which Mr Porteous
partook before proceeding to the tent. Alienation between the two ministers
PRESBYTERY OF DUNFERMLINE AND KINROSS 387
supervened, which was smoothed down by the intervention of the Presby
tery, but a change for Mr Kyle was more and more felt to be desirable. In the
summer of 1788 he was twice called to the newly-formed congregation of
Montrose (John Street), but his friends in Kinross kept by him, and the
Synod at two successive meetings refused the translation. On nth May
1791 they decided unanimously in favour of his removal to Pitrodie. During
the vacancy which ensued Kinross congregation called Mr Alexander
Duncanson, who was appointed to Airdrie, and Mr James Scott, who was
appointed to Portsburgh, Edinburgh. These calls were signed by 350 and
337 members respectively.
Third Minister. — JAMES HAY, M.A., from Stitchel. Ordained, 5th
August 1794. The stipend was now ,£70, with .£5 for the sacrament in
summer and something additional if dispensed in winter, with ,£5 for house
rent. From Dr Hay's Autobiography we can estimate the difficulties of his
position. The spirit of contention had not yet laid itself to rest. " The
wealthier portion of my congregation," he records, " were hostile to me," and
his settlement had been violently opposed by some influential persons
among them, and this simply because he was the choice of the majority, or
of the commonalty as they might deem them. But there was sagacity at
the helm now, and all came right, though not without a partial disruption.
In 1796 the controversy about the magistrate's power woke up at Kinross,
where it had materials to work on. The opposition took the Old Light side,
and, says Dr Hay soon after, "one elder had already resigned his office on
account of the dispute ; two were friendly to the malcontents ; and only three
were fully disposed to co-operate with me." But under politic guidance the
strength of the minority was left to exhaust itself in a petition to the Synod
against any alteration in the Formula. The minister now saw that the con
gregation was out of danger, and felt no further alarm on the subject.
Several families withdrew when the crisis came, but the loss was far more
than balanced by accessions from Milnathort where Mr Porteous took the
Old Light side. The gains for some years were such that in 1803 the church
had to be enlarged to accommodate 730. Henceforth all went smoothly on,
and Dr Hay learned at this time the utility of the following maxims : —
" Never speak to the disadvantage of those you think unfriendly towards
you," and " Always conduct yourselves towards your enemies so as to render
it practicable for them one day to become your friends."
In 1838 Mr Hay received the degree of D.D. from Maimi College, Oxford,
Ohio. Shortly before this he had become known as joint author with Dr
Belfrage of Falkirk of a Life of his uncle, Dr Waugh of Well Street, London.
During the Atonement Controversy Dr Hay took a leading part on the con
servative side, and even affixed his name to the libel Dr Marshall of Kirkin-
tilloch tabled against Dr John Brown, though contributing nothing beyond
his signature, and three years afterwards Dr Brown was a pall-bearer at Dr
Hay's funeral. In 1843 his jubilee was suitably observed, and soon after his
pulpit work was partially lightened by the employment of a probationer
once a month. He died, I4th June 1849, in the eightieth year of his age
and fifty-fifth of his ministry. Out of a family of twelve he was only sur
vived by a daughter, a circumstance which may account for the frequency
with which the word "bereavements" came up in his discourses as he ad
vanced in years. Another daughter was married to the Rev. James Brown,
M.D., of Balbeggie, whose son, John Brown, Esq., of Finderlie, is now the
representative of the family. A volume of Dr Hay's sermons, deciphered
from his note-books, was published in 1851, with his Autobiography prefixed,
after being supplemented and rounded off by Dr M'Kelvie, who also enriched
it with footnotes of much interest and value.
388 HISTORY OF U.P. CONGREGATIONS
Fourth Minister. — GEORGE M. MIDDLETON, from Glasgow (Greyfriars).
The congregation had previously called the Rev. John Brown Johnston, but
he preferred Bethelfield, Kirkcaldy. Mr Middleton was ordained, I2th'
September 1850, after declining Barrhead, Paisley (Canal Street), and the
collegiate charge of Dunfermline (St Margaret's). The call was signed by
606 members. During his time the congregation, which had been large
before, reached its maximum, the building being taxed to its utmost capacity.
In January 1855 he declined a call to be Dr Beattie's colleague in Gordon
Street (now St Vincent Street), Glasgow, but another much more largely
signed followed, and he was loosed from Kinross on I4th August.
Fifth Minister. — ALEXANDER BALLOCH GROSART, from Falkirk (West).
Ordained, 2Qth October 1856. Owing to failure in trade decline was now
begun, but there was still a membership of 646, and the stipend had been
raised from ,£120 to .£150 for Mr Middleton, and remained as before.
There was also the manse, which was built soon after the beginning of Dr
Hay's ministry. Mr Grosart was born on i8th June 1827, as is attested by
the register of St Ninians parish, and not on i8th June 1835, as has been
widely proclaimed ; so that he was in his thirtieth year when ordained. This
clears out romances about him being known in Kinross as " the boy preacher,"
an epithet which his very appearance in those days would have branded
with absurdity. At Kinross he began to figure pronouncedly as an author,
publishing while there " The Prince of Light and the Prince of Darkness in
Conflict," with several smaller productions. In 1864 he gave to the world
his " Memoir and Works of Michael Bruce," and also a sermon, entitled
"Drowned," exhibiting many of his characteristic merits. It was preached,
as the title-page bears, on Sabbath, igth June, and was suggested by his
precentor having been drowned in Loch Leven on the previous afternoon.
Translated into the speech of Blackburn the story ran thus : " Loch Leven, a
fine sheet of water, was frozen over, skaters were enjoying the exhilarating
winter exercise, when there was a sudden break up of ice, followed by a rush
of water ; then the usual panic, and the cold deep claimed its victims." To
Mr Grosart fell, we are further told, the sad and solemn duty of preaching a
funeral sermon. Deep was the impression made, and the discourse was
printed verbatim in the newspapers. The preacher's fame now spread
all over Scotland, inquiries came in from all quarters about this wonderful
young man, and great was the surprise of many when he was found to be
none other than "The Boy Preacher," who, by the way, was entering at this
time on the thirty-eighth year of his age.
Mr Grosart had declined a call to Woolwich in 1862, but he accepted
another to Liverpool (Prince's Park) on 28th March 1865. There he re
mained till 1868, when he was translated to Blackburn, and inducted on 4th
March as successor to Dr Skinner. Here he went through a large amount
of literary work, and in 1877 he obtained the degree of LL.D. from Edin
burgh University, and that of D.D. in 1879 from St Andrews. He edited
Sibbe's Works so early as 1862, and these were followed by editions of the
Puritan Divines in long array, and also by the Fuller Worthies — several of
both classes brought forth from oblivion to revisit the glimpses of the moon
and go back to oblivion again. There is far more of condensed merit in
his Nonconformist Worthies, a volume published in 1879. His last pro
duction was " Robert Fergusson," written for the Famous Scots Series in
1897. He died on i6th March 1899, in the seventy-second year of his age
and forty-third of his ministry. He had removed to Dublin on resigning his
charge, I4th November 1892.
In the newspaper and magazine notices of Dr Grosart, some of them
lengthy, which appeared after his death, there is a conglomeration of glaring
PRESBYTERY OF DUNFERMLINE AND KINROSS 389
misstatements, which personal considerations held me back from correcting
at the time. In a notice emanating originally from Dublin it is alleged, for
example, that at Edinburgh University, besides taking a very high place in
Classics, which is quite apocryphal, he carried off the class medal in English
Literature and Rhetoric, a class he never even attended. Again we are told
that he wrote poetry, " though with cliaracteristic modesty he never cared to
say much about it." This is crowned by the out-and-out falsehood : " Never
theless, many of our familiar hymns used in the service of the church are
from his pen." Rut, while differing in the marvels they relate, these rich
biographical sketches are at one in testifying that Dr Grosart was born in
1835, some of them condescending correctly on the day and month, the i8th
of June. They had Julian's Hymnology to rely on as their authority for the
dates, which were derived from information furnished by Dr Grosart himself,
and, as a friend writes me from Blackburn : " I know that they correspond
with what the late Dr Grosart used to say concerning himself." Changes
were made all along the line to fit the altered chronology. The family
removed from Stirling to Falkirk about the year 1836, at which time
Alexander B. Grosart is remembered to have been a schoolboy of nine or
thereby. But a friend states : "He informed me by letter that Stirling was
his birthplace, not Falkirk, but he settled in the latter place when a child."
In like manner his edition of Robert Fergusson's Works, published when he
was twenty-four, has to be ascribed to the marvellous boy of sixteen, and
similarly with cognate wonders. Not aware, perhaps, that he was born
within the St Ninian bounds of Stirling, he may have had no suspicion that
there was an entry in a parish register to confront him with silent and
decisive contradiction. As it is, we may learn what weight Dr Grosart's
assertions carry on other subject.
Sixth Minister. — JOHN RUTHVEN, M.A., from Glasgow (Eglinton Street).
Ordained, i/th July 1866. It was given out after Dr Grosart's death that
under his ministry "the membership of the church was greatly increased,"
but during that period, owing to the failure of the woollen trade, the popula
tion of the town had steadily declined, and even Mr Grosart was unable to
withstand the retiring tide. When he left the communion roll underwent a
large cutting down, and the membership was now 496 — 150 fewer than when
he was ordained. In 1875 Mr Ruthven was called to Gillespie Church,
Glasgow, but affairs were at a low ebb there, and he remained at Kinross.
Twelve years later a better opening presented itself at Birmingham (Broad
Street), but in the face of many discouragements at Kinross he decided as
before. The present church, built on the old site, but fronting the street,
was opened on Thursday, 25th September 1884, by Principal Cairns, who
had laid the foundation stone on the 5th of December previous, before pro
ceeding to Gairney Bridge, where, amidst a large, far-gathered assemblage,
he did similar service for the memorial pillar which marks the origin and
cradle of the Secession Church. The new erection, with sittings for 500,
cost about .£2700, of which only .£500 remains to be cleared off by means of
a bazaar. Within recent years a pipe organ has been gifted to the con
gregation in memory of Mr George Bogie, writer, Kinross, one of their
leading men, to whose niece, Miss Bogie, the denomination is indebted for
the site of the obelisk at Gairney Bridge. The membership of the West
Church at the close of 1899 was 280, and the stipend .£210. The old
manse was sold shortly before Mr Grosart left, and another arranged for
with a room to fit the huge library of which the minister was so justly
proud. But after he removed to Liverpool the plans were modified, and
the result is the present well-proportioned manse, which was built at a
cost of ^1200.
390 HISTORY OF U.P. CONGREGATIONS
KINROSS, EAST (ANTIBURGHER)
Ax the Breach in 1747, when the great majority of the Kinross Seceders
took the Burgher side, a considerable number placed themselves under
Mr Mair's ministry at Milnathort as before. For a time they had an eldership
of their own, and in the Minutes of the Antiburgher Presbytery of Perth
there are references to meetings of Kinross session under the presidency
of Mr Mair, but in course of time this distinction must have disappeared.
On 24th February 1796 the Presbytery of Kirkcaldy disjoined 160 members
from Milnathort and erected them into a congregation at Kinross, the
session, though not clear as to the step being called for, making no opposi
tion. Within two months ground was bought at the Uamside on which to
build a meeting-house, which was probably entered before the depth of
winter. In May 1797 a unanimous call from Kinross to Mr James Stark
came before the Synod in competition with another from Dennyloanhead,
when the latter was preferred "by a very great majority." In Dr Stark's
Memoir it is stated that his leanings were in favour of Kinross, though in
point of numbers there was no comparison between the two congregations.
A few weeks after this other 41 members residing within the bounds were
disjoined from Milnathort and annexed to Kinross, making the total number
about 200. In September of that year a second call from Kinross was set
aside by the Synod, and Mr Andrew Aedie, the object of their choice, was
appointed to Forfar.
First Minister. — THOMAS BEVERIDGK, from Alloa (now Townhead), of
whose antecedents we only know that when a divinity student he was dealt
with and rebuked by Stirling Presbytery for attending the theatre. Soon
after obtaining licence he was called to Logiealmond, but what followed
belongs to the history of that congregation. After a time he received other
calls from Pitcairngreen and Kinross, and the balance turned in favour of
Kinross, where Mr Beveridge was ordained, 2oth August 1799, the stipend
to be ^70. In noticing the ordination the Christian Magazine was happy
to hear that between them and the mother congregation in Milnathort no
jealousies existed, but they continued to live " in the strictest bonds of
Church fellowship and love, an example worthy to be imitated by all
Christian congregations." Mr Beveridge's ministry had a fair beginning,
but on ist February 1803 the Presbytery of Kirkcaldy had a letter from him
resigning his charge. " His opinions on religion and morality had undergone
a change, and were not now consonant with the principles of the Secession
Church." The Presbytery met at Kinross on the 1 5th, but Mr Beveridge
had sent notice to the clerk that they were not to expect his attendance.
The people had already met, and, while sorry that their minister should
leave them, yet, owing to what had taken place, " they could not stand in the
way of it." That day the pastoral relation was dissolved and Mr Beveridge
suspended from the ministerial office. It next appeared that a scandalous
fama respecting Mr Beveridge prevailed, and, though an examination of the
other party inculpated did not bring guilt home to him, there was reason to
fear that his practice as well as his opinions had undergone a change so far
as morality was concerned. The case came before the Provincial Synod of
Perth in April, but there also Mr Beveridge failed to appear, and his de
position was reported by Kirkcaldy Presbytery to the General Synod in
August of that year. After this he studied medicine, and went to London,
where he died. Dr George Brown adds : " Character not retrieved."
Second Minister. — ROBERT LEISHMAN, from Cumbernauld (now U.P.).
Ordained, 2oth March 1804, the stipend to be ^80. The call was signed by
68 male members. Next year a house and garden were purchased for their
PRESBYTERY OF DUNFERMLINE AND KINROSS 391
minister at a cost of ^250. In 1850 the church was renovated and the
interior brought up to date. Mr Leishman's period of active service con
tinued till after the completion of his fifty years' ministry, and then the
congregation began to get the pulpit supplied on alternate Sabbaths. In
June 1855 Mr David Cairns was called to be Mr Leishman's colleague, but
he accepted a prior call to Stitchel.
Third Minister. — THOMAS KENNEDY, M.A., from Glasgow (Greyfriars).
Ordained, 2oth March 1856, exactly fifty-two years after his predecessor and
colleague. The stipend of the junior minister was ,£120 at first, and
Mr Leishman was in receipt of ^50, a sum which, during the remaining nine
years of his life, regularly found its way back to the funds of the congregation.
In 1859 the manse which he had so long occupied he purchased for ,£125,
and in the following year the present manse was completed at a cost of about
.£750. With the aid of a legacy of ^100 the building was clear of debt in
1866. Mr Leishman died, gth September 1865, in the ninetieth year of his age
and sixty-second of his ministry. He is still remembered by many for his
quiet ways and pointed conversational sayings, and though the congregation
was never large it was well compacted and knit closely to its minister.
Mr Kennedy, whose stipend was raised to ,£130 in 1866 and to ,£150 a year
and a half later, accepted a call to North Richmond Street, Edinburgh, on
8th July 1873, where he was soon after to be known as Dr Kennedy. The
congregation, which still bore up wonderfully under the failure of trade,
before the close of the year called Mr William Duncan, who became
colleague soon after to his uncle at Mid-Calder.
Fourth Minister. — ROBERT SMITH, from Cumnock. Ordained, I4th
October 1874, having declined a call to Belfast. The membership at this
time was 112, but at the close of 1899 it was 151, and the stipend from the
people ^157, ios., with a manse.
PATHSTRUIE (ANTIBURGHER)
PATHSTRUIE is a hamlet among the Ochils in Forgandenny parish, on the
the boundary of a detached part of Forteviot to the east. Both parishes
furnished accessions to the Associate Presbytery at an early period, first
from a praying society in Forteviot on 3ist July 1739, and next from people
in Forgandenny and Forteviot conjointly on 22nd July 1740. The Rev.
Peter Pilmar of Forgandenny, a decidedly evangelical preacher, had died a
few months before the latter date, and some of his parishioners, we may
believe, now took the opportunity of withdrawing from the Established
Church. But it was towards the southern extremity of both parishes that
the cause gathered to a point, most of the Seceders in the northern division
connecting themselves with the North Church, Perth.
The origin of Pathstruie congregation has been placed as early as 1749,
but in the records of Perth and Dunfermline Presbytery, which are extant
from 1752 till 6th August 1754, the name is never mentioned. In Forgan
denny register the baptisms of Seceders are given, but these were at Orwell,
Muckart, or Perth, and it is not till May 1757 that a child is entered as
"baptised in the Associate congregation." The lease of ground for the
Antiburgher meeting-house was obtained in 1758, and a stone in the wall
attests that the church was built in the same year. We are thus led to the
conclusion that this was about the time when the congregation was formed.
We next find from the Minutes of Abernethy session that an elder and
several members residing in the west corner of that community were dis
joined in May 1761, their petition to that effect being deemed reasonable, as
392 HISTORY OF U.P. CONGREGATIONS
they were "more adjacent to Path Condie, where they wished to join."
There is also a memorable tradition, which was put into print in 1860, that
their minister, Mr Moncrieff, preached at an earlier time in that upland
region from the text : " Let the inhabitants of the rock sing," and divided
his discourse as follows : — (i) The stability and safety of the Church of
Christ — founded on a rock ; and (2) They which dwell safely may sing
sweetly.
First Minister. — LAURENCE REID, who had been loosed from Lauder by
the Synod in 1764, and sent at once into the bounds of Perth and Dunfermline
Presbytery. He was called soon after to Pathstruie, where he was inducted,
i4th February 1765. More than two years before this the congregation had
called Mr Thomas Bennet, who was appointed to Ceres, and after a time
Mr Partick Buchanan, who ultimately found his field of labour at Nigg, in
Ross-shire. In September 1782 the Presbytery of Perth brought before the
Synod the case of Mr Laurence Reid, who had got into serious disrepute at
Pathstruie. His conduct was found to have been undignified and fitted to
bring him under grave suspicions, and in April 1783 he was loosed from his
charge and the sentence of suspension removed. For what remains of
Mr Reid's history see Portsoy. Pathstruie congregation lost no time in
calling Mr John Stuart, whom the Synod appointed to Falkirk, and after
that Mr Robert Laing, who was afterwards settled in Duns.
Second Minister. — JOHN M'ARA, from Greenock (now Greenbank). Had
calls two years before to Larne and Isle-Magee, in Ireland, but would accept
neither, and the Synod in September 1783 "allowed them to give up with
him and choose another." Ordained at Pathstruie, i5th June 1785. In the
sixth year of Mr M'Ara's ministry the congregation was seriously weakened
by a new erection at Ualreoch, about four miles distant. This movement
was strongly opposed by the people of Pathstruie, who pleaded that it would
render them unable to support the gospel, and the case was contested, not
only before the Presbytery, but before both the Provincial and the General
Synod. To avert the dreaded consequences a coalescence between the two
parties was recommended, the place of worship to be removed to Dunning,
and Mr M'Ara to be the minister. But when this proposal was brought
before the congregation, of 100 members present only 29 voted in its favour,
while 59 were against, and 12 gave no opinion. The door being closed in
that direction a church was formed at Dalreoch, and this led to the loss of
at least 44 members and one elder from about Dunning, who were within
less than half the distance of their former place of worship. There was talk
at first of making up to the funds of Pathstruie for the loss this disjunction
entailed, but the claim was resisted, and that congregation was left with
reduced numbers to bear its own burden. Mr M'Ara died, 29th March 1819,
in the seventy-second year of his age and thirty-fourth of his ministry. It
was stated at the time that during that long period he had never been laid
aside from work for a single Sabbath by illness.
Third Minister. — WILLIAM NlGOL, who had been loosed from Barrhead
the year before. Admitted to Pathstruie, 29th August 1821. The member
ship was about 130, and the emoluments ^70 a year, with manse and garden,
and eight acres of ground, the farmers agreeing to labour it for the minister,
and drive his coals. Mr Nicol died, I7th August 1835, in the sixty-fifth year
of his age and thirty-sixth of his ministry. Of neither him nor his prede
cessor did any obituary notice ever appear, but Mr M'Ara was remembered
long afterwards in that neighbourhood as a preacher of much pulpit power
and energy.
Fourth Minister. — WILLIAM M'QUEEN, from Wigtown. Called also to
Eday, and ordained at Pathstruie, 5th July 1836. In 1838 the communicants
PRESBYTERY OF DUNFERMLINE AND KINROSS 393
numbered 170, and nearly one-half of the families were from the neighbour
ing parishes^ of Forteviot, Dunning, and Orwell, with a few from Arngask
and Dron. The minister's stipend was ,£60, with a manse, and a glebe valued
at £20. Of the 380 sittings in the church 140 were let. Fifty years ago
Pathstruie was the only place in that district where tent preaching was kept
up on sacramental Sabbaths in summer. Mr James Skinner in his Auto
biography describes one such occasion : The day bright, and the air mild
and balmy. There would be, he said, from 1500 to 2000 people assembled,
and there was continuous preaching at the tent from eleven o'clock in the
forenoon till seven at night. Mr M'Queen died, 26th August 1881, in the
seventy-fifth year of his age and forty-sixth of his ministry. To quote from
Mr Skinner : ".He had been laid aside from duty for a few weeks the year
before. That was a warning to stop, which he unfortunately failed to im
prove, for when he got a little stronger he resumed his work of preaching.
But his heart, though not actually diseased, had become so enfeebled as to
be unable to perform any longer its proper function. Had he given up in time
he might have lived for years." " He was a faithful pastor," he adds, " and
very much fitted for the sphere in which Providence had cast his lot."
Fifth Minister.— THOMAS Low, M.A., from Rose Street, Edinburgh.
Ordained, 2nd May 1882. "The inhabitants of the rock" were few now
compared with what they had been in Culfargie's days, but, as the Presbytery
testified years before, "they were struggling to support ordinances in an
otherwise destitute district." This was in 1864, when the manse had to be
renovated at an expense of ^365, and a maximum grant was recommended
from the Board, which brought them £\\o. The church had undergone
repairs to the extent of £70 shortly before, without outside aid being applied
for. On 24th January 1893 Mr Low was loosed from his upland abode on
accepting a call to West Calder, and this brought the continued existence
of the congregation into question. But in a petition to the Synod they
pleaded a membership of 75 and that there was no church of any denomina
tion nearer than 5^ miles. Their plea prevailed, and supplement was to be
continued as before.
Sixth Minister.— JOHN GREKNHILL, originally from the Free Church,
Lochgelly. Had passed through a full preparatory training in England, and
was ordained on 7th April 1886 over a Congregational church at Swindon,
Wiltshire, which he resigned after five years of successful labour. Having
changed his views of Church government he was received by the U.P. Synod
in May 1891, and on i3th March 1894 was inducted to Pathstruie, where he
died, 27th October 1899, after a brief but much valued ministry of five and a
half years, in the forty-second year of his age.
Seventh Minister.— WALTER MUIR, who had emigrated to Canada after
studying for two years at the U.P. Hall in Edinburgh. Ordained at Carluke,
Wentworth County, on 3rd July 1890, two days after receiving licence, and
was translated to Brucefield, Ontario, some five years afterwards. Having
returned to Scotland with a high order of testimonials he was admitted to
the probationer roll by the Synod in 1899, and was inducted to Pathstruie
on i3th March 1900. The membership at the beginning of that year was
74, and the stipend was what it had been for many years — ^70, with the
manse, and a supplement of the same amount, along with a full share of the
Surplus Fund.
BALGEDIE (BURGHER)
ON ist May 1735 Mr Robert Douglas was ordained at Portmoak as suc
cessor to the Rev. Ebenezer Erskine after- a vacancy of four years. He was
394 HISTORY OF U.P. CONGREGATIONS
one of a leet furnished by Sir John Bruce, who claimed the patronage, and
his call was stated by the Presbytery to have been subscribed by the prin
cipal heritors, by a majority of elders, and by more than 60 heads of families,
and, above all, it was concurred in by the patron. But Mr Hugh White, of
whom nothing more is known, was the popular candidate, though, as was
alleged, unworthy manoeuvres prevailed to put him in a minority of two on
the moderation day. The session, like the parishioners generally, was much
divided, and 3 of the members, Messrs John White, sen. and jun., of Pitten-
dreich, and Mr John White, Wester Balgedie, vacated their office in
December 1734. The opposition, however, was temperately managed, the
appeal against the settlement being withdrawn, and the hope expressed that
Mr Douglas might prove himself an able minister of the New Testament,
and, as Mr Erskine expressed it, "a blessing to the Church of Christ and to
my dear people in Portmoak particularly." But after a trial of nine months
dissatisfaction with Mr Douglas was not overcome, and six elders with a large
body of the people acceded to the Associate Presbytery on I7th February
1736. After this petitions for at least week-day services were given in
again and again, but it was not till Wednesday, 4th January 1738, that a
Fast was observed at Portmoak, Messrs Moncrieff and Fisher officiating.
Supply was kept up for a time at rare intervals, but Milnathort being only
three miles from the western part of the parish, where the Secession was
strongest, the people were left to wait on the ministry of Mr Thomas Mair,
who was now one of the Presbytery.
Sixty years were to elapse before a congregation was formed in the
parish. During the first part of that period the Burgher families attended
ordinances at Kinross and the Antiburgher at Milnathort or Leslie. The
two parties appear to have been pretty equally divided, including between them
half the parish. We find at least from the parish register that in 1765 and
1766, while Mr Mudie, the parish minister, baptised 28 children ; Mr Mair
baptised 14; Mr Swanston, the Burgher minister of Kinross, 15; Mr Dempster,
the Antiburgher minister of Leslie, i ; and 2 are simply marked as Seceders.
But in 1769, Mr Mair's congregation having joined the Burgher Synod
after his death, those families which used to attend at Kinross were annexed
to Milnathort, which was a mile nearer. In this connection they continued
till the year 1800, when their minister, the Rev. Thomas Porteous, joined
the "Old Light" Presbytery. This was on 2nd September of that year,
and on the i6th commissioners from Portmoak appeared before Dunfermline
Presbytery asking for sermon. The question was raised whether Milnathort
should not be the place of meeting, but "little Balgedie" was fixed on,
and Mr M'Farlane of Dunfermline appointed to open the station on the
fourth Sabbath of the month. There was a membership at this time of 75,
including two elders— Messrs John White and John Birrell. The former was
proprietor of half the lands of Easter Balgedie — one of four in that neigh
bourhood who bore the same family name and were a strength to the
Secession cause in Portmoak parish. It was on his property that the first
church was built, and it was in his barn that the congregation worshipped
for ten years, except in summer, when the services were frequently con
ducted in the open air.
Mr John Birrell, whose name is known in connection with that of Michael
Bruce, headed the movement from the beginning. As a member of
Milnathort session he came into collision with his minister on the question
of the magistrate's power. Having a child to be baptised he claimed the
freedom which the Preamble to the Formula gave him, and this Mr Porteous
would not allow. The Presbytery did their best to secure an adjustment,
but failed, and the child was baptised by Mr Greig of Lochgelly. Strained
PRESBYTERY OF DUNFERMLINE AND KINROSS 395
relations were got over by a parting asunder. In Balgedie a small church
was built in the heart of the village in 181 1, and up till then the people had
been dependent upon partial supply, attending on blank Sabbaths at Kinross,
4^ miles distant. During these ten years the preachers were boarded by
the two lairds of Easter Balgedie alternately, free of expense.
First Minister. — WILLIAM GIBSON, from Perth (now Wilson Church).
Got licence, loth January 1797, but was not ordained till 22nd August 1811.
At the time proposals were first made to have the period of probation
shortened his experience was brought forward as an argument against the
attempted innovation, and may have helped to put back the change. At
the moderation there was a close run between him and Mr Robert Douglas,
afterwards of Nova Scotia, but, much to the gratification of Dunfermline
Presbytery, Mr Gibson had a majority. The stipend was to be ^70, with
house rent, and for sacramental expenses ^5 in summer and ,£3 in winter.
The call was signed by elders, members, and adherents to the number of
1 17. Balgedie gained substantial advantage by the Union of 1820, and in the
following year the present church required to be built, the Synod allowing
.£20 to aid in the work. Mr Gibson died, I5th January 1829, in the fifty-
eighth year of his age and eighteenth of his ministry. He was a lonely man
in one sense, as it is certified that at his death he could not claim special
kinship with a single human being.
Second Minister. — WILLIAM M'KELVIE, from Kirkgate, Leith, but origin
ally from the Established Church. Ordained, 25th August 1829, on a
unanimous call signed by 153 communicants. The stipend at first was ^100,
with the manse, but it was ultimately ,£120. When a probationer supplying
in London, Mr M'Kelvie wrote a compact Memoir of the Rev. James Gray
of Albion Church, to be prefixed to a volume of his sermons, and in 1837 he
was brought into public notice by his " Life of Michael Bruce." Prior to
this he originated in Dunfermline Presbytery the movement for union with
the Relief Church, and was its unflinching supporter during the fourteen
years over which the negotiations extended. In 1846 he received the
degree of D.D. from Hamilton College, New York. Next year he drew up
the Union Memorials, and in 1856 the Synod acknowledged his services in
the cause throughout by elevating him to the Moderator's Chair. During
the early years of his ministry the attendance at Balgedie largely increased,
so that in the summer of 1834 the church was enlarged to accommodate 372
instead of 270. This was followed in 1844 by a large addition to the manse,
the expenses in both cases being defrayed by the people at the time. For
a long course of years Dr M'Kelvie busied himself, even to the damage of
his health, with the "Annals and Statistics of the U.P. Church." But after
his task was all but completed the publication could not be gone on with,
and the work remained in manuscript till after his death. In 1861 his
powers were shattered by paralysis, and it was arranged that he should
receive ,£50 from the congregation, with the occupancy of the manse, and be
admitted an annuitant on the Aged and Infirm Ministers' Fund, the young
minister to have ,£120.
Third Minister. — ALEXANDER DUNCAN, M.A., from Grange, Banffshire.
Ordained, 7th May 1863. Dr M'Kelvie died on loth December following,
in the sixty-fourth year of -his age and thirty-fifth of his ministry. A volume
of his sermons was published in 1865, but though prepared by himself for
the press they give but a faint view of his pulpit excellences. His delivery
was not attractive in itself, but when he warmed with his subject or got
impassioned it gave his words a truer emphasis and made them more
impressive than the arts of elocution could have done. Prefixed to the
discourses is a Memoir by his warm-hearted friend, Dr John M'Farlane of
396 HISTORY OF U.P. CONGREGATIONS
London. But more interesting still are the authors Reminiscences of Dr
M'Kelvie, which appeared in the U.P. Magazine for 1864.
The congregation, which had reached its maximum about the time of the
Jubilee celebration in 1850, began to go back by the failure of the woollen
trade two years later, and when Mr Duncan was ordained the membership
was down from over 250 to 218. During the first one and a half years of his
ministry it rose to 232, but there was no bearing up against the backgoing
tide. Hand-loom weaving gradually disappeared, and the population of the
hill-foot villages melted away. In 1865 the congregation suffered loss from
another cause. That year the Synod pronounced Civil Establishments of
Religion to be " unscriptural, impolitic, and unjust," and a proprietor in the
district, highly respected and long looked up to as one of their leading men,
felt so aggrieved by this deliverance that he took shelter in the parish church.
It illustrates a process by which our congregations have been weakened
more or less in rural districts, especially where the conservative element in
politics prevails. At the close of 1899 the membership of Balgedie was 108,
and the funds afforded only ^90 of stipend, and even this requires a much
higher standard of liberality than was aimed at in former days. Mr Duncan
has rendered important service to the denomination at large, very specially
in connection with the workings of the Scholarship Scheme.
EDENSHEAD (UNITED SECESSION)
THIS congregation originated a few years after the Union of 1820. On I2th
April 1825 the Presbytery of Perth had a petition for sermon laid before
them from certain parties about Gateside not of the Secession communion.
As the parish church in Strathmiglo is fully two miles distant this might be
with most of them mere matter of convenience. It was agreed to grant them
a few days' supply at once, and the station was opened on the third Sabbath
of May by Dr Pringle of Perth, who reported at next meeting that he had a
large attendance. Preaching was continued, and in the beginning of 1826
there was a drawing together of Seceding families in the district. On I4th
March of that year certificates were given in as follows : — From First Auchter-
muchty 20, from Abernethy 13, from Balgedie 6, from Second Auchter-
muchty I, from Kinross I, and 4 from distant congregations, along with 7
recommended after examination, being 52 in all. Thus was Edenshead con
gregation constituted, and in September they had five elders ordained over
them, two of whom had held office before. The church, with sittings for 300,
was already built and occupied. At the Synod in September 1827 a call from
Edenshead, signed by 102 members and 34 adherents, came up along with
two others from Fenwick and Lochee, addressed to Mr David Marshall, but
Lochee was preferred by an absolute majority.
Edenshead, or Gateside, was fitly chosen to be the seat of a new Seces
sion congregation. It is distant about 6 miles from Abernethy, the place
to which Seceding families in that part of Strathmiglo parish went at first for
gospel ordinances. When a Burgher congregation was formed in Auchter-
muchty after the Breach it drew a number of members and at least one
elder from that district, but this centre, though nearer than Abernethy, was
distant 4 miles. Balgedie was at a similar remove in another direction,
but it was of comparatively recent origin, and never had more than the
slightest hold in that locality. The new formation was made up for the
most part of Antiburgher families from Abernethy and Burgher families
from Auchtermuchty, who coalesced now that the wall of partition which
severed them had been broken down. Dissent had got considerable footing
PRESBYTERY OF DUNFERMLINE AND KINROSS 397
throughout Strathmiglo parish almost from the beginning owing partly to
the evangelical ministry of the Rev. George Gillespie and partly from its
proximity to Abernethy, a stronghold of the Secession cause, under
Alexander Moncrieff.
First Minister. — ROBERT REDPATH, M.A., from Galashiels (East). Or
dained, 2 1 st October 1828. On I5th September 1831 the Synod dissolved
the connection in favour of a call to Well Street, London, to succeed the Rev.
Dr Waugh. That important congregation had met with repeated dis
appointments during a vacancy of nearly four years, and it was felt impera
tive to have the pulpit, if possible, permanently occupied, though Mr Redpath
may have had reason to regret that he ever left his peaceful abode at the
foot of the West Lomonds. His ministry in London lasted forty years, and
then on nth May 1871 the congregation, wasted to a shadow, united with
Oxendon Church. Mr Redpath resigned what remained of his pastoral
connection on 2nd January 1873, retaining his seat in the higher Church
courts. Declining to acquiesce in the Union with the English Presby
terians he was enrolled a member of Dumfries Presbytery, though con
tinuing to reside in London. He died, 2nd November 1893, in the ninety-first
year of his age and sixty-sixth of his ministerial life. Mr Redpath was a
man of scholarly attainments, studious in his habits, and much respected
by his brethren.
Second Minister. — CHARLES MILNE, from Montrose. Ordained, 2ist
May 1833. On that occasion Mr Mitchell of Comrie, who had been ap
pointed to preach, and was in feeble health, did not come forward, and Mr
Jamieson of Scone was fixed on to occupy the pulpit on short notice. At the
close of the service one of his hearers was so delighted with the discourse
that, as Mr James Skinner has related in his Autobiography, he likened Mr
Jamieson to a man who has ample wealth at command and has nothing to
do but put his hand into his pocket and out comes the golden treasure.
The only cause in which Mr Milne came prominently forward in the courts
of the Church was in connection with the Atonement Controversy. It was
he who introduced the Memorial on this subject into Perth Presbytery, which
was followed up by a host of others from all parts of the Church. Mr Scott
of Leslie claimed the credit of having spurred on Mr Milne of Edenshead
and Mr Forsyth of Craigend to take this step, which set the ball a-rolling
and threatened at one time to rend the Secession Church in two. But Mr
Milne's tastes lay among his books, German and French forming a part of
his reading day by day, and amidst quiet pastoral duties the evening shadows
gathered round him. In view of his jubilee being celebrated in June 1883
he expressed a wish to retire from active service, and a colleague was
arranged for soon afterwards.
Third Minister. — JAMES LAWSON, M.A., from Carlisle, where he had
been active in Church work. Having been accepted as a teacher for Old
Calabar he landed there in the end of 1868, and was stationed at Ikorofiong
under Dr Robb. In 1873 the Missionary Report stated that he had returned
to this country to complete his education for the ministry abroad. He
entered the Theological Hall in 1875, and having obtained licence in 1878
he had his name placed on the probationer list. Ordained at Edenshead,
1 3th December 1883, the senior minister to occupy the manse. Mr Milne
removed to Perth in September 1888, and died there, 23rd January 1891,
in the eighty-eighth year of his age and fifty-eighth of his ministry. The
membership at the close of 1899 was 100, and it has slightly increased since
then. The stipend from the people was ,£90, with the manse.
398 HISTORY OF U.P. CONGREGATIONS
KELTY (UNITED PRESBYTERIAN)
KELTY is a mining village on the boundary line between the parishes of
Death and Cleish, and between the counties of Fife and Kinross. A mission
station was opened there by Dunfermline Presbytery in April 1894 and
placed for three months under the care of the Rev. J. L. Martin, formerly
of Grand Cayman, who was succeeded by an evangelist. The population
at this time was about 1000, and the only congregation in the place was
connected with the Free Church. The nearest U.P. churches were Kinross,
four miles to the north, and Cowdenbeath, three miles to the south. A pro
visional session having been appointed, and 63 persons received into Church
fellowship, the communion was observed among them on 28th October.
The services had been conducted in the Co-operation Hall from the begin
ning, but steps were now taken to have a place of worship erected, sister
congregations being recommended to aid with collections. On 24th
February 1895 the station was congregated with a membership of 86, and
three elders were ordained and one inducted on igth May following. On
28th January 1896 the new hall was opened by Dr Drummond of Belhaven,
Glasgow, the cost being £760, of which .£654 had been previously raised.
First Minister. — HENRY A. NEVILLE, from Erskine Church, Glasgow.
Ordained, 6th April 1898, the people having undertaken ^75 of stipend.
At the close of the following year there were 149 names on the communion
roll, and the stipend was augmented to ,£178 in all. The total income for
1899 was entered at .£400, of which by far the larger part was for special
purposes, and must have been derived to a good extent from outside sources.
Kelty is interesting as the nearest of our churches to Gairney Bridge, being"
distant from the obelisk scarcely two miles. Mr Neville in an early report
to the Mission Board complained: " Intemperance is a great obstacle to the
progress of the gospel here as elsewhere."
DUNS PRESBYTERY
DUNS, EAST (ANTIBURGHER)
THE county of Berwick, or the Merse, furnished no accessions to the Asso
ciate Presbytery during the earliest part of the Secession history. The first
was on nth May 1739, from a considerable number of people in Duns, who
petitioned to be taken under the Presbytery's inspection and to have a day
of fasting and humiliation appointed among them. This was the result of
a violent settlement in the parish church eight weeks before, which was'
carried through under the protection of a company of dragoons. Hence
there is no mention of Praying Societies in the application, the movement
being popular rather than select. The first time they had supply was on
i gth October 1739, the Friday after Mr Hunter's ordination at Morebattle.
Ralph Erskine on that occasion took a circuit to the east, and preached at
Causton, a place in the neighbourhood, morning and evening, but did not
stay over Sabbath. Owing to want of preachers the people had sermon
only at wide intervals for the next three years, but they went in for perman
ence, and built a church, with nearly 600 sittings, in 1742.
First Minister. — JOHN WHITE, from Abernethy. Ordained, I2th
January 1743. At the Breach of 1747 Mr White took the Antiburgher side,
but to all appearance in a quiet, undemonstrative way. His field of labour
PRESBYTERY OF DUNS 399
was very extensive, and the extra demands made upon his strength may
account for the fact that while he was yet a good way under threescore his
people came to the Presbytery about the necessity of having a colleague to
their reverend pastor. The step may have been hastened owing to Mr
White's son having newly obtained licence.
Second Minister. — JOHN WHITE, Jun. Ordained, 2oth August 1772.
But in this case the order of nature was reversed. The son's ministry was
brief, and the father survived him nearly twenty years. The precise date of
his death is not known, but a correspondent of Dr Bogue of Gosport wrote
on ist March 1776 : " Mr White, a pious young minister, an acquaintance
of mine, died a few weeks ago." We find further that he acted as Moderator
of Presbytery on 6th November 1775 and that his death was reported on
5th March 1776, when it was arranged that "at next meeting some time
should be spent in prayer and fasting, in respect of the late breach made in
the Presbytery." He was in the thirtieth year of his age and fourth of his
ministry. The size of the congregation may be vaguely gathered from the
fact that the call to young Mr White was signed by 123 (male) members.
The old minister now resumed the work singlehanded. The stipend in
1779 was ^50, with house, garden, and sacramental expenses. But a second
minister was felt to be needed, and on 8th March 1785 the people addressed
a petition to the Presbytery "setting forth the inability of their pastor to
discharge the duties of his office through the whole of that congregation,
particularly through the country part, owing to the infirmities of old age."
They wished a moderation forthwith, and would give the colleague ,£40 a
year, with house and garden.
Third Minister. — ROBERT LAING, from Abernethy, though in the student
list he is put down as having entered the Hall from Portmoak parish. When
a preacher he was appointed by the Presbytery of Aberdeen to Cabrach in
preference to Shiels, and while he was holding out against going there he
was called to Pathstruie and Dundee. The Synod confirmed the Presby
tery's decision, and kept him by Cabrach. A year of resistance followed,
and in May 1785 he was rebuked at the Synod's bar, relieved from Cabrach,
and allowed to accept Duns. Ordained as colleague and successor to Mr
White, 23rd August 1785. On 4th March 1792 the senior minister died, in
the seventy-seventh year of his age and fiftieth of his ministry. It was
Sabbath, and that morning, when engaged in family worship, on kneeling
down to prayer, he quietly passed away. Of his excellences a co-presbyter
of his, the Rev Dr Young of Hawick, has testified in a note to one of his own
published sermons : " Mr White's exemplary meekness and unwearied
diligence in his Master's work rendered him, through the divine blessing,
more useful in the Church than many men of more shining abilities." Mr
Laing was now sole pastor for fully a year, and then his ministry at Duns
came to an unhappy close. On gth July 1793 the Presbytery met pro re
nata. Immorality was acknowledged, and he was deposed on the spot. In
the early part of next year he was restored to Church fellowship, and with a
certificate to that effect sailed for America. Out there he had his sentence
relaxed, and was restored to the office of the ministry by the Presbytery of
Pennsylvania, in which matter the Synod blamed them for acting rashly,
but did not disannul their proceedings. Mr Laing became pastor at Buffalo,
Washington County, in 1797, and passed to South Argyle in 1805. In 1814
he was inducted into Bovina, Delaware County, New York. Retired in
1823, and died, 29th May 1839, in the fifty-fourth year of his ministry. He
was the father of the Rev. Benjamin Laing, D.D., ultimately of Colmonell,
and Professor of Hebrew to the Original Secession Synod.
Fourth Minister. — JOHN THOMSON, from Kilmaurs. Called also to Kil-
400 HISTORY OF U.P. CONGREGATIONS
winning and Dalreoch, but of these the Synod set aside Kilwinning without
a vote, and then Duns was carried over Dalreoch by 61 votes to 8. The
trying experience through which the congregation had recently passed
accounts for the strength of the decision. Ordained, i2th August 1794.
The stipend was ^60 and a manse, with ^5 for a horse. In 1811 it was
^90, with ^10 as a present, besides house and garden. Considering their
numbers and ability the Presbytery were of opinion that they were not doing
their duty, and hoped they would see the propriety and necessity of making
an advance in liberality. In 1836 the regular stipend was ,£120, and besides
the house and garden there was a quarter of an acre of ground rented for the
minister by the congregation, making a total value of about .£145. The
communicants at this time numbered 380. Of the families under Mr
Thomson's care 58 were from more than two miles, and the half of these
from more than four miles, and 13 were from more than six. Nearly two-
fifths of the congregation were from other parishes, Bunkle and Preston con
tributing the largest number, and after that the parishes of Edrom and
Langton. The seat-rents at this time showed well, but, large as the con
gregation was, the ordinary church-door collections averaged little over IDS.
Mr Thomson died, ist November 1838, in the seventy-fourth year of his age
and forty-fifth of his ministry. It was a shaded day, that, in Duns. In the
morning the Rev. John Ralston of the Relief Church, a much younger man,
was found dead in bed ; and in the early forenoon Mr Thomson, who had
been ailing for some days, sat up in bed, asked a blessing aloud, and partook
of a slight breakfast. The next thing the near ones about him knew was
that he was gone. Six days afterwards the two ministers were interred in
Duns Churchyard. In a Memoir of Mr Thomson which appeared in the
Secession Magazine for 1840 mention is made of the skill with which he
"laid out" his discourses. Of this I used to have specimens from an aged
friend brought up under his ministry, who delighted to draw on early recol
lections for lists of Mr Thomson's divisions — knacky, comprehensive, and
memorable.
Fifth Minister.— WILLIAM RITCHIE, from Arbroath (now Princes Street).
Ordained, 22nd October 1839. Though the voters were nearly equally
divided on the moderation day, 74 voting for Mr Ritchie and 68 for Mr
James Smart, who was under call to Chirnside, harmony must have been
arrived at, as Mr Ritchie's call was subscribed by 260 members. On the
following day he was called to Kendal, but that place would have slender
attractions compared with Duns. The present church was built in 1843,
with 650 sittings. After being seventeen years in the ministry Mr Ritchie
was formally invited to remove to Hamilton, Canada, but he set aside the
proposal. In 1861 he published "Life for God: Exemplified in the Char
acter and Work of Nehemiah," and this was followed in 1869 by "The
Prodigal's Return." Next year he received the degree of D.D. from St
Andrews University. Afterwards came " Bible Truth and Broad Church
Error," a book meant as a contribution to the theological literature of the
times. Another, entitled " Scripture Testimony Respecting Intoxicating
Wines," reminds us of the author's long, earnest, and consistent advocacy
of total abstinence. In August 1890 Dr Ritchie was relieved of all public
duty and resigned any claim to a retiring allowance. The membership at
this time was 250, and the stipend ,£200, with the manse.
Sixth Minister. — ALEXANDER J. B. PATERSON, M.A., from Carnwath.
Ordained as colleague to Dr Ritchie, 23rd April 1891. The stipend was to
be ,£180, with ^20 for house rent, the Doctor retaining the occupancy of the
manse. In 1893 Mr Paterson declined a call to Callander, and another in
1896 to Newcastle (Arthur Hill). Dr Ritchie died, 2Oth March 1897, in the
PRESBYTERY OF DUNS 401
eighty-seventh year of his age and fifty-eighth of his ministry. On i8th
April 1899 Mr Paterson accepted a call to Kilmalcolm.
Seventh Minister. — JOHN B. MUNRO, from Govanhill, Glasgow. Or
dained, loth January 1900, the membership being 280, and the stipend ,£200,
and the manse.
DUNS, SOUTH (RELIEF)
THE origin of this congregation has been put as early as 1750. Even Dr
George Brown, whose accuracy is seldom at fault, gives 1754 as the date,
which is seven years before the Relief Presbytery came into existence. We
are guided to a sounder conclusion by a letter of igth August 1762 written
by Boston of Jcdburgh to the people of Duns, bringing before them the
Relief terms of communion, and warning them against the Acts and Testi
monies of the Seceders. He hoped they would be helped to stand fast in
the liberty wherewith Christ hath made His people free and that both they
and the Relief Presbytery would be wisely directed in this weighty affair.
Clearly the congregation at Duns was now in course of formation. This
lends probability to the statement that their place of worship was erected in
1763, only the wonder is that, if so, they were four years in getting a minister.
The soil may have been prepared for the reception of Relief principles by
the obnoxious settlement of Mr Adam Dickson on 2ist February 1750, when
a great majority of the heads of families were in favour of another candidate.
We find from a certain pamphlet that the first this congregation called was
the Rev. Jarnes Murray, Newcastle, an eccentric character, who published a
volume of discourses, entitled " Sermons on Asses." Then in the early part
of 1767 they called the Rev. Michael Boston of Alnwick, but he was un
willing as yet to become a member of the Presbytery of which his father had
been one of the founders.
First Minister. — THOMAS MONTEITH, who, when a licentiate of the
Church of Scotland, had been usher of the Grammar School at Berwick,
and after that had a private academy of his own. For him Chapel Street
Church was built in 1756, and of it he became minister in connection with
the Scottish Establishment. Called to the Relief church, Duns, to which he
was inducted, gth July 1767. His stay there was brief owing to troubles
which arose on the question of Free Communion. We gather from a
pamphlet by one of his elders that Mr Monteith went to Newcastle to assist
the above-named James Murray, an Independent minister, at the dispensa
tion of the Lord's Supper and that this gave offence to a number of his
people, who held it to be a breach of Presbyterian order. Though backed
by the Synod, who declared that in this matter " he had done nothing wrong,"
Mr Monteith on receiving a call to succeed Michael Boston at Alnwick, in
December 1770, thought it better to leave the scene of discord. In 1775 an
invitation to Irvine gave him the opportunity of returning to the communion
of the Relief, but he preferred to remain at Alnwick, and there he continued
till his death, from paralysis, on I2th May 1786.
Second Minister. — ALEXANDER SIMPSON, who accepted a call to Duns
in June 1771, and was loosed from Bellshill by the Relief Presbytery. Ten
years after this the Presbytery of Edinburgh complained to the Supreme
Court that Mr Simpson had thrown up his charge without assigning to them
a single reason for his conduct, and he was declared " incapable of holding
any charge in the Relief." He next appears as an Independent minister at
Huxton, London, whence he passed to Alnwick in 1787, as successor, a second
time, to Mr Monteith. The opening seemed good, as the call was signed by
2C
402 HISTORY OF U.P. CONGREGATIONS
over 500, but his stay there was shorter than ever. The people blamed him
for countenancing public amusements, whatever these may have been, and
also alleged that, besides neglecting the sick, he had given up visitation and
catechising. He next removed to Pittenweem in 1789, and there we expect
to meet him again.
Third Minister. — THOMAS THOMSON, previously of Earlston (West).
Inducted some time in 1783, and remained there fourteen years. At that
time a second Relief church was in course of formation in Edinburgh, and
Mr Thomson of Duns became their choice. Having accepted the call he
was loosed from his second charge, I3th March 1797.
Fourth Minister. — JOHN WATSON, from Biggar (Gillespie). Ordained,
2 ist August 1798, but he remained at Duns less than two years. On 7th
May 1 800 he accepted a call to John Street, Glasgow. Duns congregation
now called Mr William Auld, but he chose rather to become the founder of
the Relief church at Burnhead.
Fifth Minister. — JOHN R.ALSTON, from Falkirk (West). Ordained 5th
August 1801. The congregation towards the close of Mr Ralston's ministry
numbered about 600 communicants, and of the 800 sittings 650 were let.
But it would seem as if the debt on the property had been considerable,
since, with a revenue of from ^180 to .£200, they only paid the minister ,£120,
and there was neither manse nor glebe. Mr Ralston died, ist November
1838, in or about the sixty-first year of his age and in the thirty-eighth of his
ministry.
Sixth Minister. — DANIEL KERR, M.A., who had been ordained at Ceres
(East) seven years before. Inducted, ist April 1840. During the vacancy
the membership was given at 592, but owing to an unhappy division the call
was signed by only 230. At the moderation there were 199 for Mr Kerr
and 192 for the Rev. William Wyper. On the evening thereafter the congre
gation met to fix the stipend, and, Wyper's friends having mustered strong,
it was carried that instead of ,£130 they should only give ,£65. The Presby
tery, however, believed that this was the outcome of a spirit which had been
fostered among them by the unsuccessful candidate, who, after being only a
short time in Newcastle, secured a call to Annan, and ere he had been three
weeks in his new charge he went through to Duns, and preached two week
evenings with specific intentions. His conduct throughout was brought
under the Synod's notice at their next meeting, and after long discussion he
was found guilty of fomenting dissension in Duns congregation, and rebuked
from the chair. The issue, so far as Mr Wyper was concerned, has been
given in connection with the history of Annan Relief congregation. At Duns
Mr Kerr must have had both reduced numbers and embittered feeling to
face ; so much so that one almost wonders that he did not prefer to remain
in Ceres. The stipend was eventually fixed at ,£130, as before, and a manse
was built for him in 1865 at a cost of £i 100, of which the Board paid ^200.
In the beginning of 1880 Mr Kerr required sick supply owing to a deep-
seated ailment, which proved incurable. After a time he resumed work, but
heart spasms mined in upon life's foundations. Conscious of this he was
about to retire, and had applied to be admitted as an annuitant on the Aged
and Infirm Ministers' Fund. He died, I7th July 1880, in the seventy-fifth
year of his age and forty-eighth of his ministry. His funeral sermon was
preached by Dr Ritchie of the East Church, who made mention of the close
and affectionate intercourse he and his departed brother had kept up during
their joint ministry of over forty years. Mr Kerr was a son-in-law of the
Rev. Walter Hume, Yetholm, but the marriage bond was early dissolved.
At his death the South Church had a membership of 267, and the stipend
was ^170, with the manse.
PRESBYTERY OF DUNS 403
Seventh Minister. — JAMES TODD, B.D., from Kinross (West). Ordained,
6th January 1881, and the stipend was as before. Loosed on accepting a
call to Moffat, i6th October 1894. Then came the union with the West
congregation.
DUNS, WEST (BURGHER)
HERE also, as in the preceding case, there is no getting back to the fountain-
head owing to the want of written documents. At the Breach of 1747 the
entire congregation of Duns, so far as appears, went with Mr White, their
minister, to the Antiburgher side, and it was not till after fifteen years that
the Burgher cause began to lift its head within the bounds of the Merse. In
the Minutes of Edinburgh Burgher Presbytery for 27th January 1762 there
is the following entry : — " Delayed sending any member to Chirnside, but
agreed that they should have some Sabbaths' supply afterwards." Accord
ingly a preacher was appointed to conduct services in that place on the first
Sabbath of May, and thus there was a beginning made. We only know
further that the centre was shifted to Duns, six miles to the west, some time
afterwards, but owing to a break of twenty years in the records we cannot be
more specific. According to Dr M'Kelvie, who must have had authority for
it, they removed to the riding school in Duns in 1763, and the church is said
to have been built in 1770.
First Minister. — ANDREW DAVIDSON, from Jedburgh (Blackfriars).
Ordained in December 1770. Of Mr Davidson little is known, although he
seems to have filled a large place in the Church affairs of Berwickshire in
those days. " His discourses," as we read in Landreth's Life of Dr Adam
Thomson, "were of a meditative rather than of a devotional or descriptive
cast ; and his deep musings on the essential truth about Christ as the
Redeemer, and about man as a sinner, brought him close to the main wants,
sympathies, and yearnings in the souls of his hearers." After nearly fifty years
of public service he required a colleague, and the first preacher called was
Mr Robert Simpson. This was in 1819, but the Synod appointed him to
Sanquhar (North). The 542 signatures appended to their call attest the
strength of membership to which the congregation had attained under its
first minister.
Second Minister.— JOHN M'GiLCHRiST, M.A., son of the Rev. James
M'Gilchrist, West Linton. Called also to Tranent, but Duns had now the
right to prevail in the competition, and Mr M'Gilchrist was ordained,
4th April 1821. That year the second church was built, with fully 1000
sittings, at a cost of nearly ^2000. Mr Davidson died, 29th September 1824,
in the eighty-sixth year of his age and fifty-fourth of his ministry. " His
memory," says a short obituary notice, "will be long and affectionately
cherished by his numerous congregation and by all who knew him."
During the nine years Mr M'Gilchrist remained in his first charge he was
looked on, it is said, as the most popular preacher in the Merse. Even
though this estimate be received with abatements, it is clear that pulpit power
such as Mr M'Gilchrist had developed would come to be in request else
where. The first of the transporting calls he received came before the
Synod in September 1827 from the congregation of Gardner's Crescent,
Edinburgh (now Lothian Road), but influenced by his own expressed
wishes they without a vote continued him in Duns. In September 1829 two
other Edinburgh calls to Mr M'Gilchrist were referred to the Synod — the
one from Rose Street subscribed by 920 members and seatholdcrs, the other
from Cowgate (now May-field) with 420 names. The decision of two years
4o4 HISTORY OF U.P. CONGREGATIONS
before was repeated with unanimity, and for the same reason. Rose Street
people forthwith brought out a second call, but Mr M'Gilchrist was still
continued in Duns, the majority being 60 to 16. Feeling was beginning to
run now in favour of Edinburgh, both on his part and on the part of the
Synod. A third attempt, and the balance was likely to be reversed.
Accordingly, in September 1830, after Mr M'Gilchrist had been heard, the
motion to transport was carried by a great majority, and on the i6th of that
month he was formally loosed from Duns, that he might succeed the
Rev. John Brown as minister of Rose Street, Edinburgh.
Third Minister. — JOHN ROBERTSON, son of the Rev. John Robertson,
Wooler. Ordained, i^th February 1832. Four years after this the com
municants were 878, and the stipend ^160, with manse and garden. Of
revenue the seat-rents brought over ^250, but the ordinary collections were
not much beyond £\ each Sabbath. When the new church was opened fifteen
years before a debt of ^1700 remained, but this was now reduced to ^i 100.
About 60 families came from more than four miles, and of non-parishioners,
who formed nearly one-half of the congregation, Edrom and Bunkle fur
nished by far the largest proportion, while there was a considerable number
from Langton, Fogo, and Swinton. Mr Robertson at his ordination \vas
slightly, if at all, beyond twenty-one, and he experienced an early break
down. In 1837 illness came, and in 1840 he proposed to demit his charge,
but instead of this a colleague was arranged for. The relation lasted only
seven months, and then Mr Robertson, on 5th May 1842, was loosed from
his charge, and removed to Edinburgh, the congregation allowing him ,£55
a year. He died there on 27th June 1844, in the thirty-fourth year of his
age. After being entirely laid aside from public work he prepared for the
press and published six "Sermons on Interesting Subjects," that he might
be useful to his former people and to the Church in another way than by
spoken address.
Fourth Minister. — CHARLES MILLER, from Wellington Street, Kilmar-
nock (now Portland Road). He was also called to Lasswade, but gave Duns
the preference, and was ordained, 5th October 1841. The call was signed
by 542 members and 85 adherents. Mr Miller possessed superior pulpit
gifts, but he appears to have become sensitive and difficult to harmonise
with. It may have been trying for him to see his large congregation, not
withstanding his acceptability as a preacher, falling off gradually year by
year, a thing which was to be looked for owing to their far-gathered state,
as Free churches arose in neighbouring parishes after the Disruption. The
process went on till at the close of his ministry the membership was not more
than half what it was thirty-eight years before. At the Synod in 1853
Mr Miller and his congregation were disjoined at their own request from the
Presbytery of Berwick and annexed to that of Kelso, a transference which
must have entailed inconvenience, besides making an unseemly severance
between our three ministers and three churches in Duns. It turns out, how
ever, that all was not smoothness for Mr Miller even in his new connection.
On Qth July 1879 Kelso Presbytery received a letter from him "announcing
his desire to retire from the ministry and membership of the U.P. Church,"
and on igth August a resolution of the congregation, adopted unanimously,
was laid on the table, offering no impediment to the acceptance of his resig
nation. Mr Miller did not appear, but the pastoral tie was dissolved, and
an entry inserted in the Minutes that there was no ground for the charges
he had brought against the Presbytery. After this there was little fellow
ship till near the end between him and the U.P. Church even in Sabbath
ordinances. Mr Miller died at Duns, I2th June 1891, in his eightieth year,
after a brief illness. He was the author of "Magdalene Nisbet," a tale of
PRESBYTERY OF DUNS 405
the Covenanters, evincing fine taste and a power of graceful expression.
He also published a volume of poems in 1882.
Fifth Minister.— JAMES JACK, formerly of the English Presbyterian
Church, Grimsby. Having retired from his charge there after a ministry of
four years he applied in 1879 to the U.P. Synod for admission as an ordained
probationer. After declining a call to New Leeds he was inducted to Duns
(West) on 23rd June 1880, and on 3rd June 1884 he accepted a call under
the Mutual Eligibility Act to the Free Church congregation of Chapelhill,
Airdrie. It is enough to add that his ministry there came to an unhappy
close in 1893, when he left the country, not intending to return, and the
Presbytery on 5th December declared the church vacant. We only know
further that Mr Jack was recently engaged at secular work in the United
States.
Sixth Minister. — JOHN CARMICHAEL, from Comrie. Ordained, I7th
February 1885. The stipend promised was ^200, with manse and garden,
and the membership had been reduced within the last five years from 414 to
330. In other five years there was an additional decline of 30, and at the
close of 1892 they numbered only 250. The congregation felt before this
that they could not raise more than £150 of stipend, but they seem never to
have been admitted to a place on the Augmentation platform, and in this
state they remained till 23rd April 1895, when a. pro re nata meeting of
Presbytery was held to receive Mr Carmichael's resignation. He explained
that he^was taking this step in order that union between Duns (West) and
Duns (South) might be accomplished. Commissioners from the congrega
tion expressed their intention to deal generously with Mr Carmichael, and
on the sale of the property to pay him at least whatever balance was
necessary to make up his stipend to ,£200 for all the years he had been in
Duns. The Presbytery, after expressing their appreciation of the self-
denying spirit Mr Carmichael had displayed, dissolved the connection.
DUNS (WEST AND SOUTH UNITED UNDER THE DESIGNATION THE
SOUTH CHURCH)
ON 29th January 1895 it was reported to the Presbytery that the South and
West congregations in Duns were planning to unite in about three months
and that they had agreed meanwhile to worship together in the two churches
alternately. In most cases the fact that only one of the two congregations
was vacant would have gone far to bar the way, but though there was a
minister of under ten years' standing in the West church there seems to have
been preparedness to have the pastoral bond dissolved rather than forego
the prospect of amalgamation. For one thing the membership, which stood
at nearly 900 in 1836, was now under 250, and the very appearance of the
small audience in a church seated for 1000 would tempt the wish to be done
with separate existence. With the South church the decline had not been so
marked, but even there the membership was less than half what it had been
sixty years before. The result was that on both sides union was resolved on,
and where there is a will there is a way. On Sabbath, 2ist April 1895, the
West congregation worshipped for the last time in their old church, and then
it was to be " closed henceforth and for ever," the South church being now
the place of worship. On the joint communion roll there were 528 names —
283 from the South and 245 from the West. The church was sold soon after
f°r £17°, and the manse for ^580.
First Minister.— JAMES EASON, M.A., called from Cumberland Street
Glasgow, where he had been minister for some six years. Inducted, 29th
406 HISTORY OF U.P. CONGREGATIONS
August 1895. The stipend at the close of 1899 was ,£260, with a manse, and
the membership was returned at 459. There is generally leakage connected
with even the best assorted congregational unions.
Mr Carmichael on leaving Duns had his name placed on the preachers'
list. Within a few months he accepted a location at Pitlessie, which was
being wrought for the time as a preaching station. After he had been there
three and a half years the people petitioned the Synod to be restored to the
position of a regular congregation, with the view of having Mr Carmichael
settled as their minister. This was agreed to, and on 8th August 1899 his
induction took place.
AYTON, SPRINGBANK (ANTIBURGHER)
THE earliest trace of this congregation's origin is found in a Minute of East-
barns session, of date nth February 1771. That day a petition from the
members residing in the parish of Coldingham was laid before the session
desiring some supply of sermon at the village of Coldingham. As there
were fifteen miles between the two places the applicants were entitled to plead
"that it was not in their power to give due attendance upon the dispensation
of ordinances." Little was done for the time, but on i4th December 1772
the same parties came forward desiring a disjunction in order to erect them
selves into a distinct congregation, and at next meeting it was agreed to
submit the matter to the Presbytery, with the proviso that if the petition were
granted there should be strict attention paid to the "marches." On 2nd
March 1773 the Presbytery decided to disjoin, making Windilaw the
boundary between Eastbarns and the new formation. On I5th August
1774 a reference came before the Presbytery of Earlston from the session
of Duns bearing on the same cause. Some of their members on the east
side had applied for a disjunction, that they might be annexed to Cold
ingham, a proposal to which that session was strongly opposed. The
Presbytery was in difficulties, and referred the matter simpliciter to the
Synod. They might disjoin from Duns, they said, but they could not annex
to Coldingham, that place not being within their bounds. But by-and-by
Duns had reason to be more seriously apprehensive. On 26th June 1775
the people of Coldingham intimated the ordination of three elders, and at
the same time petitioned the Presbytery for permission to have their place
of worship at Ayton. This was coming nearer Duns by a good way, though
distant "about eleven measured miles." To strengthen the claim they were
backed by a petition to the same effect from 15 members of the Established
Church at Ayton. Two things were now decided on by the Presbytery —
they would refer the question of what was to be done to the Synod, and
they would write Mr White, the Antiburgher minister of Duns, as his
interests were much involved. The Synod in September 1775 delayed their
decision till another meeting, leaving the session of Duns time to bring up
such objections as they might think fit, and in the meantime the Presbytery
might grant occasional supply at Ayton. In April 1776 the Synod, in the
face of a remonstrance from Duns, sanctioned the removal by a great
majority. The congregation, according to their own records, on settling
down at Ayton worshipped for a time in a large carpet factory. The build
ing of the church has been assigned to 1781, but, as the feu-duty began
to be paid in 1776, an earlier date is called for. It accommodated about
300, but the cost cannot be ascertained.
First Minister. — JOHN TURNBULL, from Glasgow (now Cathedral
Square). Ordained, 3rd March 1779, on a call signed by 43 male members,
PRESBYTERY OF DUNS 4°7
and after having been a preacher for nearly nine years. The stipend was
,£40, and to improve the position of the minister the people set about building
a manse for him in 1783. On 23rd February 1790 Mr Turnbull had to be
deposed for immorality. He afterwards removed to Glasgow, where he was
restored to office with the sanction of the Synod in 1792. When in Ayton
Mr Turnbull had figured as a controversialist in a " Review of the Anti-
Government Scheme " directed against the Reformed Presbyterians, and now
when disputes arose in the Antiburgher Synod over the New Testimony he
took a strong stand on the Old Light side, and was even described in one
of the pamphlets of the day as " the tool of the Constitutionalists." When
the crisis came he cast in his lot with " Dr M'Crie's party," and their handful
of followers about Glasgow met for public worship in his classroom. As
showing the spirit in \vhich he acted at this time we may refer to a remon
strance he addressed to the Synod in 1804. "They read on until they
found that it contained insults to the Synod and the members thereof, so
they stopped, and appointed the clerk to remit it to Mr Turnbull, giving him to
know that he will be attended to when he writes to them in a decent and
becoming manner." He published a pamphlet about this time, entitled
" Old Wine better than the Pretended New." In the Old Light connection
Mr Turnbull preached frequently, and he was engaged for many years in
Glasgow as a teacher of Hebrew and the Classics. In 1809 the Con
stitutional Presbytery appointed him to train the students in Hebrew, in
which he must have been a proficient in his day, for he published a transla
tion of the New Testament into that language for Jewish use. He died in
Glasgow, 1 4th December 1818, in his seventy-sixth year.
Second Minister. — ROBERT WlLSON, from the parish of Eckford and the
congregation of Morebattle. Ordained, 28th March 1792. There \yere
better prospects now, the village having increased since the former ordina
tion by about one-half. The stipend, exclusive of the manse, began at .£45,
but in 1799 it was ,£50, and in 1812 it was ^60, with taxes paid and a horse
provided for travelling to Presbytery and Synod. The people were sensible
that this was inadequate, and were trying to do better, but found themselves
unable. The membership at this time was about 140, and the opinion of the
Presbytery was that though few in number they might do more and that
they ought to adopt measures for that purpose. The parish minister, on the
other hand, testified very characteristically of both congregations twenty years
before : " They contribute with zeal, and many of them with a liberality
ill suited to their circumstances for the support of their Ecclesiastical Es
tablishments." Mr Wilson died, I7th February 1816, in the fifty-ninth year of
his age and twenty-fourth of his ministry. The inscription on his family tomb
stone is sadly interesting. The mother died, 7th May 1799, aged thirty-one,
and her infant daughter, thirteen days old, followed on the gth, so that they
were buried together in the same grave. She left three boys behind her, the
eldest about six, and all of whom in succession became students. Of these
the second, Patrick, died in 1811, before his literary course at college was
finished, aged sixteen. Robert, his elder brother, entered the Hall in the
following year, and after attending two sessions died, aged twenty. At Mr
Wilson's death in 1816 John, the youngest, alone remained, and his father
hoped a kind Providence would watch over him. But he was not to be
left long behind. He entered that season on the study of Divinity, and died
soon after completing his third session, in the twenty-fourth year of his age.
A brief Memoir of John Wilson is found in the Christian Magazine for
February 1820.
Third Minister. — JAMES STARK, from Cumbernauld, a cousin of Dr Stark,
Dennyloanhead, and also of the Rev. Thomas Stark, Forres. Ordained,
408 HISTORY OF U.P. CONGREGATIONS
I3th April 1819. During the vacancy the congregation felt embarrassed,
and could not undertake more than ^80 of stipend, with house and garden,
the membership being little more than 100, their debt ,£190, and the income
from seat-rents ^30, and from collections other ,£30. Such being the situa
tion of affairs the Presbytery, when the call came out to Mr Stark, said
they could not urge him to accept, though they had previously expressed
their willingness to do everything in their power to encourage and support
the congregation. In 1836 the communicants numbered 130, of whom about
two-fifths were from other parishes, the half of these being from Coldingham.
The stipend was ,£80, and at that figure it continued all through Mr Stark's
ministry, with the manse, and £6 for sacramental expenses. The debt was
^250, but they had ^200 of this free of interest. In 1862 a proposal for
union came from the East congregation, the first formal attempt in that
direction. They were about to build a new place of worship, and it occurred
to them that the site of the West church would be eminently suitable if an
amalgamation could be effected. A congregational meeting was held to
consider the matter, and Mr Stark expressed his views and feelings, and then
withdrew. His conviction would be that, though he were to retire, his people
would not settle down contented under Mr Montgomery's ministry, and he
would naturally wish further discussion arrested. Accordingly the proposal
was declined, "as inexpedient in present circumstances." Six years after
this Mr Stark, owing to the abatement of natural strength, yielded to the
conviction that his work was nearly over, and his people, with harmony and
kindly feeling, proceeded to provide him with a colleague. When a modera
tion was applied for Mr Montgomery came forward, insisting upon the union
of the two congregations in Ayton, and when the petition was granted he
lodged a protest and appeal, which, however, was not prosecuted.
Fourth Minister.— WILLIAM WILSON, from Union Church, Kirkcaldy.
Ordained as colleague and successor to Mr Stark, 3rd March 1869. His
stipend was to be ^150, and the senior minister was to have the occupancy
of the manse for life. This was not to be long, as Mr Stark died, 2ist July
following, in the seventy-eighth year of his age and fifty-first of his ministry.
It was the Fast Day, and he had been able to attend public worship. In the
afternoon he had just finished the reading of a sermon in French, a language
with which he was familiar, " when his head quietly fell back on the chair,
the book dropped on the floor, and he passed away." One of his sons, the
Rev. John Stark, was minister at Horndean. Mr Wilson on becoming sole
pastor got possession of the manse, which was improved in 1871 at an outlay
of ,£150, the people raising ^100, and the Hoard allowing ^50. On gth
April 1872 the new church, with accommodation for 400, and built at a cost
of ^1500, was opened by Professor Cairns, the opening collection amounting
to ^100, and it was entered free of debt. In 1877 the income from seat-rents
and collections reached ^238, and all went on smoothly for a course of years.
The members at this time were 168, and there were five elders, one of them
with Reston for his district, at a distance of three miles. The stipend was now
,£160, and at this level it kept till the close of 1884, when a supplement of
^30 a year was felt to be imperatively required owing to the loss of wealthy
members and other causes. The question of union was now pressed to the
front by the Augmentation Board, but no scheme that could be suggested
was acceptable to both congregations. The deputies who visited Ayton
reported that the attachment of Springbank people to their minister was
strong and that to press the matter further was inexpedient, and might be
injurious. So augmentation grants, varying from ^25 to ,£50, were made
year after year, with right to the surplus.
Meanwhile the membership was on the decline, till in 1892 it settled down
PRESBYTERY OF DUNS 409
at 130, and the stipend from the people was slightly under ,£100. But the
fretting action of the current in the direction of union pertains rather to the
history of Summerhill congregation. It is enough to state here that towards
the close of 1893 it was arranged that Mr Wilson should accept the position
of senior minister, and retire from active service on a grant of ^70 from the
Synod Fund until he should be eligible for an annuity from the Aged and
Infirm Ministers' Fund. In this both minister and people were brought re
gretfully to acquiesce. But the adjustment has wrought for good, and has
freed them from continuous embarrassment. The narrative is resumed under
the heading of the United Church, Ayton.
AYTON, SUMMERHILL (BURGHER)
ON nth November 1777 the Burgher Presbytery of Edinburgh received a
representation from some people in Ayton of their necessitous condition
with respect to a gospel ministry, and craving that the Presbytery would
appoint them diets of sermon. The Antiburgher congregation had scarcely
got footing as yet, and the conflict of interests was to be regretted. Supply
having been continued for about three years the congregational records
land us among accounts for the new church, the money raised by the people
for this purpose up to May 1782 being .£184, and ,£125 was borrowed. The
sittings were about 300.
First Minister.— JOHN THOMSON, from Bridge-of-Teith. Ordained,
2 ist January 1783. The close came in this wise eleven years after. On i3th
February 1794 the Presbytery met pro re nata to consider a letter from
Mr Thomson containing the demission of his charge, and wishing the con
gregation all spiritual and temporal prosperity, both of which he had done so
much to destroy. It proved a case of confirmed drunkenness, attended by
"cruel and outrageous" treatment of his wife. Perhaps the saddest item
in the evidence was a written declaration by Mr Thomson's father. The
worthy man, an elder in Bridge-of-Teith church, had come to Ayton the
summer before, intending, we may conclude, to spend the evening of life
beneath his son's roof, for he accepted office as a member of session, but
"in consequence of Mr Thomson's irregular conduct he had returned to the
Bridge-of-Teith." Here now was his own statement, attested by the minister
and session clerk there, "that he had seen his son John drunk at different
times." On i ith March, the charge being found proven, sentence of deposi
tion was pronounced. The accused compeared in the mood for resistance, but
he did not hazard a protest. According to Dr George Brown he afterwards
enlisted as a soldier, and was killed by falling from a rock at Gibraltar.
The congregation now called Mr Hector Cameron, as did also Jedburgh
and Moffat, but when the vote was taken in the Synod 59 declared for
Moffat, 2 for Jedburgh, and none for Ayton.
Second Minister. — DAVID URE, from Haddington (East). Ordained,
27th August 1795. There were big prospects now. Though the number of
names at Mr Ure's call is not given that to Mr Cameron was subscribed by
304 members and 41 adherents. The Old Statistical History stated in 1791
that "the Burgher meeting-house is of rather a better appearance than the
other, and the sect of Seceders who attend it are more numerous and of
principles more accommodating to the times." The writer makes the stipend
;£6o or £jo a year, the minister being also provided with a house. The
cause making progress, it was needful to enlarge the church, which was done
in 1814. For this purpose .£110 was raised, ^£44 from Ayton and ,£66 from
other quarters, such as Reston, Prinderguest, Eyemouth, Foulden, and Chirn-
4io HISTORY OF U.P. CONGREGATIONS
side. In 1836 the communicants amounted to upwards of 500, and about two-
thirds of the people were in Ayton parish. By the erection of the additional
aisle in 1814, which cost about ^300, the church had sittings now for 560.
The stipend was £100, with a manse and garden, ^5 for sacramental
expenses, and ,£3 for taxes. Mr Ure died on the last day of the year 1845,
aged seventy-three, as the tombstone, " erected by a few friends as a tribute
of respect to their departed pastor," states. He was in the fifty-first year of
his ministry, and for forty years had never been a single Sabbath laid aside
from pulpit work. Of Mr Ure we find little to record beyond this, that he
was kind in heart and placid in manner.
Third Minister. — THOMAS MONTGOMERY, from Annan, who had been
previously called to Rattray. Ordained, 2Qth September 1846. In the latter
years of Mr Ure's ministry the membership had been much encroached on
by the formation of churches at Chirnside and Eyemouth. Still, Mr Mont
gomery's call was signed by 243 members. The stipend at this time was
^105, and the congregation was engaged in liquidating by degrees their
debt of ,£250. In 1850 two of the members offered ^20 if the congregation
would raise another ,£100 within two years, and in 1853 the whole burden
was removed, with the aid of ^30 from the Debt Liquiding Fund. In 1862
an offer of ,£700 was accepted for the old church and manse, and the place
of worship now occupied by the united congregation was opened by
Dr Cairns on I4th July 1864, with sittings for 500, and built at a cost of ,£1300.
This was followed soon after by the rebuilding of the manse, for which a
grant of ,£200 was obtained from the Manse Fund, and the people raised
^400. Mr Montgomery died, 2ist January 1881, in the fifty-ninth year of
his age and the thirty-fifth of his ministry.
Fourth Minister. — JOHN G. DUNCAN, from Lochgelly. Ordained, 4th
January 1882. During the vacancy a motion had been tabled in the Presby
tery to take steps with a view to the union of the two congregations in Ayton,
but as Summerhill was prepared to offer the minimum stipend of ^160, and
as union was believed to be impracticable, nothing followed. At the modera
tion Mr Duncan had 62 votes, and Mr David Gray, afterwards of Burra
Isles, Shetland, 27 ; but one of the minority suggested that they should go
forward unitedly, and the call was ultimately signed by 200 members out of
a total of 229. But it was ominous when, on the ordination day, the
Presbytery took up the desirability of opening a preaching station at
Burnmouth, a fishing village two miles to the east, from which about one-
third of the congregation was drawn. This was a matter with vital bearings
on the interests of Summerhill church, and should have been disposed of
before a call was proceeded with. The session, when the proposal was
submitted to them for their consideration, urged that most of Burnmouth
people were connected with some church, that regular mission services would
create disregard for their own place of worship, and that, as there was a
Sabbath school there already with ninety children and an efficient staff of
teachers, an evening service once a fortnight by their own minister would be
sufficient to meet the other requirements of the place. It was certain, how
ever, that no such compromise would satisfy very long, and, now that the
movement was taking practical shape, the only way in which Summerhill
church could keep its hold of Burnmouth would be by the minister dividing
the labours of each Sabbath between the two places. This, however, was
not thought of, or was deemed impracticable, and things wrought on towards
weakness and disaster.
It seemed for a time as if nothing specific were to be done. Deputies
from the Mission Board, who visited Burnmouth in February 1883, were
confronted by a wide-spread opinion that the erection of a hall and the
PRESBYTERY OF DUNS
411
holding of regular services in the place would be hurtful to Summerhill
church, which had some 70 members there, and a petition to that effect,
with 122 signatures, was laid before the Presbytery. However, as meetings
on Sabbath evening, it was said, would be welcomed, these were formally
sanctioned by the Presbytery a few months later, and thus a beginning was
made. For other two or three years the membership of Summerhill church
kept up, but the funds came short, though the stipend was returned at the
old figure, and in the beginning of 1887 application had to be made to the
Home Board for assistance. The seat-rents from Burnmouth were about
^30 in arrears, and, though this was partly traceable to the failure of the
fishing, lessening dependence on the mother church of Ayton may have had
its influence. At the close of that year the membership, which had been
returned at 260 in 1884, was down to 210, and the stipend was ,£105 instead
of ^165, a special grant of ^40 having come in to make up so far for the
deficiency. To meet the wants of Burnmouth with least injury to Ayton
it had been suggested ere now that Messrs Wilson and Duncan might
conduct services alternately at Burnmouth and hold a joint service alter
nately at Ayton, but this proposal was never adopted nor put to the test.
At last, in December 1888, Summerhill congregation, prompted by financial
difficulties, struck out a path for. itself. The action of Duns Presbytery in
relation to Burnmouth they declared to be the principal cause of their
embarrassments, and they felt that they ought to take steps to con-serve
their own interests. Accordingly they unanimously resolved to sever con
nection with the U.P. body and apply for admission to the Free Church.
The scheme had much to recommend it, the Free Church never having had
a congregation in Ayton, but unlooked-for difficulties arose, and the Free
Assembly of 1889 declined the application. The commissioners had been
asked what grounds of complaint there were against their own Presbytery,
and they spoke of irritation, which had long existed between them, having
culminated in the Presbytery having set up a separate station at Burnmouth,
and as for seeking admission to the Free Church, they said it was because
there was no other for United Presbyterians to go to.
When their own Presbytery became aware of the bold move on which
the congregation had resolved they wrote them, expressing the wish for a
friendly conference with the office-bearers, but were informed in reply that,
as steps had been already taken to form new Church relationships, they must
" decline the pleasure of a meeting with them as proposed." But now that
the way was blocked for admission to the Free Church two or three of the
managers, along with the moderator, were in favour of conferring with a
committee appointed for the purpose, "the remainder of the office-bearers
being indifferent," and, we may add, spirit broken. Friendly relations were
then resumed with the courts of their own Church ; but returning prosperity
was not to be looked for. The income was now under ,£100 a year, and
though grants of ^50 were allowed the stipend was ,£200 in arrears, of
which the congregation proposed to raise ^100, and the minister was to
remit the balance. In this trying position matters continued till 6th June
1893, when Mr Duncan gave in his resignation, which was accepted on the
27th, the congregation stating that, from the circumstances in which they
were placed, they could offer no objections. The Presbytery deeply sym
pathised with him in the step he had been constrained to take, and ex
pressed the hope that some other field of labour would soon open up for him.
He now returned to the probationer list, and had charge of a station at
Uphall for a time, but afterwards emigrated to Canada, and is now minister
of a recently - formed congregation at New Denver, in the North-West
Provinces.
4i2 HISTORY OF U.P. CONGREGATIONS
Summerhill congregation wished regular supply in their vacant state,
and were proposing that their next minister should also work the station at
Burnmouth, but under the control of the Presbytery there was the opening
out of a simpler and more excellent way. A basis of union with Springbank
congregation was framed and the terms heartily approved of. At this point
their history merges in that of the United congregation.
AYTON (UNITED)
THE basis of union between the two congregations, as suggested by the
Presbytery on 313! October 1893, were that they should combine on equal
terms, and that with this view Mr Wilson should retire from active duty
altogether. This was on the understanding that he would be allowed an
annual grant of ^70 from the Synod Fund, but they stated that they could
not go forward with any such petition unless there was the clear prospect
of a happy and harmonious union. The terms, as already stated, were
heartily approved of by Summerhill congregation, and after discussion they
were also agreed to by Springbank congregation, though a number refrained
from indicating any opinion. The Presbytery felt that there was not sufficient
cordiality here to warrant further action, but at a meeting on i3th March
1894 memorials in favour of immediate union were received from both con
gregations through their respective sessions, the one from Summerhill being
signed by 95 members out of 102, and that from Springbank by 85 out of
117. The Synod having agreed to the Presbytery's request with regard to
Mr Wilson's retiring allowance, the congregations met separately on the
evening of iQth June under the presidency of members of the Presbytery's
committee, when findings in favour of immediate union were unanimously
adopted. They then met together, and were declared one united congre
gation, the membership being 212. They were to worship in each of the
churches on alternate months for the time, but Summerhill, as the larger,
was ultimately fixed on for the regular place of meeting.
First Minister. — DAVID SMITH CAIRNS, M.A., son of the Rev. David
Cairns of Stitchel, grandson of the Rev. David Smith, D.D., of Biggar, and
the second of three brothers who are ministers in the U.P. Church. Or
dained, 1 4th March 1895. When the union negotiations were going on the
hope was expressed that the united congregation would be self-supporting,
but .£140 was the sum named when liberty of moderation was granted, and
the membership was given at 194. Some years ago Springbank property was
disposed of for ^220, and the proceeds became available for improvements
on the actual place of worship, and other side purposes. The church has
since been pulled down, but the manse remains, the life occupancy having
been granted to Mr Wilson at the time he retired, and also ^10 from an
endowment which belonged to his former congregation. Summerhill manse is
occupied by Mr Cairns. Mr Wilson was recently placed as an annuitant on
the Aged and Infirm Ministers' Fund, and the allowance from the Synod
has ceased. The membership at the close of 1899 was 216, so that the
ground lost after the union was consummated has been more than regained.
BURNMOUTH (UNITED PRESBYTERIAN)
BURNMOUTH is a fishing village in the south-east corner of Ayton parish
with a population of 400. It had a public hall opened, to accommodate 300,
on 23rd May 1888 by Principal Cairns, who was born not far from that
PRESBYTERY OF DUNS 413
neighbourhood. It was to be used for public meetings as well as Sabbath
services, and the station was to be wrought by a student under the Recess
Scheme. For four years there had been sermon at Burnmouth on Sabbath
evenings, conducted sometimes by the agent of the Coast Mission, and for a
time at least Mr Wilson of Ay ton supplied once a month. In February
1885 a deputation from the Mission Board suggested that instead of a service
in each of the Ayton churches the two ministers there should preach alter
nately on Sabbath evenings, the one at Burnmouth, and the other hold
a joint meeting at Ayton, so that both places might be regularly served.
This, however, could have been nothing more than a provisional arrange
ment, and was never carried into effect. In December 1888 Mr A. M.
Moodie, probationer, now minister at Stevenston, Ayrshire, was appointed
to labour at Burnmouth. About a year afterwards the average attendance
was reported at 100 in summer, and nearly double that number in winter.
In June 1891 we find that the preacher stationed at Burnmouth was supply
ing there in the forenoon and exchanging with Mr Duncan of Ayton in the
evening ; that some 50 of the people were beginning to pay seat rents at
about sixpence a month ; that there were 50 names on the roll of regular
adherents, two of them being elders ; and that they hoped to contribute ,£25
a year towards expenses. On 2Oth December 1897 the station was con
gregated, with a membership of 81, and on 3oth January a session of four
members was constituted, two of whom had been elders in Summerhill,
Ayton. The hall, moreover, was now their own property, having been
secured on behalf of the mission through the efforts of a committee of
Presbytery. The .£290 of purchase money was raised partly by donations
and partly by a sale of work at Burnmouth.
First Minister. — ALEXANDER URQUHART, from St Nicholas' Church,
Aberdeen. Ordained, 28th April 1898, the people promising ,£75 of stipend
from their own resources. The membership was 108 at the close of 1899.
STOCKBRIDGE (BURGHER)
ON 5th September 1775 the Burgher Presbytery of Edinburgh read a petition
from a number of people about Old Cambus, a small village in the parish of
Cockburnspath, Berwickshire, " earnestly entreating that actual ministers
and others may be appointed to preach with them and address them on the
grounds and state of the Secession." This led to the opening of services
there by the Rev. John Henderson of Dunbar on the third Sabbath of Sep
tember, and other three members of Presbytery followed in unbroken succes
sion. Indeed, the people seem to have had the advantage of regular supply
all along. For many years Old Cambus was the name given in the Minutes,
and to this day Cockburnspath is the designation often used in preference to
Stockbridge, which is a mere hamlet. A site having been obtained with
difficulty a church was built there, but this was not till 1793, eighteen
years after the station was opened. Sittings 450, but the cost is nowhere
recorded.
First Minister. —GEORGE CAMPBELL, from Wellington Street, Kilmar-
nock (now Portland Road). After part of Mr Campbell's trials for ordination
were given the congregation of Stitchel came forward with a rival call, but
though there were 274 members signing in this case, as against 82, the Synod
appointed him to Old Cambus, where he was ordained, igth August 1795.
The money arrangements were ^60 a year and a dwelling-house. They
were also to "drive his coals and furnish him with a horse when needed, or
else maintain a horse for him, the horse being his own property." In 1816
4M HISTORY OF U.P. CONGREGATIONS
Mr Campbell published a volume of sermons, of which it has been said they
would do honour to more celebrated names. He died, 23rd November 1817,
of consumption, after a lingering illness, in the fifty-sixth year of his age and
twenty-third of his ministry. Mr Campbell's name, it must be stated, appears
on the list of Ayrshire poets. His education, we are told, had been very
limited, and he was bred a shoemaker, but formed the resolution to study for
the ministry. He next taught a small school at Kilmarnock, and in 1787,
two years before entering the Burgher Hall, he collected and published his
poetical pieces in a little volume. On becoming a minister he married " a
young woman belonging, it is said, to his native town, and with her he
repaired to Stockbridge, taking along with him his aged mother, for whom
he evinced the most tender affection. She had been left in the house on a
Sabbath when the family were at church, and her clothes accidentally coming
in contact with the fire, she was so dreadfully burnt that she expired soon
after." The sad tragedy was enough to leave a shadow over Mr Campbell's
after years.
Second Minister. — DAVID M. INGLIS, from Paisley (Abbey Close). Or
dained, 25th August 1819. Had been also called to Sanquhar (North), but
the Synod gave Stockbridge the preference, much against his wishes, though
he afterwards saw in their decision "a striking instance of the special provi
dence of God." This is stated by Dr Cairns, who was brought up under the
ministry of Mr Inglis and had the melancholy satisfaction of preaching his
funeral sermon. After a ministry of nearly forty-eight years Mr Inglis died,
8th April 1867, in the seventy-seventh year of his age. Of his characteristics
as a preacher Dr MacEwen, the biographer of Principal Cairns, has stated
that he was a man of intellectual strength and scholarly attainment, and that
" as a preacher he was massive, argumentative, and precise," besides being
"strongly and pointedly evangelical." Under his ministry the congregation
was brought to such a state of efficiency that it included more than half the
parishioners. Stockbridge when Mr Inglis went is graphically described :
the church " a square, thatched building holding 500 people, with a respect
able manse, a stable for the farmers' ponies, and a cottage for the beadle
close at hand."
Mr Inglis had three sons who became students of Theology. David
entered the Hall in 1851 and Basil in 1852, but both died before their course
was completed. William, the oldest, got licence in 1851, and acted as a
probationer for the allotted six years, but without obtaining a call. He then
settled down as classical master in a private academy in Dundee, but he
was early cut down. He died, 22nd January 1860, in the thirty-fourth year
of his age. Mr William Inglis had remarkable accomplishments as a scholar,
especially in the languages, classical and modern.*
Third Minister. — GEORGE HILL DICK, from Edinburgh (Lothian Road).
Ordained, 6th November 1867. Loosed, 5th December 1871, on accepting
a call to Eglinton Street, Glasgow. The membership of Stockbridge church
must have been much reduced before the close of Mr Inglis' ministry, the
call to Mr Dick being signed by only 144 members. It is interesting to
observe that Mr William Cairns, brother of Principal Cairns, was one of the
commissioners in support of the call from the congregation with which the
family were so long connected.
Fourth Minister. — ROBERT SIMPSON, M.A., from Dalkeith (Buccleuch),
who had been also called to North Middleton, Northumberland. Ordained,
* A chaste and finely-toned memorial notice of William Inglis appeared in the
U.P. Magazine for October 1860 from the pen of Principal Hutton. Fresh as yester
day comes up the feeling with which I read it in the U. P. manse of Wick forty
years ago.
PRESBYTERY OF DUNS 415
2 ist August 1872. At the close of 1886 there was a membership of
193, and the stipend from the people was ,£120. In the following year
the Free Church congregation within these bounds got sanction from the
Presbytery of Haddington and Dunbar to remove to Cockburnspath from
Oldhamstocks, a village fully two miles to the west. This occasioned Mr
Simpson and his people much anxiety, and the Presbytery of Duns set them
selves to oppose the movement, but in vain. It was an encamping in the
village on which they were mainly dependent for supplies. There is this to
be said, however, in favour of the Free Church congregation, that it had
borne all along the name of Cockburnspath, and their church would have
been erected there had it been possible to obtain a site. It was from adverse
circumstances that they had to betake themselves to another parish and
another village. But, as it was, Stockbridge felt the effects, and in twelve
years the communion roll declined to 126, and the funds only yielded ,£90 of
stipend. Cockburnspath Free Church had at the same time a membership
of only 92, so that the union, which has since been accomplished, was
clearly impending.
GREENLAW (ANTIBURGHER)
GREENLAW lies between Duns and Kelso, about seven and a half miles south
west of the former, and at least two more from the latter. The Seceders there
were mostly connected with the Antiburgher congregation of Duns. On 2nd
October 1781 the session of that church represented to the Presbytery of
Earlston that some of their people in and about Greenlaw wished sermon
from the Presbytery, but they had refused to transmit a petition to that effect.
The feeling was that, Greenlaw being within their bounds, diets of worship
were only to be through their appointment. The matter was deferred, but the
Presbytery, taking the session at their word, enjoined them to give supply
there on three of the intervening Sabbaths. Some months passed without
anything definite being arrived at, though the idea seemed to be that the
session of Duns should be the medium of supply to the applicants and that
the latter were not to come with their petition direct to the Presbytery.
This could be nothing more than a temporary expedient, but on 5th March
1782 a petition for disjunction from four elders and 30 members was laid
before the Presbytery by Duns session with their assent to the proposal,
provided the boundary were not to encroach too much on them. At
the same time a petition came up from more than 100 people not in their
communion craving that sermon be granted, that they also might enjoy the
benefit of gospel ordinances. The end was now gained, and Mr Arnot of
Midhplm appointed to preach at Greenlaw on the first Sabbath of April and
constitute the four elders into a session. This was the beginning, and there
was to be increase from Kelso direction.
On 6th April 1784 — that is, two years after the 34 members from Duns
church were congregated — their brethren from Hume and Springwell
petitioned to be disjoined from Kelso and annexed to Greenlaw. This,
however, was a serious matter for the weak congregation they wished to
leave, but, as it was plain these places were more adjacent to Greenlaw
than to Kelso, their request had natural fitness to enforce it. Kelso session,
indeed, pleaded that without the petitioners the gospel could not be sup
ported among them, but it was answered that it had been designed all
along to have Hume and Springwell hooked on to Greenlaw. So the
severance was carried through, only the people farther south than these
villages were to keep by Kelso, except Leitholrn, which was to be within the
416 HISTORY OF U.P CONGREGATIONS
Greenlaw bounds. To explain the philosophy of the above it should be
stated that Hume is within three miles of Greenlaw and about double that
distance from Kelso. On 2gth November 1784 they applied for a moderation,
but before granting it the Presbytery appointed inquiry to be made into
their capacity for supporting the gospel. Satisfied, so far at least, they
allowed the movement to go on. A church had been built — or rather it
should be said an inn had been bought — for ^115 two years before this and
fitted up as a place of worship.
First Minister. — JOHN M'VlTAE, from Moniaive. Mr M'Vitae got licence
from Earlston Presbytery in September 1784, and was appointed at that
meeting to supply Greenlaw and Peebles, four days each, with this result,
that both places were forward for a moderation at next meeting. When the
two calls came up hand in hand to the Presbytery for decision the one from
Greenlaw was signed by 59 (male) members, and that from Peebles by 30,
with some later additions. The Presbytery by a majority of one pronounced
in favour of Greenlaw, and on appeal the deed was confirmed by the Synod.
Mr M'Vitae was ordained, 24th August 1785, and died, iijth November 1787.
His tombstone bears that he "did much work in little time, and so finished
his course with joy." He was in the thirty-fourth year of his age. The
stipend arranged for when he went was ,£40, with a house. He was also to
have the use of a horse until a glebe was provided, and " some of the con
gregation will cart him ten load of coals." Mr M'Vitae's widow was married
two years afterwards to Mr Armstrong, Antiburgher minister at North
Shields. After a vacancy of ten months the congregation called Mr George
Paxton, but the giving in of trial discourses was a slow process in those days,
and before they were finished notice came of a call from Craigend. A third
followed from Kilmaurs and Stewarton, to which the Synod in May 1789
gave the preference.
Second Minister. — JOHN PARKER, from the parish of Inch, Wigtown
shire, and from the congregation of Stranraer (Ivy Place). Ordained, 3ist
December 1789. Owing to circumstances connected with his marriage
Mr Parker was deposed, ist May 1806. In the following year he applied
to be restored, but in vain, and in 1812 a petition to the same effect came
from four ministers in Ireland on his behalf, but the Synod's decision was
" that they finally refused all applications for Mr Parker's restoration." This
did not prevent Kelso Presbytery interposing in 1814 "that he might be em
ployed in Ireland or elsewhere," but it was all of no avail. Mr Parker settled
down as a teacher in the neighbourhood of Greenlaw, and died there, I2th
November 1836, after a few days' illness, in the eightieth year of his age.
His son, of the same name, was ordained over the First Secession Church,
Sunderland, the year before the father died.
Mr Parker of Greenlaw after being laid aside from the ministry made
large use of his pen. In 1808 he published "A Series of Letters and Essays
on Important Subjects." This was followed by several works, one of them
in three volumes, entitled "A History of the Wars occasioned by the French
Revolution." In his time Greenlaw became the seat of a rival Secession
congregation. On I7th July 1800 a number of people in the town acceded
to the Original Burgher Presbytery, and had a minister, Mr John Inglis,
ordained over them in 1804, with a stipend of ^65 and a house. The
membership seems never to have been above 70. Mr Inglis died on 4th
November 1832, and the Rev. James Young was ordained as his successor in
1834 on a call signed by 43 members and 15 adherents. Along with the
majority of the Original Burgher Synod Mr Young and his congregation
were received into the Church of Scotland in 1839, and he demitted his
charge soon after. He eventually resided at Broughty Ferry, where he
PRESBYTERY OF DUNS 417
acted as occasional supply in the Free church, and died on 3rd November
1882, aged eighty-two. The remnant of his people merged in the Dis-
ruptiomsts from the parish church in 1843. This cause during its forty years
of struggle must have weakened the other Secession congregation, or held
increase in check.
Third Minister.— DAVID INGLIS, ordained, ist September 1807. Though
born in Cupar parish he may be set down as from Leslie (West), that bein»
the church to which the family belonged. So far as I can gather he was
a nephew of the Rev. William Inglis, Dumfries. Greenlaw congregation in
1836 had 289 communicants, of whom fully two-fifths were from other
parishes, most of these from that of Gordon. The stipend was /ioo with
house and garden. There was a debt on the manse of about £200
Mr Inglis' tombstone records that "for thirty-five years he served his divine
Master with ability and unwearied zeal," and that, "having exhibited an
edifying example of the suffering graces during a prolonged and severe
illness, he fell asleep in Jesus, i3th December 1842." He was in the sixty-
sixth year of his age.* A colleague was required some years before, and
Mr William Tait was chosen, but he declined, and was afterwards ordained
in Ecclefechan.
Fourth Minister.— ROBERT MONTEITH, from Dunblane (First). On the
moderation day 99 voted for Mr Monteith and 80 for Mr Andrew Reid,
afterwards of Lossiemouth. But there was no opposition made, and
Mr Monteith was ordained as colleague to Mr Inglis, 29th April 1841.' He
demitted his charge, 2ist March 1854, with the view of proceeding to Canada
Became minister of Prince Albert, in that colony, soon afterwards. All we
know further regarding Mr Monteith is that in 1877 he was on the retired
list and that he died at Toronto, 23rd January 1893, in his seventy-ninth
year.
Fifth Minister.— JOHN MILNE, M.A., from Grange, Banffshire. When
a preacher Mr Milne was called at intervals extending over one and a half
years to Oban, Burnhead, Johnshaven, Chapelknowe, and last of all to
Greenlaw, where he was ordained, 7th December 1854. The call was signed
by 167 communicants besides adherents, and the stipend was to be ,£110,
with the manse. In 1859 differences got in between Mr Milne and a
number of his people, and at a meeting of the congregation a resolution was
framed, reflecting on the minister, though impeaching neither doctrine nor
life. Still, this action of theirs was unconstitutional, and the decision of
the Presbytery to that effect was upheld by the Synod at its meeting in 1860.
Two ministers were sent down to Greenlaw to harmonise parties, but without
effect, and disjunction certificates were withheld from 23 irreconcilables,
among whom were included some of the most active members of the church.
The ground taken was that they had lost their standing by withdrawing for
a lengthened period from Mr Milne's ministry and ceasing to pay seat-rents.
* Mr Inglis' son, the Rev. David Inglis, D.D., LL.D., entered the Secession
Hall in 1841, and, after attending three sessions, got licence from the Presbytery of
Annan and Carlisle, as he was about to proceed to America. At this time he was
several months from completing his twentieth year. In 1846 he was minister of an
Old School congregation in Detroit, Michigan. In 1852 he accepted a charge in
Montreal in connection with the Free Church, and in 1855 ne was translated to
Hamilton, Ontario. After being for a short time a Professor of Theology in Knox
College, Toronto, he became pastor of the Dutch Reformed Church, Brooklyn, where
jne died, I5th December 1877, in the fifty-fourth year of his age. Dr Schaff in his
ipeligious Encyclopedia says: " Dr Inglis was of commanding presence, and
remarkably fine preacher, riveting the attention, notwithstanding the monotony
sf his delivery."
2 D
4i8 HISTORY OF U.P. CONGREGATION'S
The Free Church session, considering that offences of the kind did not affect
the vitals of Christian character, received them into membership as they
were, and got the benefit. This again induced the minister of Greenlaw and
the Presbytery of Kelso to send an overture to next Synod about the duty of
Christian denominations recognising each other's discipline. Mr Milne
resigned, i6th April 1878, in enfeebled health, and received ^160 as a gift
from the congregation. He was inducted into Rockvilla, Glasgow, towards
the close of the following year.
Sixth Minister.— PETER WILSON, M.A, from Eyemouth. Ordained,
1 2th February 1879. The membership of Greenlaw was only 177, but the
stipend was ,£125, with the manse, and was afterwards raised to ^135. On
nth September 1894 the Presbytery with regret accepted Mr Wilson's
resignation. Owing to general failure of health he intended to remove
permanently to South Africa, but the climate proving unsuitable he returned,
and in 1895 accepted a location at Wamphray, a quiet retreat, where he
could work on for a time and gather up for larger service. At the Union
his name was appearing on the preachers' list, so that he was finding him
self restored to fitness for regular work again.
Seventh Minister. — JAMES F. PADKIN, from Braehead. Ordained, 7th
March 1895. At the close of 1899 the stipend from the people was ,£133,
and there was a membership of 166.
HORNDEAN (BURGHER)
ON 25th March 1784 a petition for sermon at Paxton, a village in Hutton
parish, Berwickshire, was laid before the Burgher Presbytery of Kelso, but
its prayer was not granted, as it was feared that to do so "might likely be
prejudicial to the congregations of Duns and Ayton," which were distant nine
and five miles respectively. On 6th May the petition was renewed, and on
22nd June there was a letter forward from Ayton remonstrating against the pro
posal as certain to injure greatly, " if not altogether ruin," the young congrega
tion there. They were of opinion, however, that if Horndean, in Ladykirk
parish, four miles farther off, were fixed on instead they would sustain no great
harm. On 7th August this session opened out on their narrow boundaries,
and prevailed so far that the next application for supply was from Horndean.
Now, however, Mr Davidson of Duns interposed, and insisted that if there
were to be sermon there such of his people who were nearer that place should
continue for at least another twelvemonth to pay for their seats at Duns,
a demand which the Presbytery judged " very reasonable," and to which the
commissioners from Horndean agreed. The station was opened on the third
Sabbath of March 1785.
. In the parish of Hutton there had been a violent settlement on 23rd June
1730, when Mr Robert Waugh, who had been licensed seventeen years
before, was ordained, according to Scott's Fasti, " under the protection of
the sheriff with 100 military." Wodrow in one of his letters tells that the
king's presentee had few or none of the parish or heritors for him, that the
General Assembly sustained the sentence of the Commission directing
the settlement to go on, and when a dissent was offered by 10 or 12 members
the Assembly by a vote refused to have it marked. The intrusion at Hutton
was often brought up afterwards as a marked example of ecclesiastical
tyranny, and it would naturally pave the way for the uprise of Seceders in
that locality. But now, through Horndean being fixed on instead of Paxton
as the seat of this forming congregation, Ladykirk and not Hutton was the
parish which became the Secession centre for that district of the Merse. In
PRESBYTERY OF DUNS 419
1786 a session was constituted and a church built. On 26th September a
moderation was applied for, with the promise of ^50 of stipend, and a manse
in addition within two years. The Presbytery urged the payment of ,£5 in
lieu of a house meanwhile, and " the commissioner said he believed the con
gregation would not be against this proposal."
First Minister. — ALEXANDER CALDERHEAD, from Cambusnethan. Or
dained, 25th April 1787. The services were conducted in a neighbouring
field. All appears to have gone smoothly on with Mr Calderhead at Horn-
dean, but on nth August 1802 he resigned, with the view, like several other
ministers, of accompanying the Rev. Dr Mason to America. " The very
day he left Horndean," says Dr Scouller, "he was married to a young
Covenanter maiden, Margaret Brown, who was thirty-two years his junior."
As he was fifty-two at this time it follows that she was twenty. In the
United States he became pastor of West Middleton, Pennsylvania in 1803 ;
in 1805 he removed to Short Creek, Ohio ; and in 1808 to Wheeling township,
in the same State. He died, 3ist January 1812, in the sixty-second year
of his age and twenty-fifth of his ministry. Dr Scouller states that he
published nothing, but left hundreds of carefully prepared sermons in manu
script, many of which are still preserved.
The strength of Horndean congregation in Mr Calderhead's time is no
where given, but of the five calls issued during the vacancy which followed
one was signed by 210 members and 126 adherents. Of these calls the first,
addressed to Mr John Campbell, came up to the Synod in May 1803 along
with three others, but Tarbolton was preferred. Of the second we have
fuller particulars at command. Mr Adam Thomson, afterwards Dr Thomson
of Coldstream, was now their choice, but there was a rival call from Leslie
(now Trinity Church). Through some mishap his letter to the Synod was not
forward when the cause was taken up, and, contrary to his- wishes, Horndean
was preferred. In the Life of Dr Thomson it is explained that Horndean
congregation was thinly scattered and that he pleaded before the Synod at
its next meeting, as a special reason for his reluctance to be settled there,
that his lameness unfitted him for overtaking the amount of pastoral visita
tion that would be required. To overcome this difficulty it was suggested
that he should be provided with a horse, but Mr Comrie of Penicuik con
fronted that proposal with the remark: "You may give the young man a
troop of horses, but he does not wish to go to Horndean." Calls from
Alnwick and Coldstream now supervened, the latter of which he was allowed
to accept. Mr David Stewart was the next preacher called, and again they
were in conflict with Leslie, but the claims of the collegiate charge at Stirling
outweighed all others. Next came a call to Mr Robert Fletcher, who refused
to accept, for which he was censured by the Synod. Two years afterwards he
was ordained at Hamilton (now Avon Street).
Second Minister. — WILLIAM LEE, from Selkirk (Dr Lawson's). Or
dained, 25th August 1807. The church was enlarged in 1812 to accom
modate 450 people, which was a sign of progress. In September 1848 Mr
Lee, in consequence of increasing infirmities, expressed a wish for a
colleague, and the Presbytery recorded their sense of the exemplary manner
in which he had discharged all the parts of the pastoral office among his
people at Horndean.
Third Minister. — JOHN STARK, son of the Rev. James Stark, Ayton.
Ordained, roth October 1849. The senior minister was to have ^30 a year,
and his colleague ^80, with manse and garden. The call was signed by 229
members. Mr Lee was able to aid very slightly in pulpit work after this,
and he died, nth April 1854, in the seventy-eighth year of his age and
forty-seventh of his ministry. Mr Stark had a much shorter course, having
420 HISTORY OF U.P. CONGREGATIONS
died on I4th December 1877, m the fifty-third year of his age and twenty-
eighth of his ministry. His widow, a sister of the Rev. Gilbert Meikle,
formerly of Inveraray, now resides in Edinburgh, and his son James was
minister of Lumsden. Dr Cairns wrote at the time of Mr Stark's death :
" He was one of the purest, most unselfish, and genuine characters I have
ever known, and his integrity and straightforwardness were as admirable
as his kindness and affection."
Fourth Minister. — JOHN HOWATSON, M.A., from Stewarton. Having
declined Leitholm, he was ordained, iQth March 1879. The membership at
the end of that year was 200, and the stipend ,£160, with the manse. Should
the surplus be less than ,£40 the people were to make up the total to ,£200.
But the united population of Ladykirk and Hutton declined from 1400 to
1150 in ten years, and Horndean congregation, with the membership re
duced to 173, required in 1886 to have their part of the stipend fixed at ^130.
On 5th November 1895 Mr Howatson accepted a call to the E.P. Church,
Walker-on-Tyne.
Fifth Minister. — JAMES F. G. ORR, M.A., from Glasgow (Belhaven).
Ordained, 8th April 1896. The membership at the close of 1899 was 108,
and the stipend from the people .£90, with the manse.
COLD INCH AM (RELIEF)
THIS congregation originated in the presentation of an unacceptable
minister to the parish church in April 1793. Without waiting for the result
a number of people petitioned the Relief Presbytery of Edinburgh on 2ist
May for sermon, which was readily granted. A church, with tile roof and
earthen floor, was built without delay, to accommodate 600 people. The
first preacher they called was Mr James Geddes, but he kept by an earlier
offer, and was settled in Waterbeck. The stipend they engaged for was
.£70, with ^5 for house rent and ^10 for expenses.
First Minister. — WILLIAM SHARP. Ordained, i3th March 1794. As it
is entered that after the edict was read the Presbytery "adjourned to the
meeting-house " it is manifest that the new church was already fit for
occupancy. Mr Sharp seems to have been from Hamilton, as he was
introduced to his charge by Mr Carrick, the Relief minister there, besides
being a licentiate of Glasgow Presbytery. Ten years now went past, and
then came the beginning of the end. Reports affecting Mr Sharp's
character were inquired into by the Presbytery at his own request, and they
gave it as their verdict that he had been most unjustly calumniated, though
looking over the evidence we find it hard to make out how that conclusion
was arrived at. After a few months the case confronted them in another
form. On 1st January 1805 they were called to deal with a petition from
elders, managers, and members of Coldingham congregation praying that
the relation between them and their minister be dissolved. As Mr Sharp
was not present he was summoned to attend next meeting, but instead 01
appearing he authorised a brother minister to inform the Presbytery that he
could not appear " owing to a variety of very pressing private affairs, which
he was not at liberty at present to state openly." There was delay now, and
a second summons, with advice given the petitioners to settle all tempor
alities, evidently with a view to further action. Again he was absent, but on
24th May he came forward, and money matters having been adjusted he
gave in his resignation, which was at once accepted. There was nothing
said, however, about a certificate or the putting ol his name on the
preachers' list. The charge, it may be explained, did not relate to in-
PRESBYTERY OF DUNS 421
temperance, and there were improprieties made out sufficient to suggest
suspicions of something seriously wrong.
COLDINGHAM (BURGHER)
ON 3rd September 1805 the congregation's connection with the Relief
came to an end. They applied that day to the Presbytery both for preachers
and a moderation, but at the same meeting there was a letter of complaint
from Mr Sharp that they had not squared accounts with him, though on
giving in his demission he acquiesced in the statement of the commissioners
that temporalities had been settled. He now put in a claim to be reimbursed
for expenses incurred by him in enforcing payment of his stipend, and to
have other demands submitted to arbitration. The Presbytery sustained
him in his contention, and notified to the congregation that unless their
clerk wrote out a paper agreeing to arbitration, and a receipt was produced
to show that the law expenses were paid, they would get no more sermon.
Coldingham people troubled them no more. Instead of this a petition signed
by the preses in name of the congregation was presented to the Burgher
Presbytery of Coldstream on 7th January 1806 to be taken under their
inspection. This was unanimously agreed to, and Mr Ure of Ayton was
appointed to preach to them on the third Sabbath of that month, and thus
they entered into a new connection. Once more the first call was unsuc
cessful. It was addressed to Mr George Brown, but the Synod appointed
him to North Berwick.
First Mtnis/er. — ROBERT MACLAURIN, from Bridge-of-Teith. Mr
Maclaurin was also called to New Deer and Johnshaven, but the members'
names from Coldingham, amounting to 271, were nearly three times those
from the other places put together. The Synod gave numbers the pre
ference, and the ordination followed, 27th August 1807, the services being
conducted in the open air. The stipend was now ^90, besides house and
garden and ,£3 for each communion. The congregation seems to have
passed intact through recent vicissitudes, and we may calculate that it
received an accession of strength from Burgher families near by who had
formerly attended at Ayton. In 1837 the communicants were as high as
560, and the stipend was ,£129, with ^20 a year for house rent. There was
a debt of .£180, but a good part of that rested on the schoolhouse. Though
only a small percentage of the people resided in other parishes there were
thirty-three families from more than four miles. There was a goodly revenue
from seat-rents, but as was often the case with large congregations in former
days the ordinary collections were very slight, averaging only I2s. or 135.
each Sabbath. Though there was only one service on Sabbath the minister
took the full amount of pulpit work, since besides analysing a chapter of the
Bible he delivered both a lecture and a sermon. The Sabbath school,
which he had conducted for thirty years, had an attendance of 250. He had
also a Bible class of 70 young people.
The Secession congregation were fortunate in their first minister. Dr
Bogue of Gosport wrote to his sister, we find, in 1819 as follows : — " It is a
great happiness to have so good a minister as Mr Maclaurin, and I air.
persuaded you find his preaching conduce greatly to the edification and
comfort of your souls. I hc:pe none of our family are such bigots, or care
so little for their souls, as to hear a man like Mr Landels when they can
have the opportunity of attending on the ministry of one so much his
superior both in goodness of nature and ability in preaching." In 1845 Mr
Maclaurin felt it needful by reason of growing infirmities to have arrange
ments made for obtaining a colleague.
422 HISTORY OF U.P. CONGREGATIONS
Second Minister.— ANDREW HENDERSON, from Dundee (Tay Square),
but a native of Kirkwall. Ordained, 2nd June 1847, the first after the Union
of that year. At the moderation the vote stood — for Mr Henderson, 160 ; for
Mr Peter Whyte, afterwards of Wooler, 84 ; for Mr J. C. Houston, afterwards
of Newcastle, 40 ; but harmony was not disturbed. The senior minister was
to receive ,£64 a year, with the manse, and the junior ^100, to be increased
to ,£130, with the manse, should he become sole pastor. The collegiate
relation lasted only a few months, as Mr Maclaurin, who had removed to
West Calder, died on 26th September following, in the sixty-fifth year of his
age and forty-first of his ministry, leaving two sons, members of the U.P.
Synod — James in Pollokshaws, and Robert in West Calder. He was the
author of three little biographies, the best-known being the " Life of James
Watt, a Pious Shepherd." On I3th March 1855 Mr Henderson accepted a
call to Abbey Close, Paisley.
Third Minister. — ANDREW BRODIE ROBERTSON, from Infirmary Street,
Edinburgh, nephew of the Rev. W. C. Brodie, Lasswade. Ordained, 22nd
January 1856. In 1870 a new church, with 550 sittings, was entered free of
debt. A few years after this the congregation was agitated on the question
of unfermented wine, and a petition and complaint to the Presbytery in
April 1873 was met by a recommendation to accept the decision of Session
and abide by present arrangements. In 1877 the Synod was overtured by
54 members of Coldingham church to recommend sessions to grant relief to
those who upon conscientious grounds petitioned for the unfermented fruit
of the vine in the ordinance of the Lord's Supper. It was held that this was
equivalent to asking that the legislation of the previous year on the same
subject should be reversed, and that hence the request could not be granted.
This led to the formation of a Congregational church in 1878, which took
from Mr Robertson about 30 of his members. They met in an ordinary
dwelling-house, and obtained for their minister Mr George M'Farlane, who
had been a chaplain about Leith. At his death in 1882 the congregation
dissolved, a few of the members returning to their former church, and their
place of meeting was converted into a dwelling-house again. Mr Robertson
died, Qth June 1899, in the seventieth year of his age and forty-fourth of his
ministry.
Fourth Minister. — JOHN T. DEAN, M.A., from Elgin (Moss Street).
Ordained as a missionary to Old Calabar, 7th July 1891 . After seven years'
experience of Creek Town, and latterly of Duke Town, his health yielded
to the climate, and his resignation was accepted by the Mission Board on
27th September 1898. Inducted to Coldingham, 3oth November 1899. The
membership at this time was 275, and the stipend was to be ,£180, with the
CHIRNSIDE (UNITED SECESSION)
THIS is the parish in which Henry Erskine, the father of Ebenezer and
Ralph Erskine, laboured for eight years after the Revolution of 1688, and
within its bounds the Secession took root at an early period. It was here in
1762 that the Burgher congregation of Duns began, and why it saw reason
to change its centre is hard to conjecture. But so it was, and it was left to the
Cameronians to take possession of the ground. Meanwhile the two sections
of Seceders had to attend places of worship at Ayton and Duns, and latterly
at Horndean, each of them distant about five miles. This went on till 1836,
and then steps were taken to have themselves formed into a congregation. On
25th October 1836 these parties combined in an application for sermon
PRESBYTERY OF DUNS 423
to the Presbytery of Coldstream and Berwick. The sessions interested
having offered no objections, services were conducted at Chirnside on Sab
bath, 1 8th December, by Mr Ure of Ayton, who preached from Jacob's
words : " Let us arise and go up to Bethel, and I will make there an altar
unto God," etc. On nth July 1837 a congregation was formed of 101
persons previously in full communion with the United Secession Church.
They met, meanwhile, in an old barn fitted up as a temporary place of
worship, but in the following year a church was built, with sittings for over
600 people. Four of their number who had held office before had already
been chosen as elders and constituted into a session. The next step was
the calling of a minister, and one of their own number, Mr G. B. Watson,
was all but unanimously carried. On that same day, however, he received a
call to Methven, which he preferred to that from his native place. Although
the issue there was disastrous, his activity at Chirnside and the extent to
which he secured the confidence of the newly-formed congregation, speak
much in his favour. Then came a divided call, in which the Rev. David
Hogg, formerly of Rattray, had a majority of 79 votes to 59 over Mr John
Thomson, afterwards of Holywell. The good feeling which prevailed in the
congregation showed itself in their agreement to withdraw the call in order
to secure harmony.
First Minister. — JAMES SMART, from Stirling (Erskine Church). The
dimensions to which the congregation had grown may be estimated from
the fact that the call was signed by 234 members. The 2ist of August 1839
was a memorable day at Chirnside, there being an ordination both in the
Secession and in the Reformed Presbyterian churches. Mr Smart died,
3oth September 1853, in the forty-first year of his age and fifteenth of his
ministry. He had been partially laid aside for some time, but Mr William
Cairns, the brother of Principal Cairns, parted with him at his garden gate
that morning. His tombstone testifies that " in him were united the faithful
friend, the honourable man, the humble Christian, and the devoted minister."
Second Minister. — JAMES KER, M.A., from Urr. Ordained, 8th August
1854. In 1866 the manse was replaced by a better at an additional cost of
^575, of which one-fourth was derived from the Board. On I7th March
1868 Mr Ker was called to Leicester and on the 3Oth to \Volverhampton.
Of these calls he preferred the former, and was loosed from Chirnside on
5th May of that year. The strain involved in the building-up of a Presby
terian church at Leicester was very great, and in March 1873 it was stated
in London Presbytery that Mr Ker was seriously ill. He had been com
pletely disabled by a severe stroke of paralysis, which necessitated the
acceptance of his resignation on gth June 1874. He was hopeful of complete
recovery at this time, but that hope has never been realised. He resided in
Edinburgh for some years, and is now in New Zealand. He is the author
of a well-written Memoir of his father-in-law, Dr Jack of Dunbar, prefixed to
a volume of the Doctor's sermons, which was published in 1869. (Mr Ker
died in New Zealand, ist August 1902, aged seventy-four.)
Third Minister. — WILLIAM RUTHERFORD, from Grangemouth. Called
also to Holm, in Orkney. Ordained, 3rd February 1869. Chirnside, when
Mr Ker left, had a membership of little under 500, a number surprisingly
large considering that the population of the parish never quite amounted to
1500, but in 1879 disruptive elements awoke in the congregation. In October
of that year the managers complained to the Presbytery that the minister
had charged them with misapplying the church funds, and, as it came out
that matters were in an unsatisfactory state at Chirnside, a visitation of the
congregation was resolved on. Mr Rutherford had previously apologised
for the charge he had made, but at the meeting held at Chirnside on i8th
424 HISTORY OF U.P. CONGREGATIONS
November with the session, the managers, and the congregation in succes
sion, dissatisfaction found serious expression. As it appeared, however,
that the majority of the people were in favour of Mr Rutherford the Presby
tery felt they could do nothing specific. At next meeting a petition with 90
names appended was laid before the Presbytery in favour of forming a
preaching station in the place, and, in the face of opposition from the session,
interim supply was granted. In May 1880 Duns Presbytery asked advice
from the Synod as to whether sermon should be continued to "about 100 of
the most influential members " who had withdrawn from Chirnside congrega
tion. They had previously counselled Mr Rutherford to accept the offer of
ministerial work in New South Wales, with the assurance of £100 for outfit
and ,£200 of stipend for at least three years, but he was fixed in his purpose
to abide at his post, expecting that he would yet build up the congregation.
Hopes of reconciliation being at an end the Synod advised that the preaching-
station be meanwhile kept up, "but on the distinct understanding that it
meet its own expenses," a condition which the petitioners voluntarily came
under at the outset. But now, believing, perhaps, that the clause had an
unkindly look, they intimated to the Presbytery at its next meeting that
"they had unanimously agreed, in view of the Synod's decision, to break up
the station." The congregation that year, on their own showing, " sustained
a serious loss of members, and those mainly such as were best able to con
tribute." But by greater liberality on their part the stipend was maintained
at ,£160, as before, and at that figure it still continues, with the manse. The
names on the communion roll at the close of 1899 were 287, a decrease of 50
since 1885.
EYEMOUTH (UNITED SECESSION)
ON 2nd February 1841 a paper from Eyemouth signed by 38 members of
the Secession church and 78 other inhabitants, nearly all heads of families,
was presented to the Presbytery of Coldstream and Berwick praying for
supply of sermon and expressing their willingness to defray all expense.
On 2nd March the two sessions at Ayton reported that they had no opposition
to offer, and Coldingham session was unanimously of opinion that the
petition should be granted. These places are each about three miles distant
from Eyemouth, and each of the three congregations had a branch there.
In 1836 Mr Maclaurin of Coldingham had 36 of his people, young and old,
from that parish, Mr Ure of Ayton had 35, and Mr Stark 14. Sermon was
now granted, and Mr Maclaurin appointed to open the station on the second
Sabbath of March. The congregating was agreed to on 24th August, and,
being left in the hands of the three ministers just named, they in due time
admitted about 60 persons from the Establishment and a similar number by
certificate from the Secession. Next, the ordination of four elders was to be
proceeded with on Sabbath, gth January 1842, and in May Mr James Duncan
was called to be their minister, but he accepted Alva. In the course of that
year the church was built, with sittings for 450.
First Minister. — THOMAS PEARSON, from Alnwick (Clayport Street).
Called eight months before to be junior minister at Galston, and then to
Crossford, but declined both. Ordained, 3oth May 1843. Mr Pearson's
name came into prominent notice in 1853, when he obtained the prize of
;£ioo for an essay on Infidelity, a book which gives evidence of extensive
reading, intimate acquaintance with the various aspects of the subject, and
capacity for vigorous thought. Within a few years after this his health gave
way, and he died at Rothesay, I4th June 1855, in the forty-first year of his
PRESBYTERY OF EDINBURGH 425
age and thirteenth of his ministry. At his death the membership was over
200 In May 1856 the congregation called Mr James M'Leish, afterwards
u uWJ ' declined, and in September they called Mr James Robertson,
who had at the same time his choice of Balfron, which he preferred
Second Minister.— JAMES NARROWER, from Alloa (Townhead). Called,
at considerable intervals, to New Deer, Tough, Ramsay in the Isle of Man,
and finally to Eyemouth, where he was ordained, 2ist July 1857 In 186; a
manse was built at a cost of ^930, of which the people were to raise /6ao
m three years, and the Board allowed ^300. On 5th April 1879 the elders
and managers memorialised the Presbytery, proposing that a colleague and
successor should be appointed to Mr Harrower. Sympathy was expressed
with him in his affliction, and on loth June an arrangement was arrived at
by which he was to have ^50 a year, with the manse, from the congregation
and the junior minister ^160. An application to have Mr Harrower admitted
as an annuitant on the Aged and Infirm Ministers' Fund was not successful
but by a supplement of ^60 from the Augmentation Fund he was to have
,£110 in money, and his colleague was to receive .£20 from the same source
tor house rent and his share of the Surplus Fund. Althouo-h an E U
church was formed at Eyemouth in 1861 in the wake of the Revival move
ment, and they had a place of worship, with 250 sittings, and a regular
ministry, Mr Harrower when he retired had a membership of ->y
Third Minister.— DAVID K. MILLER, M.A., called from Elgin Street
Glasgow, whereafter a year and a half's trial he found himself confronted
with congregational liabilities, and accepted an invitation to a quieter place
Inducted, 27th April 1880. Mr Harrower continued to reside in Eyemouth
and, as had been previously arranged, took the pulpit when Mr Miller was
absent on holiday and at other times. During his probationer course he had
a strikingly impressive discourse on Felix, which did service occasionally in
other churches during his whole ministry. He preached it by request in
Gilmore Place Church, Edinburgh, on the second Sabbath of October 1889
but owing to waning energy or through frequent repetition it retained the
merest remnant of its first power. His voice was to be heard in a pulpit no
more. He ultimately removed to Alloa, his native place, where he died
22nd October 1890, in the sixty-sixth year of his age and thirty-third of his
ministry. The membership of Eyemouth at the close of 1899 was 213 and
the stipend from the people ^165, with the manse.
PRESBYTERY OF EDINBURGH
EDINBURGH (OLD ASSOCIATE)
THE Secession may have had its way prepared in Edinburgh by the rigorous
exercise of patronage in the parish of St Cuthbert's a few years before. Two
candidates were in the field, but, while on the moderation day the heritors and
feuars were about equally divided, the Rev. Robert Jardine of Glencairn had
twenty-one elders in his favour and Mr Patrick Wotherspoon had only two.
The mind of the people had also been taken by the elders going round the
twenty-five districts, when nearly i roo were found to be for Mr Jardine and
only a very few for Mr Wotherspoon. But before the Presbytery had com
pleted the scrutiny of the votes a Crown presentation in favour of the minority's
man was thrown into the scale, which made them decide that it was unneces
sary to proceed further. Against this decision an appeal was taken, but in
426 HISTORY OF U.P. CONGREGATIONS
November 1731 the Commission of Assembly ordered the ordination of
Mr Wotherspoon to be carried through without delay. "The screwing
things so high," wrote Wodrow, "if mercy prevent not, will rend us in pieces."
The edict was read from the pulpit on Sabbath, i2th March 1732, in the midst
of tumult and uproar, and the induction took place on the 3oth of that month.
The new minister applied for his seat in the session on 6th April, but his
colleague, Mr M'Vicar, and the great majority of the elders said No. They
had protested against the whole proceedings, and looked to the approaching
Assembly for redress. Mr Wotherspoon died on i2th May, and this stayed
further proceedings. In these circumstances there is no reason to suppose,
as Dr M'Kelvie has done, that Mr Wotherspoon's opponents withdrew from
Mr M'Vicar's ministry, who had been at their head throughout the contest,
and placed themselves under that of Mr John M'Laren in the the Tron
Church. Still, they had seen enough to alienate them from the judicatories
of the Established Church.
In the end of 1735 an<^ the beginning of 1736 petitions from the " United
Societies " in the town for supply of sermon were laid before the Associate
Presbytery, but it was not till 22nd March 1738 that the standard of the
Secession was formally uplifted in the neighbourhood of Edinburgh. The
spot selected was the Braid Hills, and, according to the Caledonian Mercury,
Mr Mair of Orwell commenced the services at 10 A.M. At noon Mr Wilson
of Perth gave a discourse and baptised ten children, some of them brought
from twenty or thirty miles. At four o'clock Ralph Erskine preached from
the text : "O Israel, thou hast destroyed thyself, but in Me is thine help."
The Mercury adds : " There were about 5000 hearers at each service, besides
the ungodly audience consisting of many thousands, some of whom set fire
to furze." The Mercury also records that Mr Thomson of Burntisland
preached at the Gardeners' Hall on Thursday, 2oth June 1739, to a very
numerous body of Seceders, and that on 3ist December Mr Fisher preached
in the same place, great numbers of people from all quarters being present
notwithstanding the rigorous weather. But before this point was reached
the Presbytery had trouble with one of the praying societies, the members
of which held it to be a right thing to take up arms against the Government
for defection from Covenanting principles. This was a doctrine which the
Presbytery could not tolerate, and after lengthened dealings with the party,
which numbered about a dozen, they were excluded from Church fellowship.
We shall meet these extreme men very shortly at the commencement of
Lauriston Place Church.
First Minister. — ADAM GIB, from Muckart. Acceded to the Associate
Presbytery when a student owing to a violent settlement in his native parish.
Ordained, 2nd April 1741. Of the moderation the Caledonian Mercury
announced on the previous day that Mr Alexander Moncrieff, "a gentleman
of a plentiful estate," was to preside, that the Gardeners' Hall was the place,
and the choosing of "a superintendent for Mid-Lothian" the purpose. The
same unfriendly authority told that Mr Fisher of Kinclaven was said to be
warmly recommended, but the people seemed fonder of one Mr Gib, " whose
good qualification consists in a loud voice." Bristo church was taken
possession of in the end of 1741. The Evening Cottrant of Monday, 7th
December, says: "Yesterday the Seceders met for the first time in their
fine new chapel. It is-as complete a large house as any of that kind, perhaps,
in Britain." Another newspaper describes it as erected near Bristo Port, by
subscription of the adherents of the Associate Presbytery, and opened by a
sermon from the Rev. Adam Gib. Under the young minister's preaching
power, taken along with the popularity of the cause, the congregation grew
rapidly to large dimensions, the communion roll for 1744 showing a list of
PRESBYTERY OF EDINBURGH 427
1279 names, of which 96 were from Leith and 90 from Colinton, with smaller
numbers from other parishes around. In the controversy which arose on
the Burgess Oath Mr Gib did much to force on the Breach, and to make it
irreparable when it came. Indeed, the part he acted on this and other
occasions tempts the feeling that, great as his gifts were, his connection with
the early Secession was productive of more harm than good. On the
morning after the disruption the Antiburgher party met in Mr Gib's house,
and a more befitting place could not have been chosen. The Associate
congregation of Edinburgh now broke into two, and for reasons which will
appear as \ve go on it is right to give the precedence to
NICOLSON STREET (ANTIBURGHER)
FOR some years after the Breach Mr Gib, backed by a majority of the con
gregation, retained possession of the pulpit, but in January 1753 they had to
leave and provide accommodation for themselves elsewhere. That year the
Antiburgher Synod had to meet in Skinner's Hall, a less suitable place ; but
building operations went rapidly forward, and on 4th November 1753 the
Crosscauseway Church was opened. There Mr Gib used to preach, as he
himself said, to 2000 people every Sabbath. It was there also that the Anti-
burgher Synod had its meetings, and it was there that Mr Gib figured as the
sceptre bearer. Though it was not all for good no man in any of the three
Synods, Antiburgher, Burgher, or Relief, ever wielded half the power that
he did. His " Display of the Secession Testimony " gives the contendings
of those times at first hand, and when matters of dispute arose worthy of
his powers he came down on them like a battle-axe, clear, weighty, and
decisive.
It is matter of surprise that no biography of Mr Gib ever appeared—
nothing beyond two or three belated Memoirs of a few pages each. His
father, it is known, was proprietor of Castleton, an estate between Muckart
and Dollar. It has been said again and again that the eldest son was dis
inherited and the property made over to Adam, but that after the funeral,
Mr Gib having obtained from his brother a promise of reformation, destroyed
the deed of settlement by putting it into the fire. It may be too late to
question the authenticity of this story, but it may be allowable to bring up
that the minister of Crosscauseway church was the ninth son in the family.
The question might also come in whether it would have been right to upset
a father's settlement in that summary way on the faith of what might prove
a lip-deep engagement. Mr Gib was twice married, first to Hannah Erskine,
widow of John Cunningham, proprietor of Balgonie, near Culross, and mother
of the Rev. Robert Cunningham of Eastbarns (afterwards Dunbar, East) ;
and second, to Emilia M'George, a granddaughter of the Rev. John Hepburn
of Urr, "the morning star of the Secession." Mr Gib died, i8th June 1788,
in the seventy-fifth year of his age and forty-eighth of his ministry. His
widow survived him nearly thirty years. Most of his publications were of a
controversial kind, the only decided exception being his "Sacred Contempla
tions," which was published two years before his death. He was leaving
them behind him, he said, as a summary of the gospel he had preached and
in the hope that they might be useful after he was gone.
In its vacant state the congregation passed into the midst of confusion
and unrest. Questions which had been stirred again and again in Mr Gib's
time came up to disturb. At the very first meeting after his death the session
assumed that the right to petition the Presbytery for sermon lay with them,
and at another meeting they claimed the exclusive management of the church
428 HISTORY OF U.P. CONGREGATIONS
funds. The congregation, on the other hand, declared by a great majority
that this belonged to them or to such of their number as they might select.
The Presbytery on being appealed to decided that all the affairs of the
congregation considered as a religious society were under the control of the
session, but advised them to call a meeting of the congregation for the election
of seat-letters and a treasurer, the business to be conducted under their
direction and subject to their review. But the session held the reins tight,
and no meeting would they call, till the Provincial Synod of Edinburgh
interposed and appointed the day. After two and a half years the pressure
for a moderation had to be yielded to, and in view of that event an Edinburgh
newspaper stated that three candidates had been spoken of, and the contest
was likely to run high. Contrary to the expectation of the elders the call
came out for the Rev. Frederick M'Farlane of Montrose, and "to a man"
they declined to subscribe. It was signed by 193 (male) members, but over
against this 108 men and 214 women petitioned to have it set aside, and the
Synod at their meeting in May 1791 refused to translate. The large party
who befriended Mr M'Farlane after much difficulty obtained sermon for
themselves, and formed what is now Hope Park congregation.
At that period the session numbered eight members, among whom one of
the most regular in attendance was Adam Gifford. There was a large
cutting down now of the communion roll. At one meeting 123 male and 74
female members were attested for the new cause, and 16 men were kept
waiting outside the gate. At a subsequent meeting 22 men and 14 women,
who had sighed no paper on either side, wished to be annexed to the second
congregation, but fault was found with the method adopted to obtain sub
scriptions, and the paper was referred to the Presbytery. Three days after
this a call was brought out to I)r Jamieson of Forfar, signed at first by 103
men, but 18 male and 97 female members came in afterwards, whilst the
adherents were 21 men and 4 women. The hardship involved in the
decision has been often dwelt on, the Synod declining to give effect to
the call.
Second Minister. — JOHN BANKS, from Kilwinning. Ordained, 22nd
April 1794, after a vacancy of nearly six years. This call was signed by
130 male members. The connection between Mr Banks and Nicolson Street
Church was of short duration. At the Synod in April 1796 the constitution
of Missionary Societies was under discussion, and strong things were said
against those who took part with ministers of other denominations in the
ordaining of missionaries to the heathen. On loth July Mr Banks com
plained of this to the Presbytery of Edinburgh as "injurious to him and
others engaged in these associations." Feeling had also been stirred
against him in the congregation, many of whom would be imbued with
the rigid principles of their old minister. Accordingly, at a meeting of
session one of the members appeared armed with a paper, which the clerk
began to read, but the moderator desired to look at it. Having done so
he ordered the party to withdraw, and use better language when he came
back. He left, and when one of the members was going on with the reading
of the paper Mr Banks pulled it from him, and threw it into the fire.
"This," it is added, "after the passing of a very few words ended the
business." But in the Presbytery the business ended with Mr Banks giving
in a paper of resignation. His brethren dealt with him for hours, and had
him before them at a subsequent meeting, but on i6th August they got
notice from Greenock that he had set sail for America, and thereupon they
dissolved the pastoral bond and declared the church vacant.
On the other side of the Atlantic Mr Banks, after ministering for a
time to a congregation in New York, was inducted to Cambridge. From
PRESBYTERY OF EDINBURGH 429
that he passed to Florida, Montgomery County, and thence to Philadelphia,
where he laboured from 1816 till his death. There he also opened a
classical school, and in 1820 he was appointed to a professorship under the
Associate Synod. He died very suddenly of apoplexy, loth April 1826, aged
sixty-three or thereby. Of him Dr Scouller says : "As a Hebraist he had
no superior in this country. He wrote the language with great ease, and
could quote from memory almost any part of the Hebrew Bible."
Third Minister. — JOHN JAMIESON, D.D., who had been seventeen years
in Forfar. As already stated, Dr Jamieson was the choice of Nicolson Street
in 1792, and the congregation now renewed their call. The transference was
still keenly opposed, by Ramsay of Glasgow in particular, who had satisfied
himself that transportations as generally conducted were " a luxuriant branch
of Anti-Christianism ; the vigorous shoot and the parent stalk of innumerable
corruptions both among ministers and people." On this occasion "he
witnessed scenes which harrowed his whole soul," most of those who sided
with him formerly either staying away, or leaving the house when the case
was coming on, or remaining silent, or even contradicting their former
opinions. For Dr Jamieson, with his literary tastes, the change to Edinburgh
must have been supremely welcome, and the induction took place, 3oth May
1797. The congregation now got into smooth waters, and had steady
increase. But though an instructive preacher the Doctor made no approach
to the pulpit power of his Burgher brethren in Edinburgh, Drs Hall and
Peddie. Besides this his antiquarian researches must have engrossed much
of his time, and may have interfered with the efficiency of his pulpit pre
paration. In 1808 he published his "Dictionary of the Scottish Language,"
the work on which his fame mainly rests. On Sabbath, igth March 1820,
the present church was opened. It was built at a cost of ^6000, with 1 170
sittings. The liquidating of the debt was a slow process, going on some
times by monthly collections so late as 1852. Dr Jamieson interested himself
greatly in the Union of 1820, and acted as senior Moderator at its consum
mation in September of that year, besides publishing a sermon beforehand
on Brotherly Unity. Nicolson Street congregation must have suffered
seriously about this time by numbers, some of whom are said to have been
dissatisfied with the grandeur of the new church, breaking away to join
Professor Paxton when he commenced an Anti-Union cause in Castle Wynd.
This may account for the membership of Nicolson Street being not much
over 500 at the time of the next vacancy.
As Dr Jamieson advanced in years two unsuccessful attempts were
made to provide him with a colleague. The first call was addressed to the
Rev. Hugh Heugh of Stirling, but the Synod in September 1821 appointed
him to Regent Place, Glasgow. There was a pause now of five years, and
then the people called Mr Alexander Fisher, but not with entire unanimity.
Objections were also made by the Presbytery to the mode in which it was
proposed to raise part of the stipend. The issue was that at the Synod in
September 1826 Mr Fisher was sent to Dunfermline, only 14 votes being in
favour of Edinburgh. On ist September 1829 the Presbytery received a
letter from Dr Jamieson stating that owing to infirmities he felt it was due
both to himself and to the congregation to resign. The people, aware of
what was coming, had commissioners forward to intimate that they were
to allow their aged minister ,£150 a year, to be raised to ,£200 if their
circumstances permitted. His distinction in literature had also gained for
him a pension of 100 guineas from the Royal Treasury. The Presbytery
agreed to accept the demission at once at his own request. After this he
survived seven years, during which he kept in cordial relationship with his
successor, and officiated occasionally in his old pulpit. He died, I2th July
430 HISTORY OF U.P. CONGREGATIONS
1838, in the eightieth year of his age and fifty-eighth of his ministerial
life.
With reference to the long list of Dr Jamieson's publications, some of
which came up under Forfar, we only single out other two which bear on
his professional work: "The Use of Sacred History,1' published in two
volumes in 1802, and his treatise on The Influence of the Holy Spirit. This
last was published by directions of Synod in 1844, with a Memoir of the
author by the Rev. Andrew Sommerville, then in Dumbarton.
Fourth Minister. — GEORGE JOHNSTON, previously of Ecclefechan, where
he had been five years. Called to Nicolson Street in the summer of 1830,
but, having expressed his unwillingness to remove, the Synod decided accord
ingly. Next year the call was renewed, 197 having voted for Mr Johnston
and 73 for Mr Thomson of Maybole. Mr Johnston's preferences had now
gone over to the other side, and Ecclefechan congregation knowing this sent
up a letter to the Synod declining to compear. The translation was agreed
to without a vote, and Mr Johnston was inducted, i6th June 1831. In four
and a half years the membership was more than doubled, numbering at least
i loo, and the stipend was .£250, besides the ^150 to Dr Jamieson. The
debt on the property still involved a large drain on the congregational funds.
Mr Johnston had the degree of D.D. from Rutger's College, New Jersey,
in 1854, the year after he had been Moderator of Synod. In April 1867 the
congregation called Dr Cairns of Berwick to share the work with Dr
Johnston, each of the ministers to have ^400, but the call was declined.
Fifth Minister. — PETER B. GLOAG, M.A., from Perth (North). Or
dained, 6th October 1869, as colleague to Dr Johnston. The call was signed
by 672 members and 138 adherents, a larger number than the former. The
arrangement now was that the senior minister should have ^400 of stipend
and the junior .£350. Dr Johnston died, i8th August 1871, in the seventy-
first year of his age and forty-sixth of his ministry. The congregation
suffered considerable loss at this time in membership and still more in
resources. Their old minister had kept his people about him, not only by
his pulpit work, but by his attention to pastoral duty and his overflowing
kindness of heart. Still, in numbers they kept well up, and in 1879 the
stipend was ^500, and there were 860 names on the communion roll. Mr
Gloag died, ist June 1883, in the fortieth year of his age and fourteenth of
his ministry. A year afterwards the Rev. J. B. Hastings, Newcastle, was
invited to succeed Mr Gloag, but he declined.
Sixth Minister. — JOHN T. BURTON, M.A., from Newmilns, where he
had been some eight years. Inducted, I2th March 1885, the stipend being
,£450. On 1 2th May 1896 he accepted a call to Partick (Newton Place).
Seventh Minister. — DAVID CHRISTIE, M.A., from Princes Street,
Arbroath. Ordained at North Shields (Northumberland Square) in 1890,
and inducted to Nicolson Street on i6th February 1897. The membership
three years afterwards was 754, and the stipend ^450.
AT the Breach of 1747 a small majority of Mr Gib's session took the Burgher
side, the number being at least 9 to 8. Mr James Thin, who had full
access to the old records, gives 1 1 instead of 9, but in that case 2 of
the 1 1 must have left or been speedily removed. The culprits against
whom the Antiburgher Presbytery took action in 1752 were only 9 in
number. But from the law papers it is clear that the bulk of the congrega
tion adhered to their minister and took the Antiburgher side. Of their
PRESBYTERY OF EDINBURGH 431
opponents they gave in the following statement : — " They will not be able to
muster among all their adherents one-fifth of the contributors, nor one-third
of the contributions, nor one-tenth part of the original congregation." To
the same effect Adam Gib, their minister, twenty years afterwards, in his
pamphlet, entitled " A Refuge of Lies swept away," complained that the
Burgher leaders, with not above one-tenth part of the congregation adhering
to them, turned him and his large following out of possession. This seems
decisive as to the prior claim which Nicolson Street has to rank as the
mother Secession church in Edinburgh.
But how did the minority in these circumstances succeed in securing the
property ? The answer is : The two men in whom the rights were vested
belonged to their party, and, though they " had obliged themselves by a
back-bond to denude in favour of any new trustees who might be chosen by
the contributors," they refused to do so when required. The majority ap
plied to the Court of Session to enforce the terms of the back-bond, but
were told that a Dissenting congregation had no standing in the eyes of the
law. Thus the two original trustees found themselves masters of the situa
tion, and after prolonged resistance Mr Gib, with an overwhelming majority
of the membership, had to vacate the building. " The subject we were thus
spoiled of," wrote Mr Gib, " besides great expenses of process, had cost us,
according to a very modest calculation then made, ,£1021, 55. sterling, money
actually come out of our pockets, all which the Burgher congregation has
been possessing to this day, without the restitution of a farthing." The
minority, however, who in 1753 got possession of the church, included most
of the wealthier families. This appears from the other party, while making
them not more than one-tenth of the original congregation, indirectly allow
ing that they might claim nearly one-third of the contributions. It was on
the upper class that the prohibition against swearing the Burgess Oath
chiefly pressed, and hence they had special reasons for taking the Burgher
side at the Breach. But some time elapsed before the pulpit of Bristo
Church was filled anew.
First Minister.— JOHN PATISON, from Shuttle Street, Glasgow. Or
dained, 1 4th March 1754. Died, 22nd June 1779, in the forty-ninth year
of his age and twenty-sixth of his ministry. Of Mr Patison's ministry there
is little known, and almost all that remains of him is a Preface to M'Ewan's
once widely-read book on the "Types," and another to the "Essays" of the
same author, in which Mr Patison gives a very effective vindication of the
Secession. The two had been fellow-students, and a few days before Mr
M'Ewan's death Mr Patison officiated at his marriage in Dalkeith.
The interval of nearly four years which came in after Mr Patison's death
was filled up by no fewer than five unsuccessful calls. The first, third, and
fourth were addressed to the Rev. Michael Gilfillan of Dunblane, but the
first, owing to some informality, fell short by the way. The next was set
aside by the Synod, and the third, perhaps as indicating undue persistency,
the Presbytery refused to sustain. The second in order came out for the
Rev. James Scott of Musselburgh, but the Presbytery, with whom the
decision rested, continued him in his first charge. The fifth came in behind
time to the Rev. Alexander Waugh of Newtown, who was already bespoke
for Wells Street, London, the claims of which were deemed pre-eminent.
The stipend at this time, it is to be observed, was only ^90, large as the
congregation was.
Second Minister. — JAMES PEDDIE, from Perth (South). Called also to
the collegiate charge of Dunfermline (Queen Anne Street). Ordained, 3rd
April 1783. To detail all that occurred in connection with this call is
impracticable, but the particulars have been given in a clear and interesting
432 HISTORY OF U.P. CONGREGATIONS
form by Dr William Peddie in the Memoir prefixed to a volume of his
father's sermons. It is enough for us to state that at the moderation the
vote was very close, Mr Peddie having at most a majority of five over the
Rev. James Hall of Cumnock. Unfortunately, party feeling had become
chronic, and it refused to be calmed down under the new ministry. At the
meeting of Synod in May 1784 a petition from the malcontents for a dis
junction came up by reference from the Presbytery, but as there had been
talk about calling Mr Hall and making the charge collegiate judgment was
delayed. In September the proposed measure was seen to be impracticable,
Mr Peddie being averse to the proposal, and his friends having no inclina
tion to see the rival candidates divide the pulpit between them. It was now
agreed that the above petitioners should be allowed to build a house for
public worship, only, not to encroach unduly on Bristo, they would have
to keep to the east of Tolbooth Wynd. But the further developments
pertain to the history of " Old Edinburgh," now Broughton Place.
In his student days Mr Peddie had taken exception to the doctrine of the
Confession on the subject of the magistrate's power in matters of religion, and
in the controversy which arose in the Burgher Synod on that question he
became an active and weighty supporter of New Light views. His reply to
Dr Porteous on " New Light Examined" remains a monument of his powers
as a controversialist. The present church, built very much on the former
site, with sittings for 1671, was opened on 8th July 1804. It cost over ^4000,
of which nearly half the sum was raised by subscription at the time. In
1818 Mr Peddie received the degree of D.D. from Marischal College,
Aberdeen, and in 1828, when he had been forty-five years in the ministry, he
obtained his son William for his colleague. One marked feature in the
expenditure of Bristo Church during the ten years prior to this is the large
sum paid to the poor, averaging, as Mr Thin has shown, upwards of ^300
each year.
Third Minister. — WILLIAM PEDDIE. Called also to Monkwearmouth,
but, after the commissioners, father and son were both heard, and the Synod
without a vote pronounced for Bristo. But, as is apt to happen where family
influences are supposed to come in, all was not harmony in the congregation,
though the call was signed by 862 members and 141 adherents. At the
moderation the Rev. John M'Gilchrist of Duns was named, but he had only
three supporters. A protest had been taken against going forward, and those
adhering to the protest took no part in the vote. Then a representation
and complaint against the proceedings of session and congregation obtained
91 signatures, but the Synod held that it brought forward nothing to in
validate what was done, and it was unanimously dismissed. This was the
origin of Cowgate Secession Church (afterwards Infirmary Street). Mr
William Peddie was ordained, 7th October 1828, and the collegiate relation
lasted seventeen years, although for a lengthened period the entire work
devolved on the junior minister. Dr Peddie's stipend was reduced at this
time from ^400 to ^350, with sacramental expenses, and Mr Peddie was
to have ,£200. In 1836 the communicants were reckoned at 1250, and a
decrease of from 50 to 70 was reported during the preceding five years,
which might be accounted for by disjunctions to the Cowgate. In 1843
Mr William Peddie obtained the degree of D.D. from Jefferson's College,
Pennsylvania, one of the few cases in our denominational history where-
two Doctors of Divinity filled the same pulpit at the same time. Dr James
Peddie died, nth October 1845, m the eighty-seventh year of his age and the
sixty-third of his ministry. Three years before this he published " Lectures
on the Book of Jonah," and a volume of his massive discourses was pub
lished after his death. By his first marriage, which was early dissolved by
PRESBYTERY OF EDINBURGH 433
death, Dr James Peddie was a son-in-law of the Rev. George Coventry of
Stitchel and a brother-in-law of his early friend, the Rev. Dr Dick of
Glasgow, and, besides his son in Bristo pulpit, he left a son-in-law in a
Professor's chair, the Rev. Dr Harper, North Leith. In 1870 Dr William
Peddie expressed a wish for a colleague, a measure which was gone heartily
into by the congregation. Without loss of time they called the Rev.
Thomas Dobbie of Stranraer, who declined, but removed two years after
wards to St Andrew Place, Leith.
Fourth Minister.— THOMAS DuNLOP, from Balfron, where he had been
for four years. Inducted as colleague to Dr Peddie, i3th June 1871. Each
was to receive a stipend of ,£400, and they were to divide the work between
them. On 3rd August 1875 Mr Dunlop's resignation of Bristo was tendered
and accepted. The Presbytery, before granting a certificate of ministerial
standing, appointed a committee to converse with him regarding his
reasons for leaving. They reported, on returning, that " he desired to enjoy
liberty as to marriage with a deceased wife's sister," and that his intention
was to emigrate to America, where he would be free to contract such a
marriage, and hold at the same time a ministerial charge. But soon after
removing from Edinburgh he accepted the pastorate of a Congregational
church in Bootle, Liverpool, where he still remains. When in Bristo Mr
Dunlop wrote a tasteful Memoir of the Rev Hugh Barr of Kettle, to be
prefixed to a volume of his sermons, and a hymn of his obtained a place
in the U.P. Hymnal.
Fifth Minister.— GEORGE F. JAMES, translated from Kilmarnock (Port
land Road), and inducted after a second call, i8th January 1877. The
arrangements as to stipend and division of labour were the same as before.
On 1 7th October of the following year Dr Peddie's jubilee was celebrated,
and on that occasion he received, among other tokens of appreciation, a gift
of _£7°° value. Towards the close of an appropriate reply he indicated that
he felt it was time for him to withdraw from the more active duties of his
office. Accordingly, on io.th November, new adjustments were sanctioned by
the Presbytery — Dr Peddie, while retaining the status of senior minister, to
be relieved of all responsibility. He was now to have .£300 of retiring allow
ance, and the stipend of the junior minister was raised to ,£600. Dr
Peddie survived other fourteen years, preaching occasionally till near the
end. He died, 23rd February 1893, in the eighty-eighth year of his age and
sixty-fifth of his ministry. The best-known production of his pen is the
comprehensive Memoir of his father, prefixed to a volume of his discourses.
Mr James continued sole pastor for five years, but in November 1896 it was
intimated to the Presbytery that he had requested the congregation to take
steps with the view of electing a colleague. His health had suffered an entire
break-down, and as there was no hope of speedy, or more than partial,
recovery, this was the only alternative. In March 1898 a call was issued to
the Rev. James G. Goold of Dumbarton, but owing to a letter received from
him soon after it was not prosecuted.
Sixth Minister. — JOHN A. HUTTON, M.A., translated from Alyth after a
ministry of six years. Inducted as colleague to Mr James, 2ist September
1898. His stipend was to be ^450, with responsibility for the whole work,
and Mr James, who is still incapacitated for duty, was to have ,£200. In
common with sister churches in that part of the town Bristo has suffered in
numbers within the last two dozen years, but the membership at the close
of 1899 was over 700.
2E
434 HISTORY OF U.P. CONGREGATIONS
COLLEGE STREET (RELIEF)
THE Burgher and Antiburgher churches of Edinburgh being filled to over
flowing there was ample room for the Relief to come in with its more open
terms of communion. Accordingly, in the beginning of 1765 steps were
taken to have a church built in that connection. What prompted the move
ment at this particular time was the settlement in Lady Yester's Church of the
Rev. John Drysdale under the patronage of the Town Council. Carlyle of
Inveresk states the case as follows : — "Drysdale was translated from Kirk
liston to Edinburgh after a long struggle with the popular body, the general
session of Edinburgh, which with the Town Council for many years elected
all the ministers. The magistrates and council resumed their right of
presentation in this case, and after much litigation established it, much to
the peace of the city," or at least much to the satisfaction of the narrator.
The decision of the Court of Session in their favour having been confirmed
in the House of Lords Mr Drysdale's induction took place on 24th August
1764. A meeting of persons dissatisfied with the result was held in January
1765, and measures were taken "for having a minister settled among them,
upon the plan well known as that of the Presbytery of Relief." On Sabbath,
1 2th January 1766, their church was opened, with sittings for 1200 ; cost at
least ^900, and the manse over ^300.
First Minister. — JAMES BAINE, M.A., son of the Rev. James Baine, parish
minister of Bonhill. It appears from one of Thomas Gillespie's note-books
that he moderated in the call on I5th January 1766, the Wednesday after
the church was opened. He also preached on I3th February a sermon
suitable to the occasion, and this constituted the induction ceremony. On
what principle the election proceeded can only be judged of from a question
put in the Scots Magazine : " What title had the subscribers for a guinea
towards the erection of a place of worship to be patrons to the poorer
sort?" On Sabbath, i6th February, Mr Baine was introduced to his new
charge by Mr Gillespie, who preached in the forenoon. The two were the
best of friends at this time, though a chasm ultimately lay between them.
Of the afternoon service the Courant of Monday reports as follows : — " In
the time of divine worship a great disturbance happened in what is now
called the Relief Kirk at the Potterrow Port here. The house being much
crowded by a numerous audience a false alarm was given of the galleries
giving way, whereby the people were so affrighted that several threw them
selves from the windows, by which numbers were much bruised and other
wise hurt." It is added with what looks like a touch of mockery : " Several
cloaks, cardinals' hats, wigs, Bibles, etc., were lost in the confusion."
Mr Baine had been ordained at Killearn, 26th October 1732, so that he
was at this time in the thirty-fourth year of his ministry. In 1756 he was
translated to the High Church, Paisley, where he had great popularity. But
discomfort arose, and he also felt himself fettered in connection with the
Establishment. But now Mr Baine and the people of College Street were to
find each other. From congregational papers it appears that in negotiating
with him about removing to Edinburgh and becoming their minister the
leading men promised him ,£200 a year, a sum equal to a "Town Stipend,"
and they were also to give him a Bond for the same. In 1766 he published
a pamphlet, entitled " Memoirs of Modern Church Reformation," in which
he explains the ecclesiastical position he had now taken up. In 1779 he
published a volume of sermons, most of which are given in the " United
Presbyterian Fathers : Boston and Baine." He died, I7th January 1790, in
the eighty-second year of his age and fifty-eighth of his ministry. There will
be more about Mr Baine in the Appendix.
PRESBYTERY OF EDINBURGH 435
Second Minister. — JAMES STRUTHERS, from the parish of Glassford and
the congregation of Strathaven (Relief). Ordained, 28th July 1791. The
stipend, afterwards raised to ,£200, was ,£130 at first, and he was to find a
house for himself. The church, partly for the sake of larger accommodation,
was being rebuilt in 1797, with sittings for 1650, but it was not ready for the
Synod in 1798. While the work was going on the congregation worshipped
in the Circus, a place of theatrical amusement at the head of Leith Walk.
" It was strange," says Lord Cockburn in his Memorials, " to see the pit,
boxes, and galleries filled with devout worshippers and to detect the edges
of the scenes and other vestiges of the Saturday night, while a pulpit was
brought to the front of the stage, on which there stood a tall, pale, well-
dressed man, earnestly but gently alluring the audience to religion by
elegant declamation." Of Struthers Lord Cockburn further states that
among the Presbyterian Dissenters of Edinburgh he was the only minister
"who attracted people of good taste, not of his community, to his church
merely for the pleasure of hearing him preach." In keeping with this is
Lord Brougham's testimony : " I greatly admired the preaching of Mr
Struthers, whom I often heard." Indeed, in those days, and long afterwards,
College Street is understood to have drawn in among the auditors not only
men of culture and intellect but also an abnormal sprinkling of " flash "
gentry, male and female, some of whom, it is to be hoped, got lasting benefit.
It was owing to the fascination of the oratory, aided, perhaps, by the
occupancy of the theatre for a time.
Mr Struthers died, I3th July 1807, in the thirty-seventh year of his age
and sixteenth of his ministry. What his tombstone tells in a concise way
must have been strictly true — that " his talents and success as a pulpit orator
were not excelled, and scarcely equalled, in the place and period which were
honoured by his short, but distinguished, mortal existence." His son, the
Rev. James Struthers, D.D., was minister of St Andrew's Church, George
town, Demerara, in connection with the Church of Scotland, for more than
thirty years, and died at Edinburgh on 4th August 1858, in the fifty-eighth
year of his age. Mr Struthers' daughter was the wife of the Rev. Dr Burns,
ultimately minister of the Free Church, Corstorphine. After Mr Struthers'
death College Street Church called the Rev. John Pitcairn of Kelso, but, as
on other tempting occasions, he set himself against removal. The stipend
offered was ^300.
Third Minister. — JAMES SMITH, who had been sixteen years a minister,
first in East Kilbride and then in Old Kilpatrick. Inducted, 2gth September
1808. A considerable party was in favour of Mr John Johnston, and this
connects itself with the history of Roxburgh Place Church. Before Mr
Smith had been thirteen years in Edinburgh there was a colleague ordained,
though he was as yet only a few years over fifty. He died, 3oth December
1830, in the sixty-second year of his age and thirty-ninth of his ministry.
His only publication, so far as we know, was a sermon published in 1795,
entitled "The Golden Calves of Dan and Bethel," in which he gives ex
pression to decided Anti-Establishment views.
Fourth Minister. — WILLIAM LlMONT, translated from Kilmarnock (King
Street) after a ministry there of little more than a year. Inducted, gth
August 1821. The stipend was to be .£210 while colleague and ^300 after.
Mr Smith's retiring allowance was ,£150. Mr Limont was sole pastor for
three years, and died, 3rd January 1833, in the thirty-fourth year of his age
and thirteenth of his ministry, after a severe illness of six days. Mr Limont's
widow was married to Dr Johnston of Nicolson Street. His only surviv
ing son, the Rev. William Limont, was ordained at Alnwick (Clayport
Street) 23rd December 1851. He retired from active service in 1889, and
436 HISTORY OF U.P. CONGREGATIONS
was residing in Edinburgh at the Union. Mr Limont's only daughter was
married to the Rev. John Dobie, now Dr Dobie, minister-emeritus of
Shamrock Street, Glasgow.
Fifth Minister.— JOHN FRENCH, previously of Strathaven (East), where
he had been thirteen years. Inducted, 24th September 1833. Under him
College Street in little more than two years stood first in numbers among
even the overgrown congregations in Edinburgh, presenting a communion
roll of 1400. The stipend at this time was ^350. In 1837 a party in the
church ostentatiously sympathised with the Rev. James Smith of Campbel-
town in opposition to Relief principles and the Relief Synod. This im
pelled Mr French, in conjunction with the Rev. Gavin Struthers, to publish a
weighty pamphlet, entitled " Cases of the College Street and Campbeltown
Congregations." He had the degree of D.D. from Glasgow University in
1846. Owing to impaired health Dr French required a colleague in 1852.
Sixth Minister. — DAVID M'EWAN, who, like Mr Limont, had been
scarcely more than a year in his first charge. Having accepted a second
call to College Street he was loosed from Cathcart Street, Ayr, and inducted
to be colleague to Dr French, 23rd November 1852. The present church
was built in 1857 at a cost of ,£4300, with accommodation for 1450. Dr
French died, nth January 1858, in the sixty-fifth year of his age and thirty-
eighth of his ministry. A few weeks before his death a volume of his sermons
was published, most of which were revised for the press during his years of
fading strength. Their merits and the merits of their author were gone into
in a review of rare breadth and insight in the U.P. Magazine soon after,
known to have been written by the Rev. George Brooks of Johnston. A
second edition was issued that year, with Memoir by Dr French's son-in-law,
the Rev. R. S. Drummond, then of St James' Place, Edinburgh. On 2Oth
September 1865 Mr M'Ewan agreed to become colleague to Dr William
Anderson, John Street, Glasgow, and in the course of the following year two
largely-signed calls to College Street were declined, the one by the Rev.
Robert Whyte, Kelso, the other by the Rev. William Sprott, Pollokshaws.
The communion roll still numbered over 1400, as in earlier times, and the
stipend was to be ,£500.
Seventh Minister. — JOHN MITCHELL HARVEY, M.A., previously of
Alloa (West), where he had been six years. Inducted, 3Oth October 1867.
Transferred to Rose Street, 7th July 1874, when the congregation there was
arranging for a removal to Palmerston Place.
Eighth Minister. — PATRICK W. ROBERTSON, M.A., son of the Rev.
William Robertson, Free Church minister, Kinloss, and a nephew by the
mother's side of the well-known Patrick Robertson, one of the Lords of
Session. Ordained over the Free Church congregation of Leslie, Fife, in
1852 ; translated to Auchterarder in 1855, from that to Kilmarnock (High
Church) in 1858, and from that to Hamilton in 1870. Inducted into College
Street, 23rd February 1875, being the first Free Church minister who ac
cepted a call to a United Presbyterian church, under the Mutual Eligibility
Act. But in such cases there are likely to be associations which will not
transplant, and in College Street the strain was great. Mr Robertson
accordingly accepted an invitation to Portobello Free Church on 6th
September i88i,and is now minister-emeritus there. His stipend in College
Street was ^600 at first, and was afterwards made .£700.
Ninth Minister. — ARCHIBALD B. CAMERON, B.A. Transferred from
Arbroath (Princes Street), and inducted, ist June 1882. From its situation
near the centre of Edinburgh, College Street was bound to suffer, as suburban
churches were formed, and better-class families removed to the outskirts of
the city. Owing to this the congregation is not more than half what it was
PRESBYTERY OF EDINBURGH 437
thirty or forty years ago. There has been the bending to the inevitable.
At the close of 1899 the membership was 670, and the stipend ,£425.
In 1891 Mr Cameron published a thoughtful, well-timed book on
" Revelation and its Record," and in 1893 the University of Glasgow con
ferred on him the degree of D.D. " A Study of our Lord's Passion " followed
from his pen in 1896.
BROUGHTON PLACE (BURGHER)
HITHERTO we have had in review before us the parent churches of the three
denominations — Antiburgher, Burgher, and Relief. We now come to a group
which may be spoken of as forming the second generation.
Our reference under Bristo Church to the origin of this congregation
ended with the permission granted them to build a church anywhere to the
east of Tolbooth Wynd in the Canongate. This limitation caused trouble
at the very outset. On gth November 1784 "the disjoined from Bristo
petitioned for supply of sermon in the Methodist chapel, which happened to
lie outside the boundary prescribed," and for this reason the Presbytery
declined to grant their request. On 25th January 1785 consideration of the
petition was resumed, and the session and congregation of Bristo were
recommended to "condescend to their disjoined brethren" as far as practic
able. There is an element of pathos in a paper which was presented to
Kelso Presbytery that same day. It was entitled : "The Representation and
Petition of that Body who were disjoined from Bristo Congregation in
Edinburgh at last Meeting of Synod," and was subscribed by John Leish-
man, their preses. It pleaded with that Presbytery to correspond with the
Presbytery of Edinburgh and endeavour to prevail upon them to grant them
sermon, "without the terms specified." But the clerk was instructed to
inform Mr Leishman that they were not competent judges in the affair, and
could not safely interfere. At the Synod in May matters were put to rights.
The congregation petitioned for an enlargement of their bounds, and it was
decided — (i) that "the number of those who wish to attend with us is too
large to assemble in one place of worship " ; (2) that the applicants may
build anywhere if they keep as far from the Tron Church on the one side as
Bristo is on the other ; and' (3) that, until they have time to provide other
wise, they shall have divine ordinances dispensed to them in the Methodist
chapel. The people proceeded now with an election of elders, of whom
three were ordained and two inducted, as having held office before. But all
was not harmony at this time. Two members brought up to the Presbytery
a paper of objections to one of the six, but the objections were pronounced
groundless, and the objectors underwent rebuke. There was another of the
five with whose ordination the Presbytery elder from Bristo had no freedom
to concur. At next meeting, however, he intimated that he had conversed
with the person named, and was now satisfied. There may have been little
more in it than irritation arising from the remembrance of old feuds. But
the two dissevered parties were in a few years to walk together as brethren,
though they could not dwell together in unity.
First Minister. — JAMES HALL of Cumnock, whose election was to be
looked on as a foregone conclusion, and whose translation the Synod
sanctioned by a large majority. Inducted, I5th June 1786. The stipend,
including house rent, was to be ,£130. Rose Street Church was built at
a cost of nearly ^2400, and it was opened in November of that year. The
first representative elder was John Buchanan, whose name was prominent
as that of a leader in the movement from the beginning. Mr Hall, partly,
438 HISTORY OF U.P. CONGREGATIONS
perhaps, from his position as a minister in Edinburgh, took a foremost place
in the Burgher Synod, and very specially at the time of the Old Light Con
troversy. At his death Dr Hay of Kinross wrote down regarding him : " For
many years he was a most active and useful member of our Church courts,
and I do not think he has left one behind him equally conversant with their
laws and forms." Dr William Peddie in his father's Memoir has characterised
him and Dr Husband of Dunfermline as " men of uncommon forensic ability,
eloquent and skilful in debate, dignified and courteous in their manners."
"We have always understood," he adds, "that these eminent fathers stood
in the very first rank among the public men in the Associate Synod." Mr
Hall had the degree of D.D. from Columba College, New York, in 1812.
The church in Rose Street having been found too strait for them the con
gregation resolved on building a new place of worship on a different site.
After long delay this was accomplished, and on Sabbath, 27th May 1821,
Broughton Place Church was opened, the services being conducted by Dr
Peddie and Dr Hall, who had been the rival candidates in Old Bristo nearly
forty years before. The cost was over ^7000, and the sittings about 1550.
At this point there was a large disjunction of members , who remained to
constitute a distinct congregation in Rose Street. Dr Hall died, 28th
November 1826, in the seventy-first year of his age and fiftieth of his ministry.
Second Minister.— JOHN BROWN. Inducted, 2oth May 1829. Mr
Brown had preached Dr Hall's funeral sermon, and in 1828 he was called
to be Dr Hall's successor in Broughton Place as he had been in Rose Street.
The Synod, however, at their meeting in September declined to translate,
and he himself had as yet no favour for the change. But the call was
repeated within six weeks, and now the object of their choice, owing to some
little matters that had emerged, " was prepared to acquiesce in removing."
But the Presbytery stood in the way, influenced, no doubt, by a petition from
68 members and seatholders in Broughton Place Church not to sustain.
Accordingly, when the vote was taken it carried by 8 to 3 that Mr Brown
should continue in Rose Street. The case passed to the Synod by appeal,
and Dr Cairns was of opinion that but for " a powerful and energetic speech "
by Dr Belfrage of Slateford in favour of translation the Presbytery's decision
would have been confirmed. As it was, a majority of 44 pronounced other
wise, and the vacancy of two and a half ^ears was brought to an end. In
1831 Mr Brown, whose writings had earned distinction for him, though his
expository works were yet to come, had the degree of D.D. from Jefferson's
College, Pennsylvania, and in April 1834 the Synod by an absolute majority
appointed him to the Chair of Exegetical Theology. Two years after this
the communicants in Broughton Place Church were between 1200 and 1300,
and since the beginning of Dr Brown's ministry there had been an average
increase of 90 a year. The stipend had also been raised from .£400 to ,£450,
and besides ^250 as salary to a missionary in Jamaica an equal sum went
for other missionary and benevolent purposes. The seat-rents alone yielded
over ^700 a year. Owing to the largeness of the congregation and the
double functions Dr Brown had to discharge steps were taken in a few years
to obtain a second minister, and in 1841 a unanimous but unsuccessful call
was addressed to the Rev. David Croom of Sanquhar. A second time
Broughton Place congregation were to find the object of their choice in one
of the sister congregations in Edinburgh.
Third Minister. — ANDREW THOMSON, B.A., who had been five years in
Lothian Road. The call was much divided on the moderation day, though
when brought up to the Presbytery it had 743 signatures, and was described
as "most harmonious." At the final vote there were for Mr Thomson 235
and for Mr James Robertson, probationer, ultimately of Newington, 223.
PRESBYTERY OF EDINBURGH 439
The induction took place, 28th June 1842, the colleagues to divide the work
between them, and each of them to receive a stipend of ^400. Years of
trouble were now commencing for Dr Brown, during which Mr. Thomson
proved himself a true yoke-fellow. When James Morison was before the
Synod for heresy in 1841 the Doctor made a speech softening down the
charges against him, and he concluded with the hope that the censure of
suspension would not be inflicted for what, " so far as he could see, was a
misapplication of phrases rather than a perversion of doctrine, and that Mr
Morison would have more good sense than become the martyr of words,
mere words." Two of the other Professors, Drs Mitchell and Balmer, ex
pressed themselves less pointedly but to the same effect. The position they
took up, coupled with Dr Balmer's Preface to Polhill on the " Extent of the
Death of Christ," which was published a year afterwards, fostered a suspicion
that the Divinity Hall was the fountainhead of Morisonian error. This
feeling found expression in the Rev. Robert Wilson of Greenock's pamphlet,
entitled "A Blow at the Root," and it mingled with the windings of the
Atonement Controversy. A crisis was reached in July 1845, when Dr Brown
was libelled by Dr Marshall of Kirkintilloch (Dr Hay may be kept out of
the reckoning) on five counts alleged to involve heresy. Dr Heugh gave the
result in the following words : — " The prosecution of my excellent friend, Dr
Brown, has terminated not in his acquittal only but ample vindication and
the utter confusion of his prosecutors." Dr Marshall complained bitterly
that by the method adopted in dealing with the case the libel " was evaded
and rendered void." But this was merely the utterance of fiery disappoint
ment.
The two colleagues now went on harmoniously together, though there
may have been cross currents in the pews. Mr Thomson wrote the
"Historical Sketch of the Origin of the Secession Church" in 1848, and in
1851 he had the degree of D.D. from Glasgow University. On nth April
1856 Dr Brown's jubilee was celebrated, when a remarkable sermon was
preached by the Rev. John Cairns of Berwick from the text: "Ye shall
hallow the fiftieth year." On that occasion Dr Brown was presented with
£610, which sum, along with ^50 added by himself, he handed over to the
Fund for Aged and Infirm Ministers. He died, i3th October 1858, in the
seventy-fifth year of his age. and fifty-third of his ministry. The publications
which bear his name are too many to be inserted here, and looking over the
titles we mark the frequency with which he was called to preach funeral
sermons, especially as his own ministry advanced. There are sermons
occasioned by the deaths of Dr Hall, Dr Wardlaw, Dr Mitchell, Dr Balmer,
Dr James Peddie, and Dr Heugh. In connection with our present work
special reference maybe made to his " Memorials of the Rev. James Fisher"
in " The United Presbyterian Fathers," a carefully-done biography, carrying
along with it a large amount of important information. His "Exposition of
the Epistle to the Romans " and kindred works are too well known even to
require to be named.
In the forty-fifth year of Dr Thomson's ministry it was thought desirable
that he should have the burden lightened by the appointment of a colleague,
and in 1883 the Rev. John Smith of Berwick was called, but declined.
Another attempt fourteen months later was successful.
Fourth Minister. — JOHN SMITH, M.A. Inducted to Broughton Place,
his fourth charge, 26th March 1885, in the thirteenth year of his ministry.
Each of the colleagues was to receive a stipend of ^600. On 29th March
1886 Principal Cairns preached at Dr Thomson's jubilee, as he had done
on a like occasion in Broughton Place thirty years before. Other ten years
passed, and then there was the celebration of the sixtieth year. But he was
440 HISTORY OF U.P. CONGREGATIONS
now in among the evening shadows, and on ist June 1897 he was enrolled
minister-emeritus, with an annual allowance of .£300. Again we have
before us a long list of publications, from which only a few selections can
be made for insertion. In biography, a kind of writing for which he was
specially adapted by his refined taste, well-balanced judgment, and graceful
pen, there are, besides minor Memoirs and the Biographies of " Great
Missionaries," the " Life of John Owen " and the " Life of Principal Harper "-
the one beginning and the other ending the series. But in the subjects with
which he dealt there was wide variety, including the Sabbath, the Scottish
Reformation, and Palestine as it now is.
Mr Smith was called to Claremont Church, Glasgow, in the beginning of
1889, but he decided to remain in Edinburgh. In 1891 he published
" Fellowship, the Fulness of the Life in Christ," a reprint of five articles
which appeared in the denominational magazine, and led to a warm dis
cussion between him and the Rev. Charles Jerdan, Greenock. In 1893
he received the degree of D.D. from Aberdeen University. In 1896 the
" Permanent Message of the Exodus " appeared, which indicates, along
with what it directly enforces, the author's attitude towards the Higher
Criticism. This was followed the year before the Union by " Christian
Character as a Social Power," a congenial subject vigorously handled.
Broughton Place Church at the close of 1899 had a membership of 1408, and
the stipend was ,£750, with the ,£300 to Dr Thomson besides.
LAURISTON PLACE (BURGHER)
THE place of worship in which we first meet with this congregation had a
history worth recounting. It was built by a body of Cameronians at least
a generation before. Their minister was the Rev. James Hall, whose tomb
stone, with a large inscription, stands beside the Martyrs' Monument in
Greyfriars Churchyard. He and the Rev. Hugh Innes of Glasgow were
the moving spirits in a scene of contention, which split the Reformed
Presbytery in two, and they were backed by some fierce anti-Government
men, who had troubled the Associate Presbytery at an early period. Their
distinctive doctrinal tenet was the theory of Universal Redemption pro
pounded by Fraser of Brae, and favoured at his own cost by Thomas Mair
of Orwell. Of this party the extreme left developed by successive stages
into the Unitarian Church, Castle Terrace, and others went to form the
Carneronian congregation in Lady Lawson's Wynd. On 27th September
1781 Mr David Arnot, a native of Kirkcaldy, was ordained colleague and
successor to Mr Hall, who died, 8th December 1782. But the cause made
headway neither in Edinburgh nor anywhere else, and in 1789 Mr Arnot
represented to his skeleton Presbytery " that it was impossible for him to
continue in the ministerial charge of his congregation for want of a proper
supply of the necessaries of life." He then removed to Orwell, where a
wing of Mr Mair's congregation had acceded to the Carneronian Presbytery,
and after a time had a church built for him in the village of Kinnesswood
by one of his leading men, where he died on 3ist May 1831, in the seventy-
ninth year of his age, and the handful of people who remained with him
to the end quietly dispersed, his own family betaking themselves to the
parish church.
The Cameronian cause in Lady Lawson's Wynd having collapsed, the
building was rented by a party of Smytonites, who must have withdrawn
from Adam Gib's congregation on the "Lifter" question. Mr Gib was the
mainspring of the controversy, as he was by turns the good and evil genius
PRESBYTERY OF EDINBURGH 441
of Antiburgherism all through. In the early part of his ministry he dropped
the custom of lifting the bread and the cup before the consecration prayer
in the communion ordinance, and then persuaded himself that it was nothing
better than a piece of superstition or will worship. His example being
followed by others old Mr Smyton of Kilmaurs set himself to stop the
innovation, and in September 1782 he brought up an overture to the Synod
insisting on the lifting being made an essential part of the observance.
But Mr Gib, who was always eager to meet an opponent more than half
way, tabled a paper, in which he declared Mr Smyton's overture to be an
underhand attack on him and others for their method of dispensing the
Lord's Supper— "a method to which they believed themselves obliged by
Scripture, reason, and the subordinate standards." How he comported him
self when the question was under discussion comes out in our notice of
Professor Bruce of Whitburn. It is enough to remark here that Mr Gib's
unbending attitude was fitted to drive a percentage of his people to the other
extreme, and accordingly a number of them, about the time of their minister's
death, attempted to form a congregation in Edinburgh under the inspection
of the Smytonite Presbytery, and about the year 1789 they entered on the
occupancy of the church in Lady Law-son's Wynd.
In this connection they had Mr William Arthur for a short time as their
minister. From an entry in the records of Colinsburgh Church it appears
that he was ordained in May 1790. He was a son of the Rev. Michael
Arthur, formerly of Aberdeen, and his stay in Lady Lawson's Wynd must
have been brief, as the congregation ranked among the Relief vacancies
before seven months were over. We meet him next on 2gth July 1793, when
he applied to the Relief Presbytery of Glasgow for admission to their fellow
ship, and where he is described as "sometime a minister belonging to that
party called Smytonites." But "the Presbytery found that he was not in
readiness to produce an extract of his licence and documents of his philo
sophical and theological studies." Dr M'Kelvie represents Mr William
Arthur as having entered the Antiburgher Hall in 1781, but this must have
been a mere surmise, as his name is found in no authentic list of Antiburgher
students for that period. There is better reason for believing that the only
training he received was from his father. Before the end of the year we
find him connected with the Associate Reformed Presbytery of North
America, where he received a call, which he declined. He then passed over
to the Presbyterian Church, and was settled at Pegua, Pennsylvania, in
January 1796, which he resigned, owing to enfeebled health, in 1818. He
died in 1827. In Gillett's History we read that Mr Arthur was "dis
tinguished for his common-sense and firmness of purpose and for the
beauty, point, and effectiveness of his sermons."
The congregation in Lady Lawson's Wynd having withdrawn from the
Relief applied for sermon to the Burgher Presbytery of Edinburgh on
1 8th February 1791, the petition bearing 102 signatures. On ist March supply
was granted, but in the interests of Bristo and Rose Street it was stipulated
that the place of worship should be in Portsburgh. Hence a site was chosen
on the slope of the Vennel, and twice in 1792 they called the Rev. Robert
Jack of Linlithgow, promising ^100 of stipend, with a house. The second
of these calls was signed by 131 members and 125 adherents. Mr Jack
may have had a better opening in view, and both times the Synod continued
him in Linlithgow. A year afterwards the pastoral tie was formed, and the
pulpit worthily filled, but only for a short time.
First Minister.— JAMES SCOTT, son of the Rev. James Scott, Musselburgh.
Cafled alap to Kinross, but appointed to Portsburgh, and ordained, i8th July
I793j "in the new meeting-house." Died, 6th February 1795, ir> the twenty-
442 HISTORY OF U.P. CONGREGATIONS
sixth year of his age, according to the tombstone, and second year of his
ministry. Dr Hay of Kinross, who had been his fellow-lodger when a
student, speaks of having preached for him a fortnight before his death,
when he was " sinking into an early grave by consumption." To him it was
the loss of his earliest and most intimate friend, and, he added, "his death
deprived me of the highest source of earthly enjoyment I then had, and
threw a gloom over all my earthly prospects." For Mr Scott's successor the
congregation called Mr David Telfer in March 1796, but in compliance with
his own wishes he was sent to Buckhaven.
Second Minister. — ANDREW LOTHIAN, previously of Port-Glasgow. In
ducted, 22nd September 1796. Two calls to Mr Lothian came before the
Synod in the beginning of that month, and it was carried by a great
majority — (i) to translate; (2) to prefer Portsburgh. There were marks of
considerable increase now, 172 members having signed the call, and there
were 160 accessions within eight months. In the year 1818 Portsburgh
congregation was desirous to have a way opened up for their removal from
the Vennel. The Burgher Synod had been arranging for the erection of a
Synod House, and now Portsburgh people offered to provide the needed
accommodation by building a new church in Drummond Street or Lothian
Street, with the requisite assortment of side rooms, the equivalent being the
use of the ,£600 collected for the above purpose. The proposal looked fair,
but Dr Peddie and Dr Hall, with a legal opinion at their back, planted the
foot firmly down, and the scheme had to be abandoned. There was now
the lingering on till 1828, and then the building of the second church in the
same situation, with sittings for 832, and at a cost of nearly ^2000, including
the ground. Mr Lothian died, 24th January 1831, in the sixty-eighth year of
his age and thirty-eighth of his ministry. Author of a small volume of
sermons, entitled "The Christian Patriot and Seamen's Friend."
Third Minister. — ALEXANDER NISBET, from St Andrew Place, Leith.
Ordained, 24th November 1831. The call was signed by 440 members, and
the stipend was ^210. Mr Nisbet died, I2th September 1832, in the twenty-
sixth year of his age and before completing the tenth month of his ministry.
Two goodly volumes remain to attest what Mr Nisbet was and what rich
ness of promise was buried with him. First, a collection of his sermons was
published soon after his death, with Memoir by his minister, the Rev. John
Smart of Leith. This was followed by another volume more miscellaneous
and of greater value, with a second Memoir by Dr John Taylor, then of
Auchtermuchty, in which special prominence was given to the student side
of Mr Nisbet's character. The strength of the congregation at this time
may be estimated from each of the two calls being signed by 450 members.
Fourth Minister. — JAMES ROBERTSON, from St James Street, Paisley.
Called to Dairy, Ayrshire, when Portsburgh intervened, and Dairy withdrew
from the contest. Mr Robertson was ordained, 23rd May 1833. In the
beginning of 1836 Portsburgh had a membership of 579. The increase in
five years had been about 50, which was slight compared with the privileges
they had enjoyed, but ministers and people w-ere handicapped by the
situation. In 1840 they raised upwards of ^1200, of which ,£400 was for the
reduction of debt. When the Atonement Controversy was at its height
Mr Robertson published a pamphlet on what was reckoned the liberal side,
in which the points at issue are clearly and tersely presented. He also
figured with his pen in the Voluntary Controversy, but he never, like his
brother in Stow, came to the front in Church courts. Believing, perhaps,
that he would be prepared for a change from the Vennel church the Synod
in October 1846 elected Mr Robertson to be Professor of Biblical Literature
in Canada, with a pastoral charge. The way was further opened up, when
PRESBYTERY OF EDINBURGH 443
in the following winter the congregation of Hamilton, near Lake Ontario,
the place where the Theological Institution was to have its seat, called Mr
Robertson to be its minister, but he declined the appointment. He had been
sent out the summer before, along with two other deputies, to visit the
churches in Canada, and besides a series of graphic " Colonial Sketches,"
which appeared in the U.P. Magazine, we owe to this visit his valuable little
book on the "History of the Secession Church in Nova Scotia." But the
time was no\v drawing on for a change, and on yth October 1851 Mr
Robertson accepted a call to the new congregation of Shamrock Street,
Glasgow.
Fifth Minister. — DAVID M. CROOM, previously of Sanquhar (South).
Inducted, agth June 1852, the callers being 507, and the stipend ,£350.
Eleven years before this he had declined a call to the collegiate charge of
Broughton Place, Edinburgh, and four years later he declined a similar call
to Regent Place, Glasgow, but he now accepted Portsburgh, where he was
to be sole pastor, though the congregation was less prominent and the
surroundings less attractive. Both he and his people might have the
presentiment that under his ministry they would speedily acquire new
strength and emerge from the declivity where the church had been fixed
down for sixty years. This object was compassed in May 1859, when the
present stately and commodious place of worship was opened in Lauriston
by Dr Cairns of Berwick, with nearly 1200 sittings, and built at a cost of
^6000. In 1873 Mr Croom indicated his wish for a colleague, a proposal
in which the people cordially acquiesced, each minister being to receive
^5°o-
Sixth Minister. — ROBERT WHYTE, M.A., who had been first in Kelso
and then in Pollokshaws. Inducted, I7th February 1874. For several
years Mr Croom took his full share of pulpit work, but in 1879 ne experienced
a serious encroachment on the foundations of life, and was permanently
incapacitated for active service. When he retired the congregation had a
membership of fully noo, and the total income for that year was about
,£3500. At this point the stipends were readjusted, Mr Whyte receiving
^600 and Mr Croom ^400. On gth September 1882 Mr Croom died, in the
seventy-third year of his age and forty-fifth of his ministry. A year and a
half after this Mr Whyte had the degree of D.D. from Glasgow University.
In 1893 ne came under the beginnings of what proved an incurable ailment.
The burden was laid down for a season, and recovery sought for amidst
continental scenes, but without lasting benefit. Then it was felt both by
himself and by the congregation that a colleague was indispensable, who
should take the entire responsibility, though, as if unwilling to forego the
hope of a return to partial activity, Dr Whyte retained the status of senior
minister. But all that remained for him was retirement and the prolonged
experiences of the sick chamber.
Seventh Minister. — JAMES M. HAMILL, B.A., a brother of the Rev.
T. M. Hamill, D.D., Theologicaf Professor, Belfast College. Mr Hamill
had been ordained in 1893 at Magheramason, in the Presbytery of Derry,
in connection with the Presbyterian Church of Ireland, where he had a
stipend of ,£173 and a manse. He applied to the U.P. Presbytery of
Ireland in March 1896 for admission to the U.P. Church in view of being
called to Lauriston Place, and was shortly afterwards received by authority
of Synod, and his induction followed on i8th June. Dr Whyte died,
2nd September 1897, in the fifty-seventh year of his age and thirty-fourth
of his ministry. The membership at the close of 1899 was 914, and the
stipend ^600.
444 HISTORY OF U.P. CONGREGATIONS
HOPE PARK (ANTIBURGHER)
WE come now to the second Anti burgher congregation in Edinburgh, of
which there were only two at the Union of 1820. It originated in a dis
ruption from Nicolson Street, as has been already narrated. The party
which carried the Rev. Frederick M'Farlane of Montrose were disjoined
by the Synod on 2nd May 1792. They met for the time in the chapel
in Lady Lawson's Wynd which had been vacated by the Burgher congrega
tion of Portsburgh when they removed to the Vennel. Potterrow Church,
with sittings for 885, was built at a cost of ,£1290. The date given by
.Dr M'Kelvie is 1796, but we find from the Caledonian Mercury that the work
was going on in 1792, and the place of worship was ready for occupancy in
the end of March 1793. Then came three unsuccessful calls, which have
been fully gone into under Montrose (St Luke's). The all but unanimous
choice of the congregation and the earnest wishes of the minister having
been overborne by the Synod, though on one of these occasions by a very
slight majority, a disruption ensued among the disruptionists. A Presbytery
Minute of 2ist July 1795, three months after the final refusal to translate,
gives us a fair view of the situation. A representation to the Presbytery
from the party adhering to the Synod bore that "Mr Frederick M'Farlane
having lately come to Edinburgh, and exercising his ministry in a house
procured for that purpose, three of their elders with a considerable number of
the congregation had entered into some sort of connection with him and
attended upon his ministry, whereby they have been greatly reduced, and
they crave sympathy." The Presbytery found that Mr M'Farlane had been
preaching in Edinburgh the two previous Sabbaths and that there Ijad been
widespread defection among the people. The number who left must have
been very considerable, as they attempted to take the property, on the
ground of being the majority, but the case was withdrawn. How long
Mr M'Farlane held on is not known, but in less than eight months John
M'Intyre, his right-hand man, and the most prominent of the elders who had
left, came forward at the Presbytery, made acknowledgments, and was
restored to office after being rebuked. This gave evidence that all was
nearly over with the new cause. Another of the three acted similarly, and
was similarly dealt with later on. It ended, as is fully stated under
Montrose (St Luke's), with Mr M'Farlane removing to America, and as
many as followed him were dispersed.
First Minister. — THOMAS M'CRIE, from Duns (East). Ordained, 26th
May 1796. The stipend was to be 100 guineas. The call, though un
animous, was signed by only 109 male members, whereas one of the calls
they gave to Mr M'Farlane was signed by 180. It indicates the shrinking
up which had intervened, but under the young minister the breach seems to
have been in a great measure healed. Some, indeed, of Mr M'Farlane's
friends sought back to Nicolson Street Church, as we find from Minutes of
that Session, the earliest arrival being irf March 1 798, and some stragglers
following at intervals for the next four years. In each case there was res
toration amidst professions of sorrow for having left their profession, and
the number amounted to 10 in all. But in the Potterrow there was to be
severance of a broad and enduring kind in the eleventh year of Mr M'Crie's
ministry. Along with other five brethren, one of whom died while the
process was going on, Mr M'Crie set himself with unyielding firmness
against the New Testimony, and was one of the four who took part in the
formation of the Constitutional Presbytery at Whitburn on 28th August
1806. At this crisis only three of the elders adhered to the minister, while
the other eight stood by the New Light Synod. As for the membership,
PRESBYTERY OF EDINBURGH 445
they divided not unequally, though Mr M'Crie's party seems to have been
slightly in the majority. Legal proceedings followed about the property, the
name of John M'Intyre, already referred to, being foremost on the New
Light side. In their favour the case was determined by the Court of Session,
on the ground that they answered to the requirements of the Trust Deed as
a congregation in communion with and subject to the General Associate
Synod. An appeal to the House of Lords was happily arrested by the
minority paying a sum of money to the appellants and being allowed to
retain possession of the church.
The part which Mr M'Crie took on the vexed question of the magistrate's
power is not devoid of inconsistency. When about to get licence from Kelso
Presbytery he claimed a certain latitude of opinion on this subject, and
before he accepted ordination the Synod had to adopt a Declaratory Act
for the removal of his scruples and difficulties. Dr M'Crie's son and
biographer has, indeed, urged that all his father pleaded for was liberty to
reserve judgment on the whole question, but though this be granted it may
be asked why he should have sought to debar others from enjoying the
same liberty. On the other hand, though he once hesitated over certain
parts of the Old Testimony this did not bind him down to accept at an
aftertime what he reckoned new terms of communion when these took shape
under the hands of the General Associate Synod. But, either way, the
changes finally enacted in May 1806 led to the withdrawal of a minister
whose name has lent dignity to the Secession cause far and wide. After
worshipping for a time in Carrubber's Close his congregation took possession
of a church they had built in West Richmond Street at a cost of ,£2300, with
760 sittings.
In 1812 Mr M'Crie's Life of John Knox gained him the degree of D.D.
from Edinburgh University. That standard work he set about following
up by a companion volume, the Life of Andrew Melville, which it took
nine years to complete, and he was known to declare that " while thus
employed he had not had a newspaper in his hand for twelve months." He
found time, however, in 1817 to write a weighty Review of Sir Walter
Scott's "Old Mortality" for the Christian Instructor, extending over three
successive numbers. Regarding its merits, I only quote the testimony of
George Gilfillan in his admirable book on the Scottish Covenanters : " It
was felt at the time to be a most powerful attack. Of all men in Scotland
M'Crie was perhaps best fitted, from sympathy and knowledge of the
subject, for meeting Scott on the battleground of the Covenant. He had
also obtained a solid colossal repute from his Life of Knox, and was really
a man of powerful intellect and extensive attainments." In 1820 Dr M'Crie
looked with disfavour on the Union between the Burghers and Antiburghers,
believing it to be effected at the expense of early Secession principles.
This led to the publication of " Two Discourses on the Unity of the Church,"
with an Appendix containing among other things the leading arguments on
behalf of Establishments. It is remarkable that the principles laid down in
that treatise have had for their most pointed assailants two ministers of his
own communion, the Rev. William White, Haddington, and the Rev.
Benjamin Laing, Colmonell. The Doctor was active in promoting the
Union of 1827 between the Constitutionalists and the Protestors, and he
favoured a further Union with the Original Burghers, but was baffled. He
could not see how their melancholy divisions were ever to be healed unless
the principle of allowing for private opinion were acted on. In the Christian
Instrtictor for 1831-2 appeared four articles of great value from his pen on
the Marrow Controversy. We must pass by without special mention his
History of the Reformation in Italy and in Spain. Dr M'Crie died, 5th
446 HISTORY OF U.P. CONGREGATIONS
August 1835, in the sixty-third year of his age and fortieth of his ministry.
A volume of his sermons was published in 1836, his Lectures on Esther in
1838, his Life by his son and successor in 1840, and his Miscellaneous
Writings in 1841.
After Dr M'Crie's death the membership of Richmond Street Church
was given at 360, but the attendance used to be very much larger. The
stipend had been ,£250, and the debt on the property amounted to ,£1130.
His son has well remarked that, "connected with a small and obscure sect,
he was destined to labour with little encouragement from the multitude."
His church, through union with a neighbouring congregation, is now known
as the M'Crie- Roxburgh of the Free Church. We now return to the party
in the Potterrow who withdrew from Dr M'Crie's ministry and adhered to
the Synod. In their weakened state they called the Rev. Thomas Stark in
March 1807, but he was unwilling to make the change, and the Synod con
tinued him in Forres. The call was signed by 125 (male) members, which
shows the loss the congregation had suffered.
Second Minister. — JAMES SIMPSON, who after occupying a difficult posi
tion at Thurso for six years had at his own earnest request been loosed by
the Synod in May 1807. Next year they appointed him to the Potterrow in
preference to Crieff, and his induction took place, 7th June 1808. Mr Simp
son died, 3oth April 1824, in the forty-fourth year of his age and twenty-fourth
of his ministry, " after a lingering illness of sixteen months, leaving a widow
with eight children amidst considerable embarrassments, without any right
to the Widows' Fund." I have before me a volume, published in 1816, con
taining a series of discourses on subjects selected from the first chapter of
Jonah by Mr Simpson — his only publication so far as I know.
Third Minister. — JOHN RITCHIE, M.A., previously of Clerk's Lane, Kil-
marnock, where he had been for twelve years. At the Synod in September
1825 transporting calls came up to Mr Ritchie from Dunfermline (Queen
Anne Street), and from the Potterrow. He expressed the wish, for reasons
" partly theological and partly political," to be removed from Kilmarnock,
and decidedly preferred Edinburgh. The vote stood thus : for Kilmarnock,
3 ; for Dunfermline, 18 ; for Edinburgh, 53. Inducted, 5th October 1825.
The stipend was to be .£280. Mr Ritchie had the degree of D.D. from
Rutger's College, New Jersey, in 1829. In Edinburgh he threw himself
heart and soul into the Voluntary Controversy and the Temperance Cause,
and got famous as a lecturer and platform speaker. George Gilfillan speaks
of having once heard him on the Irish Education Measure at a public
meeting in Broughton Chapel, "astonishing his very foes by the readiness,
richness, and power of his oratory." He also characterises him as "a man
of rare talents and even genius, and capable, had he so pleased, of being one
of the most powerful popular orators in Scotland." But very much, perhaps,
from not concentrating his energies on ministerial work, the tide was lost,
and towards the close of his ministry the congregation declined. The
Atonement Controversy was the last in which he figured as a member of
Presbytery and Synod. He was also a large contributor to Dalrymple's
Secession Magazine^ the organ of the ultra-Calvinistic party, and the publisher
of which was one of his elders. But matters had never moved on very smoothly
between Dr Ritchie and his brethren in the Presbytery, and so far back as
1830 the Synod had to enjoin both parties "to cultivate the things that make
for peace," disapproving of the strong language employed on both sides,
while giving Dr Ritchie credit for integrity of motive. He was the fearless
champion of what he took to be justice, but his methods were often ill-judged,
and in August 1845 the Synod, on a reference from the Presbytery, went the
length of suspending him from his judicial functions for three months. To
PRESBYTERY OF EDINBURGH 447
end the strain and give the congregation over to another Dr Ritchie re
signed, and on 4th September 1849 he was loosed from his charge. After
this he preached occasionally till near the end, and died, I5th May 1861, in
the eightieth year of his age and forty-ninth of his ministry.
The congregation in its now reduced state issued calls to two proba
tioners, each of whom had several to choose from ; the first to Mr Robert
S. Scott, ultimately known throughout the whole Church as Dr Scott, our
Home Mission Secretary ; the second to Mr James Stevenson, now of North
Leith. The signatures included only 58 members in the one case and 66
in the other.
Fourth Minister. — ALEXANDER WALLACE, previously of Bradford, Lan
cashire. It was during his brief ministry there, between Alexandria and the
Potterrow, that Mr Wallace delivered the Lectures which form the contents
of his best-known book, " The Bible and the Working Classes." But his
abounding labours in Bradford did not prevent a rupture in the congrega
tion, a circumstance which may have made him welcome the change to
Edinburgh all the more. Inducted, 2nd September 1851. Here also his
stay was not to be permanent. In October 1856 he declined East Campbell
Street, Glasgow, but a second invitation followed, which he accepted, and
on 7th April 1857 his connection with Potterrow came to an end.
Again the congregation issued two unsuccessful calls ; the one to the Rev.
John Dobie of Linlithgow, now Dr Dobie of Shamrock Street, Glasgow, and
the other to Mr William Calvert, who accepted North Berwick. It marks
large increase under Mr Wallace, the fact that the former of these calls,
though not harmonious, was signed by 415 members, and the stipend,
instead of ^170 in all, was now to be ,£300.
Fifth Minister. — THOMAS M'EWAN, son of the Rev. James M'Ewan,
Strathaven (First), and a younger brother of the Rev. David M'Ewan, then
of College Street, and now Dr M'Ewan of Clapham, London. Declined
Forfar some time before, and then preferred Potterrow, Edinburgh, to
Thornhill. Ordained, 2ist September 1858. Was called to the newly-
formed congregation of Everton, Liverpool, in 1862, but declined to remove.
On 1 8th September 1867 the new church in Hope Park was opened by Dr
Cairns of Berwick, with sittings for 1050. It cost about ,£6700, but a sum
of nearly ^1800 was obtained for the old church, which was then turned to
everyday purposes. In 1870 the debt stood at ,£1750, and in 1880 it was
extinguished. With Mr M'Ewan there was a premature failure of vitality
owing to the workings of an insidious ailment. On Sabbath, 2oth March
1892, he preached an impressive discourse, suggested by the death of
Principal Cairns, with whom he had much intercourse in student days,
having been missionary in connection with Berwick congregation. After
that day he never appeared in the pulpit again, and a colleague had to be
provided to supersede the system of assistantships which had been resorted
to for years. He died, 3oth July 1895, in the sixty-second year of his age
and thirty-seventh of his ministry. His volume of" Lectures on the Book of
Esther," published in 1877, remains as a memorial of his pulpit efficiency.
Sixth Minister.— ROBERT D. SHAW, B.D. Called from Hamilton
(Brandon Street), where he had been ordained twelve years before, and
inducted to the full charge of Hope Park, 2gth September 1892. Mr Shaw's
stipend was ,£400, and Mr M'Ewan had a retiring allowance of ,£150. The
membership at the close of 1899 was 680, and the stipend was .£500. At
the Union in October 1900 the congregation was busy preparing for a bazaar
to clear off what remained of the debt incurred by the introduction of an
organ at a cost in all of over ^1000, and other improvements.
448 HISTORY OF U.P. CONGREGATIONS
ST JAMES PLACE (RELIEF)
THIS takes us back to the chapel in Lady Lawson's Wynd, from which the
second Antiburgher congregation in Edinburgh withdrew in 1793, when
their own church in Potterrow was built. After this the pulpit was occupied
by Mr James Fraser, who applied for licence to the Relief Presbytery of
Glasgow in 1774, and then passed out of notice. He must afterwards have
emigrated to America, from which he returned with a certificate of ordina
tion from the Presbytery of Orange, and seems to have set up for himself
in Lady Law son's Wynd. On 28th March 1794 he was received into
ministerial communion with the Cowanite Presbytery at Colinsburgh, a
fortuitous concourse of ecclesiastical waifs. Next year Gellatly of Had-
dington preached in that church his sermon, afterwards published, on " The
Cross of Christ the Tree of Liberty " ; but the chapel passed ere long into
other hands, and all we know of the Rev. James Fraser beyond this is that
he died at Alloa, 24th March 1802, in the fifty-first year of his age.
Another chapter in the history of the chapel in Lady Lawson's Wynd
now opens. On gth May 1796 a petition from several heads of families
in Edinburgh was laid before the Relief Presbytery there praying to be
received as a forming congregation. The following week the application
was favourably entertained, and on Sabbath, 29th May, the chapel they
had bought in Lady Lawson's Wynd was opened as their place of worship.
This was the origin of the second Relief congregation in Edinburgh.
College Street Church, under the ministry of Mr Struthers, had become
inconveniently crowded, and while the new meeting-house was in course
of erection the families on the western side of the town, as we presume,
withdrew and got sermon for themselves. The property in Lady Lawson's
Wynd was made over to them on easy terms. They got it by paying a bond
of .£237, but the building was probably in a dilapidated state, and before
all was done the expenditure amounted to nearly ^1000.
First Minister. — THOMAS THOMSON, translated from Duns, where he
had laboured for thirteen or fourteen years. The first call to Lady Lawson's
Wynd he refused, but when the call was repeated within a few months he
accepted. Inducted, 3oth March 1797. The expenditure at this time was
considerable in some of its items, as Mr William Crawford has shown from
the managers' books : " For two chaises with Mr Thomson and his family
from Dunse, ^5, 135. For three carts with Mr Thomson's furniture, ^5, 2s.
For gown to the minister, ,£5, ios.," and to wind up there was £i "for
entertainment to sundry of the minister's horses."
Under Mr Thomson the church prospered, and within two years it was
found imperative to set about the erection of a larger church. The cost
reached the goodly sum of ^3600, and the sittings were 1540. The church
they vacated in Lady Lawson's Wynd was sold for ^1000, but, unfortunately,
the congregation which purchased it got poverty-stricken, and the full sum
was never recovered. But this will come up under the next heading. Mi-
Thomson died at Portobello, i6th April 1819, in the sixty-second year of
his age and thirty-ninth of his ministry. He had been laid aside the year
before by a sudden stroke of paralysis, and obtained a colleague. His eldest
son, the Rev. Wyville S. Thomson, was long minister of Bridgend, Dum
barton. A younger son, the Rev. Thomas D. Thomson, joined the
Independents when a student, and was for some time minister of the
Congregational church, Haddington. At the Synod in May 1847 he was
admitted into the Relief ministry, but he had already preached from his
brother's pulpit what proved to be his last sermon, and he died, 25th July.
Their mother was great-granddaughter to Principal Goudie, whose casting
PRESBYTERY OF EDINBURGH 449
vote in the Assembly of 1733 carried the sentence of " Proceed immediately
to inflict a higher censure on the four suspended ministers," and brought the
Secession to a point.
Second Minister. — JAMES KIRKWOOD, M.A., who had been seven years
in Kilmarnock (now King Street). Inducted as colleague to Mr Thomson,
i7th December 1818, a relationship which only lasted four months. In 1828
the church was altered and repaired at an expenditure of ,£650. In 1836 the
entire debt stood at ^1610, but the communicants numbered 1200, and there
was an average attendance of between 1300 and 1400. The stipend was
,£350. In 1842 a colleague was resolved on, Mr Kirkwood's strength having
been weakened by the way.
Third Minister. — JOHN L. AIKMAN, from Lanark (Bloomgate). Or
dained as colleague to Mr Kirkwood, I2th November 1845. Had previously
declined a call to Colinsburgh, which was then in a weak state, and had
accepted a call to Dumfries (Townhead), which greatly needed building up.
At this stage St James Place came in, and Mr Aikman did as most preachers
would probably have done in the circumstances, withdrew his acceptance,
and became the junior minister of St James Place church. For ten years
the two colleagues divided the work not unequally between them, but in
1855 Mr Kirksvood "felt constrained to retire from active duty and leave
the pastorate entirely in the hands of Mr Aikman." In the beginning of
next year the junior minister was called to Anderston, Glasgow, to be
colleague to Dr Struthers, and, having accepted, he was loosed from his
charge, 5th February 1856. Towards the close of his ministry in Edinburgh
Mr Aikman published his " Sabbath Evenings at Calvary," which was after
wards followed by two companion volumes, and reached a fourth edition in
little more than five years. The last of a debt of ^1600 which rested on the
congregation when Mr Aikman was ordained was paid off the year before
he left.
There was now an interval of two years, during which some difficulty was
experienced in finding a successor, owing in some measure, perhaps, to the
situation of the church or its surroundings. They first called the Rev. W.
R. Thomson of Kirkcaldy, but he had not been two years in his charge there,
and declined. Then they decided for the Rev. David Young of Milnathort,
but he also declined, and removed, two years later, to Montrose Street,
Glasgow (now Woodlands Road). St James Place now came back once
more on Mr Thomson, but with no better success. Fortunately for them,
it was to be otherwise next time.
Fourth Minister. — ROBERT S. DRUMMOND, M.A., son of the Rev. James
Drummond of Irvine (Relief). Mr Drummond, after setting aside calls from
South Ronaldshay and Peterhead, was ordained at Carlisle, 29th September
1853. Inducted to St James Place, 23rd February 1858. Called in 1861
to Finsbury, London, to succeed the Rev. Alexander Fletcher, D.D., but
there were denominational difficulties in this case, and the call was declined.
Then came Glasgow (Erskine Church), which he accepted on 2gth April 1862.
During Mr Drummond's ministry the church was renovated at a cost of
^1600, which was met soon after completion.
Fifth Minister.— AXDRE\V MORTON, formerly of Greenock (Sir Michael
Street). Inducted, 28th October 1862. Shortly before coming to Edinburgh
Mr Morton published " The Family Circle," a series of Sabbath evening
discourses. This was followed in 1871 by "The Church Circle," a com
panion volume. The two are marked by much of that overflowing emotion
which often gave effect to the author's spoken discourse. In 1874 Mr
Morton received the degree of LL.D. from Philadelphia, United States.
Two years before this he underwent a critical operation, which both im-
2F
450 HISTORY OF U.P. CONGREGATIONS
paired his natural force and lessened his oratorical power. On 27th July
1877 Mr Kirkwood, who had been long withdrawn among the solitudes of
age, died in his eighty-ninth year. He was the father of the U.P. Synod
by seven years, and had completed the sixty-sixth year of his ministerial life
two days before. The specimens of sermons published soon after, with
Memoir, are clear and well arranged, with more of the artistic than was
common in Mr Kirkwood's earlier days ; but, wanting the charm which his
delivery gave them, they scarcely explain the secret of his distinction as a
pulpit orator.
Though Dr Morton by this time was scarcely what he had been in his
best days the congregation kept up well, and in 1879 the membership was
returned at close upon 1 100, and the stipend was £700. But the feeling grew
among the people that a colleague was desirable, an idea from which the
Doctor drew back, and this induced some confusion, which even brought a
protest to the Synod in 1884. On 29th April of that year Dr Morton with
drew from active duty to make way for another.
Sixth Minister. — JOHN W. DUNBAR, M.A., translated from Gillespie
Church, Dunfermline, and inducted to St James Place, i8th December 1884.
The stipend was ,£500, and Dr Morton had an annual allowance of ,£150,
besides a sum of ^660 paid him as a parting gift when he retired. He
died, 5th April 1887, in the sixty-ninth year of his age and thirty-eighth of
his ministry. His son, of the same name, is our minister at Innerleithen.
At the close of 1899 the membership of St James Place was 932, and the
stipend was ,£500, besides a manse, which had been bought for the minister
a number of years before.
ROXBURGH PLACE -RELIEF)
ON ist April 1800 certain "heads of families residing in and about Ports-
burgh" applied through a commissioner to be taken under the inspection of
the Relief Presbytery of Edinburgh. It was explained on their behalf that
they belonged to the Relief body and that they had procured for themselves
a commodious place of worship. It was agreed to receive them at once as
a forming congregation and to have services commenced on Sabbath first.
At that same meeting the Rev. John Reston of Alnwick (see Biggar, Gillespie
Church) was admitted along with his people into connection with the Relief.
On 2nd September a moderation was granted, the subscribers to the number
of 30 and the managers binding themselves to pay a stipend of ,£130, with
^5 for each communion. The call turned out in favour of Mr Reston, and
a member of Presbytery was appointed to preach at Alnwick and intimate
the same. There, however, he found the church door closed against him,
and notice came from the congregation that they had left the Relief, thinking,
perhaps, that their minister had led them into a new connection to further
his own ends. So Mr Reston came through to Edinburgh, and, his pastoral
relation to Alnwick having been formally dissolved, he was inducted into
Lady Lawson's Wynd, igth November 1800.
The origin of the congregation was on this wise. When the meeting
house was about to be vacated by the removal of Mr Thomson and his people
to St James Place a number of the members, influenced, probably, by the
distance of the new erection from Portsburgh, arranged to remain and form
a third Relief congregation. Accordingly the building was bought, trustees
chosen, and a minister inducted, all within seven months. Difficulties, how
ever, were not long in emerging. The church cost ,£1000, and the managers
undertook to have the last instalment paid before the end of 1803. As for
PRESBYTERY OF EDINBURGH 451
Mr Reston, he appears to have been flighty from first to last, and before his
first year in Lady Lawson's Wynd was finished he wrote the Presbytery that
he was leaving for America on necessary business. Commissioners were
forward, authorised to acquiesce in the demission, which was at once
received. In February 1802 the congregation called Mr John King, whose
history is given under Auchterarder (South). They had to come down now
in their money arrangements, though under pressure they named .£120, with
^5 for expenses. The call was accepted and trials given out, but on 4th
May Mr King announced to the Presbytery by letter that he withdrew his
acceptance and was entering on another line of life. By a strange coincidence
Reston turned up at that meeting, wishing to be recognised as a Relief
minister, and after getting an admonition he was readmitted. On I5th June
another wonder began to emerge. Portsburgh came up asking for a modera
tion, and the Presbytery, understanding that they had Mr Reston in view,
" considered this an extraordinary petition." The matter was delayed, and
absent members were to get notice to be present at next meeting. On 6th
July the application was renewed and a committee appointed to confer with
the commissioners. At an after sederunt they reported that the Portsburgh
managers were about to apply, or had already applied, elsewhere for sermon.
The verdict was that " the congregation could be considered no longer in
the Relief body." What denomination the bulk of the people joined cannot
be ascertained, but as the place of worship passed over to the Reformed
Presbyterians this may have been the party from which they sought supply
and with which most of them identified themselves. But on gth November
1802 the old cause took shape again in a petition from persons "designing
themselves members of the late Relief congregation of Portsburgh craving
to be admitted as a forming congregation." It was agreed to grant them
sermon for some time in Carrubber's Close, that it might be seen whether
there was any likelihood of success, and members of Presbytery having
reported favourably, they were congregated on ist March 1803.
First Minister. — JOHN RESTON, who had been supplying in Carrubber's
Close during the intervening months. The call was sustained at once but
not concurred in. However, all barriers were surmounted, and on i6th
August 1803 the Rev. John Reston was inducted as minister of the third
Relief congregation of Edinburgh. At first the people only promised ^80,
but they finally came up to ^120. Whatever Mr Reston's faults may have
been he must have had the gift of popular speech. There were traces of
this all along, and now, after he had gone on for four and a half years in
Carrubber's Close, a more eligible sphere opened for him in Glasgow. He
was invited to the large and recently built church in Bridgeton (Greenhead),
and, having expressed his wish "to be transported," he was loosed, 23rd
February 1808.
Second Minister. — JOHN JOHNSTON, M.A., from College Street, Edin
burgh. Ordained, I4th July 1808. A party who wished Mr Johnston elected to
succeed Mr Struthers broke awayat this time from College Street and joined
Carrubber's Close. In granting a moderation the Presbytery strongly dis
approved of the people having only a hired place of worship. They com
plained also that the chapel was badly situated, "and on account of its
smallness inadequate to contain a congregation equal to the support of a
minister with becoming respectability." They would not sustain the call
unless they had security from the managers that they would feu a piece of
ground for a church in a better position and proceed to build a decent and
commodious place of worship without delay. Thus urged on, the people set
to work, and four weeks after his ordination Mr Johnston was able to report
that ground for building purposes had been obtained, and on the first Sabbath
452 HISTORY OF U.P. CONGREGATIONS
of June 1810 they entered their new church in Roxburgh Place, with sittings
for 830, and built at a cost of almost ,£3000, of which little more than ,£400
was paid at the time.
Mr Johnston when a preacher first declined Coupar-Angus. He was
then called to Wooler, but the call was not sustained, the Presbytery not
being satisfied with the security it gave for stipend or with the paper on
which it was written. Another followed, but he refused to accept, Edinburgh
being now in prospect. Carrubber's Close must surely have had a goodly
accession from College Street, for they were able to promise ^180 of stipend,
with a suitable house, and ,£5 for each communion. For this amount there
was a formal deed, not only given in to the Presbytery, but to be registered
in the Court of Session. In the beginning of 1829 a crisis came for both
minister and congregation. The Scotsman of Wednesday, 2ist January,
informed its readers that on Sabbath "an organ was introduced for the first
time into the worship of our Presbyterian churches," and it was said to have
been done with the consent of the minister, the session, and the entire con
gregation except 10 or 12. It was deemed singular that this innovation
should have had its rise in one of the Dissenting bodies, " which are generally
understood to be more austere than the Establishment." It was Roxburgh
Place church which had struck out into this new path. The sister congrega
tions in Edinburgh could not afford to let the matter pass, but held meetings
to memorialise the Presbytery, College Street taking the lead, and St James
Place coming forward a week after. Brighton Street also chimed in, and
only Roxburgh Terrace kept silent and gave no sign. Indeed, the whole
Relief body was thrown into strong excitement over the half-popish innova
tion, and when the Synod met in May petitions from congregations and
Presbyteries urged sharp and decisive measures for its suppression.
In an appendix to Dr William Anderson's "Apology for the Organ" it
is explained that so early as 1813 there was a movement in Roxburgh Place
church to have an organ introduced, and money was subscribed for the
purchase. In 1821 the attempt was renewed, but both times the minister
stood in the way, and his opposition prevailed. Now, however, his con
currence was obtained, and the thing was done. But it was urged that the
sanction of their ecclesiastical superiors ought to have been asked for and
obtained before venturing on a measure altogether out of keeping with
Scottish Presbyterianism and certain to break the bond of peace. The Synod
met that year in Glasgow, and Mr Johnston kept away, preferring to await
the issue from a safe distance. By the decision come to he was enjoined to
give up the use of the instrument instanter, and the Presbytery of Edinburgh
were instructed to meet on a certain day, and, should the injunction not be
obeyed, they were to strike his name from the roll. Mr William Anderson
of Glasgow, under whose name fuller particulars will be given, moved for
bearance but this motion had only 4 supporters against 48. This was
on Thursday, I4th May, and through the Saturday's newspapers Mr John
ston intimated to his people that next day he would give his reasons for
refusing submission to this sentence and for renouncing all connection with
those who had assumed an unlawful rule over the Relief Synod. An extract
of the foresaid decision was sent him, he said, by the Presbytery, but he re
turned the "foolish paper," judging it "unnecessary to make it more public
or to make the authors of it more ridiculous." Thus ended the connection
of Roxburgh Place Chapel and its minister with the Relief body.
In May 1833 an application from Mr Johnston to be received with his
people into the Established Church was presented to the General Assembly,
though he quite understood that as an indispensable preliminary the organ
would have to be removed. It was remitted to the Presbytery to examine
PRESBYTERY OF EDINBURGH 453
Mr Johnston and, if they found him qualified, they were to receive him into
ministerial fellowship. The result was that on nth July 1833 he was in
ducted into Roxburgh Church "as a Chapel of Ease in connection with the
Church of Scotland," but he did not long survive. Preaching in Perth on
ist September following he took ill in the pulpit, and died two days after,
in the fiftieth year of his age and twenty-sixth of his ministry. A volume
of his sermons, with a Memoir known to have been written by Mr Alexander
Peterkin, a stout defender of the Established Church, was published in 1834.
Mr Johnston, like the Rev. Dr Crawford of Earlston and Portobello,
was married into a family which traces its descent from William Knox, a
brother of the great reformer. Mrs Johnston adhered to the Free Church at
the Disruption, and of her two daughters, the one married the Rev. Finlay
Macpherson of the Free Church, Larbert, and the other the Rev. David
Purvis of Maxwelltown Free Church, Dumfries.
In 1834 Roxburgh Place Chapel was constituted a quoad sacra church.
When transferred to the Establishment the debt had increased to little short
of ,£4000, and having been advertised for sale by the creditors it was pur
chased by private parties to be retained in that connection. Up till the
Disruption its pulpit was occupied by several young ministers in succession,
but the charge was oftener vacant than otherwise. We find from the Life
of Dr James Hamilton that this was the church in which he commenced
his ministry. It was there also that the Convocation of 1842 held its
meetings. It is now Lady Glenorchy's Parish Church.
VIEWFORTH (RELIEF;
THIS congregation is in its third stage of existence ; its primeval beginning
we trace back to 3Oth June 1818. That day six men who had purchased a
large chapel in the Cowgate applied to the Relief Presbytery of Edinburgh
for sermon. They represented, they said, 500 heads of families, and were
attached to the principles of the Relief Church. The latter part of this
statement hardly squares with the fact that their first application was made
to the Established Church. The Assembly having refused to sanction the
chapel in the Cowgate by 58 votes to 32, they came to the Relief Presbytery,
where they got a better reception, and Mr Scott of Dalkeith was appointed
to occupy the pulpit next Sabbath. On the following Tuesday he reported
that the audience was " numerous and respectable/' Papers were also pro
duced to show that there was a regular purchase of the place of worship
from the Episcopal congregation, which had occupied it since 1771, but had
now removed to York Place. The new possessors were wishful to turn the
edifice to their own advantage, though both the outlay and the risk were
considerable. \Vithin three months all was in readiness for a settlement.
First Minister. — JAMES SCOTT, from Dalkeith (now King's Park), where
he had been ordained in 1805 — a man whose popular gifts and powerful
voice marked him out for the situation. On 2gth September the Presbytery
met in Cowgate Chapel. The call came out by a great majority for Mr Scott ;
commissioners appeared from the proprietors and the managers with the
promise of ^150 as the fixed salary, ^5 for each communion, and an addi
tional ^60 a year if the funds allowed. The call being accepted Mr Scott
was inducted, 29th October 1818. Though amidst unfavourable surround
ings there must have been a rapid gathering in of probably a not very
compact congregation. But the pecuniary claims of the proprietors con
flicted with the spiritual rights of the members, and there is mention of
a contract "unscriptural, aristocratical, and contrary to a fundamental law of
454 HISTORY OF U.P. CONGREGATIONS
the Synod of Relief." This occasioned convulsions in the church, and a large
proportion of the people were resolved to have the fetters broken. When
the case came under the Synod's review in 1825 they spoke of only two of
the elders having regular standing, but being wishful not to hurt Mr Scott's
feelings or the interests of the proprietors they did not see it expedient to
cast the ill-constituted congregation adrift. At the same time " the dissen
tients who wish privileges according, to the laws of Messiah's kingdom"
were to have these granted them by the Presbytery. This relates to a
paper with 889 names, which will be met with again when we come to the
origin of Arthur Street Church.
From what has now been narrated it is clear that the proprietors of the
Cowgate Chapel had encroached on sacred rights and made the money
power predominant. But now, after such a large exodus, the stately build
ing failed to be a paying concern, and on nth November 1828 the con
gregation informed the Presbytery that the proprietors had sold the chapel
to the members of another denomination, and that they had procured a
temporary place of worship in Freemasons' Hall, Niddry Street. Though
put to inconvenience they were now in course of breathing a freer air, with
full right to control their own affairs. The Synod had expressed the hope
years before this that time and experience would bring them to understand
better the liberties of the Christian Church and lead to an amendment of
their constitution. The church in Bread Street was opened on 23rd January
1831. It cost ^2600, and had 1050 sittings. The state of the congregation
in 1836 may now be briefly noted. The minister had still the ^150 engaged
for when he came to the Cowgate, with £10 for sacramental expenses. The
communicants were put down at 650, and of the sittings not quite two-thirds
were let. A few years more, and the people took measures to have the
pulpit emptied. There was first a proposal made to Mr Scott to have his
stipend reduced to ,£70, and then at a meeting of the congregation the
relation was declared to be annulled, and the Presbytery was to be asked
to pronounce accordingly. But perceiving on reflection that they had over
shot the mark, they contented themselves with asking to have Mr Scott
removed, as his usefulness was entirely at an end. Having sent in a letter
of resignation he was loosed from his charge on 6th April 1841. Inquiries
into certain matters affecting his clerical standing followed, and after
some private dealings the Presbytery exhorted him " to walk as became
ministerial propriety," and granted him his credentials. He died in Glasgow,
3Oth April 1846, in the sixty-fourth year of his age.
Second Minister. — THOMAS STEVENSON, from Glasgow (Greenhead).
Had been called to Leitholm some months before. Ordained, i6th Sep
tember 1841. The call, though unanimous, was signed by only 143
members, and the stipend promised was only ^120, with ^8 for sacramental
expenses, tokens of deep decline within recent years.
Towards the close of 1844 Bread Street congregation got into a state of
distraction, one party adhering to the minister and the other to the trustees
and managers of the church. The cleavage began with an ill-judged state
ment from the pulpit, which was followed by Mr Stevenson charging several
office-bearers with misleading and deceiving him. Resignations followed,
and after long investigation the Presbytery declared the accusations to be
baseless, a decision in which all parties acquiesced. But the evil was done,
and on 26th November 1844 Mr Stevenson sent in a letter to the Presbytery
intimating that it was necessary for his own peace of mind and the welfare
of the congregation that he should demit his charge. At the same meeting
a petition, ultimately signed by 328 members, craved the Presbytery to form
them into a church under the pastorate of Mr Stevenson. Attempts at
PRESBYTERY OF EDINBURGH 455
reconciliation having failed, the resignation was accepted on 3rd December
and the prayer of the petitioners refused, with the exhortation to meet and
worship with their brethren in Bread Street church as before. But, un
happily, a new element was brought under the Presbytery's notice on 3ist
December by a letter from Mr Stevenson requesting investigation into a
fama affecting his moral character. This was agreed to, but before a con
clusion could be arrived at he declined their authority and intimated that he
was to carry the case into a civil court, that he might vindicate himself from
certain aspersions cast upon him by some woman or girl who had been in
his service. The consequence was that the Presbytery on 28th January 1845
declared him suspended from the ministry and membership of the Church.
The rest belongs to the history of North Richmond Street congregation.
Third Minister. — JOHN SYMINGTON, previously of Temple Lane, Dundee.
Inducted, gth July 1845. Mr Symington's stay in his former charge had
been scarcely over two years, and he was to remain in Bread Street very
little longer. On ijth November 1847 he accepted a call to King Street,
Kilmarnock. When he began his ministry in Bread Street the communion
roll, owing to so many having gone with Mr Stevenson, must have been
about its minimum, and there had been little time for gathering up since.
But within four months the congregation called the Rev. John Kidd of St
Andrews harmoniously, who declined. Having been successful in their last
visit to Dundee they now resolved to try that town again.
Fourth Minister. — ROBERT DICK DUNCAN, who had been for three and
a half years in Wishart Church, Dundee, where he built up a good congrega
tion. Having accepted their unanimous call he was inducted to Bread
Street, 22nd August 1848. Though his success in his new charge may have
been less rapid, good work went on till disturbing influences brought his
labours in Edinburgh to a close. Wherever the blame may have lain, Mr
Duncan got into deeply embarrassed circumstances, and the interference of
the Presbytery was required. At the sequestration of his estate as a bank
rupt it was found that over against ^4000 of debt the assets were valued at
,£500. This, as the libel expressed it, was " to the great scandal of religion
and disgrace of his sacred profession," and the congregation came forward
with a memorial setting forth that " Mr Duncan's usefulness among them
was gone." On 2Oth March 1865 the Presbytery found the libel proven,
rebuked Mr Duncan at the bar, and suspended him from office and member
ship for three months. This painful task over he resigned his charge, and,
the commissioners having acquiesced, the resignation was accepted. On the
expiry of the three months he appeared before the Presbytery with profes
sions of penitence, which were deemed satisfactory, and was restored to his
former status so far as ecclesiastical action went. After this he officiated for
some time as a preacher at Barrow-in-Furness, and no doubt there would be
the general wish to have his pulpit gifts utilised in the Church's service and
the past forgotten. But here new complications arose in connection with
his money affairs, and on gth July 1867 the Presbytery of Lancashire gave
effect to his own letter of declinature by declaring him no longer a minister
of the U.P. Church. He then joined the Church of England, and ultimately
settled down in London, where he was for eight years a curate at St Mark's,
Whitechapel, and at the time of his death he was chaplain of St George's-in-
the-East. He died in November 1883, in the sixty-second year of his age
and thirty-eighth of his ministry. Among slighter productions of his pen the
"Sanctuary at Home," published in 1862, giving six complete Sabbath ser
vices and sermons, fitly commemorates his ministerial work.
The congregation now called the Rev. James Christie, then of Otterburn,
now of Carlisle, but he declined.
456 HISTORY OF U.P. CONGREGATIONS
Fifth Minister.— JAMES ROBERTSON, who had been nine years in Balfron.
Inducted, 27th March 1866, having preferred Bread Street, Edinburgh, to
James' Church, Dundee. The congregation was again in a weakened state,
though strong compared with what it had been twenty years before, and there
was now to be a long period of growing prosperity. A new church in View-
forth, with sittings for looo, and built at a cost of .£9400, was opened on
Sabbath, i6th September 1883, by Dr M'Leod of Birkenhead, when the
collections amounted to ^450, and in thirteen years the whole debt was
liquidated without resorting to any abnormal expedient. Mr Robertson had
the burden lightened for some time by the services of an assistant, but in
1900 it was arranged to provide him with a colleague, the junior minister to
have ,£450 and the senior .£300.
Sixth Minister. — ANDREW M. SMITH, M.A., translated from Ayr (Dar
lington Place) in the thirteenth year of his ministry. Inducted into his fourth
charge, igth July 1900. The membership of Viewforth at the beginning of
that year was 840.
PALMERSTON PLACE (SECESSION)
WE have already seen that Dr Hall with the great majority of his congrega
tion took possession of their new church in Broughton Place on 27th May
1821. But that same day there was sermon in Rose Street, so that the
pulpit was not left empty for a single Sabbath, a considerable party being
determined to keep by the old building. This proposal had led to friction
some months before, there being the wish on the part of the majority to keep
the congregation entire and let the old property go into the open market.
The minority, however, carried their point, and on 4th December the peti
tioners from Rose Street were constituted into a congregation between 300
and 400 strong. Along with the place of worship there was a debt of nearly
^,"2000 taken over.
First Minister. — JOHN BROWN, translated from Biggar (now Moat Park).
At the very first meeting of Presbytery after they were congregated the
people came up for a moderation, offering ^300 of stipend, together with the
manse, and also sacramental expenses. Mr Brown, whose reputation as a
preacher was widespread, had now been in Biggar sixteen years, and was
ripe for transference to a more important charge. He had also begun to
figure as an author. His sermon preached before the Edinburgh Missionary
Society in 1816 on "The Dangers of opposing Christianity" had secured
him the thanks of the meeting from the chair, with a request to furnish them
with his manuscript for the press. Prior to that his " Strictures on
Unitarianism " had given proof of his gifts as a Theologian and a Con
troversialist. Hence when the call from Rose Street, signed by 327
members, was brought before the Synod in April 1822 effect was given to
his own wishes, and he was inducted to Rose Street on 4th June. We read
now of crowded audiences on Sabbath evenings, and in a few years the
membership must have been doubled. But on the second Sabbath of
November 1826 Mr Brown preached Dr Hall's funeral sermon in Broughton
Place church, and the people there set about having him for Dr Hall's suc
cessor. The first call was unsuccessful, but when the second was brought
before the Synod in April 1829 he expressed himself in its favour, and the
transference was carried by 60 to 16.
Second Minister. — JOHN M'GiLCHRlST, formerly of Duns (West). At
three successive Synods calls came up to Mr M'Gilchrist from Rose Street,
Edinburgh, the first signed by 676 members and 244 seatholders, and the
PRESBYTERY OF EDINBURGH 457
others by nearly as many. On the first occasion he was continued in Duns
without a vote, on the second he was continued by a majority, and on the
third it was carried on I3th September 1830 by a great majority to transport,
decisions which reflected the successive phases of his own mind. Mr
M'Gilchrist was inducted to Rose Street on i;th November. The con
gregation at this time were completing the building of a new church with
1300 sittings upon the old site, and the induction had to be put off till the
date mentioned, when it was ready. The cost, in addition to the value of
old material, was about ,£2350, of which ^1800 of debt remained, along with
an equal sum of older standing. But in 1836 the membership was over
looo, there having been an average increase under Mr M'Gilchrist of 86 a
year. The stipend was ,£400, with £12 for sacramental expenses, and the
seat-rents for that year reached the large figure of ^671. Of Mr M'Gilchrist
and his ministry in Edinburgh some account is given in Landreth's Life of
Dr Adam Thomson. There was a marked decline, he says, in the popular
element as compared with what he had been in his former charge, his
delivery having lost all its passion and impetuosity, " though the matter of
his discourses had become much richer, both intellectually and theologically."
In 1845 Mr M'Gilchrist was laid aside from ministerial service by paralysis,
and never again occupied the pulpit, though he survived nearly thirteen
years. A colleague being indispensable the congregation in 1846 made
choice of the Rev. John Cairns of Berwick, who was in the first year of his
ministry, and like other calls at more befitting periods that from Rose Street
was declined. Five months afterwards they fixed on the Rev. Professor
Eadie of Glasgow, but he also disappointed them, remarking in favour of
Cambridge Street congregation : " If they have borne with the defects of
my youthful ministry they have at least a prior claim to its more matured
services." They came back upon him three months later, but finding he
was not to be moved they withdrew the call.
Third /J/z;/z'.rter.— THOMAS FINLAYSON, formerly of Greenock (Union
Street). Inducted, 3oth September 1847, stipend ^350, and the senior
minister had a retiring allowance of ^200 a year. Mr M'Gilchrist died, I5th
May 1858, in the sixty-second year of his age and thirty-eighth of his
ministry. A little before his death a volume of his sermons was published,
but it had to be done under the editorship of another. Mr M'Gilchrist was a
son-in-law of Bailie Gray, a prominent name in Rose Street congregation
and in the United Secession Church. He was thus a brother-in-law of Dr
Scott, the Home Mission Secretary. His son, the Rev. William M'Gilchrist,
B.D., is our minister at Ardrossan'
In 1868 Mr Finlayson received the degree of D.D. from Edinburgh
University, and in March 1872 the congregation notified to the Presbytery
that they had resolved to remove from Rose Street and build a church in a
more suitable locality. This resolution seems to have been arrived at with
unanimity, but when the building was nearing completion a considerable
proportion of the members felt wishful to remain and form a new congrega
tion, as was done fifty years before. At this stage Dr Finlayson died
suddenly at Campbeltown, whither he had gone to introduce the Rev. John
Thomson to his charge there. He was present at the induction services
on 1 6th October 1872, and next morning was found dead in bed. He was in
the sixty-third year of his age and thirty-seventh of his ministry. Dr
Finlayson by his superabounding labours in connection with the Manse
Scheme had earned the gratitude of the denomination, and only six weeks
before his death he was presented with a testimonial of ,£3000 from his
congregation and other friends.
Fourth Minister.— JOHN MITCHELL HARVEY, M.A., transferred from
458 HISTORY OF U.P. CONGREGATIONS
College Street, where he had been minister for nearly seven years. During
the early part of the vacancy the congregation had given an unsuccessful
call to the Rev. Fergus Ferguson of Dalkeith, but now they kept nearer
home, and with a different result. Mr Harvey was inducted, 7th October
1874, and in the following year he received the degree of D.D. from Glasgow
University. He officiated for seven or eight months in the old church before
the removal to Palmerston Place. The new church was opened by Principal
Cairns on 27th May 1875. The collections on that day and the follow
ing Sabbath amounted to ^1166. Total cost about ,£13,000. On ist
February 1876 Dr Harvey requested the Presbytery to investigate into
certain reports which had gone abroad fitted to impair his usefulness. After
careful inquiry the deliverance come to was that some of these rumours were
either entirely baseless or grossly exaggerated, that there was no sufficient
ground for proceeding further, and that they would " content themselves
with affectionately counselling Dr Harvey to exercise the greatest caution
and circumspection in the whole of his conduct." In the following week he
wrote the Presbytery expressing acquiescence but resigning his charge
owing to the state of his health. On igth April the demission was accepted,
the congregation not opposing, as he felt that he needed rest, and, he feared,
a long rest. The long rest was near at hand. He died at Silloth, 23rd
August 1876, aged forty. This was only four months after his connection
with Palmerston Place came to an end, and it is well known that the fatal
cause was an overdose of chloral taken to induce sleep.
Fifth Minister. — ARMSTRONG BLACK, translated from Waterbeck, where
he had been ordained in the preceding year. Inducted, 3ist October 1876.
The call was signed by 267 members, and the stipend was to be ^650.
After enduring the strain of a high-class city church for fifteen years Mr
Black was prepared to welcome a change to a quieter place, and on 5th
April 1892 he accepted a call to Kilcreggan, and was loosed from his charge.
Sixth Minister. — JOHN B. HASTINGS, M.A., from Newcastle, where he
had been ordained colleague and successor to the Rev. George Bell of
Barras Bridge Church, 8th June 1876, having been called on the same day
to that church and to Infirmary Street, Edinburgh. Mr Hastings had two in
vitations in 1884 to remove to Edinburgh, the one from the new congregation
of Braid on i6th June, and the other from Nicolson Street congregation on
the 1 7th, but he remained in Newcastle. He had also been called without
success to St Andrew Place, Leith, in 1881. In 1891, through union with
another congregation, the name of his church was changed from Barras
Bridge to Jesmond. Mr Hastings was inducted to Palmerston Place, 2ist
July 1892. In 1896 he published "The Problem of the Ages: a Book for
Young Men," and in the following year he had the degree of D.D. conferred
on him by Edinburgh University. The membership of Palmerston Place in
January 1900 was over 850, and the stipend was ^650.
ROXBURGH TERRACE (RELIEF)
ON 3 ist May 1824 the Relief Presbytery of Edinburgh received a petition
from some people who described themselves as " worshipping in a chapel at
the foot of Carrubber's Close." The paper bore the names of two elders and
three managers. Their late pastor, Mr Thomas Grierson, whose history
comes up under Langholm (South), was no\v settled in London, and they
were to have no further connection with him. The Presbytery received the
petition favourably, and one of the members having preached in Carrubber's
Close and given a good report the applicants were congregated without
PRESBYTERY OF EDINBURGH 459
further ceremony. In three months they applied for a moderation, but as
only one probationer had supplied the requisite number of Sabbaths the
Presbytery gave that as a reason for delay. On 25th January 1825 the
petition was renewed, but 45 persons asked that it be not granted till other
two preachers had fulfilled their four days. At this point the minority
broke away, secured a chapel in Richmond' Court, and got sermon for them
selves. The sketch of this new formation and its fortunes will form a pre
amble to the history of Eyre Place church. The case of Carrubber's Close
having been carried to the Synod by one of the ministers the Presbytery
were ordered to grant the people a moderation forthwith should it be
applied for.
First Minister. — WILLIAM STRANG, who had been loosed from Dundee
(Seagate) five years before. This was the preacher the congregation were
held back from calling, and the Presbytery were excusable. Mr S'trang had
been minister of Ford, and one of their number, from 1807 to 1815, and it was
known that he had gone to law with his people for arrears of stipend. But
the way being opened by the Synod's decision Carrubber's Close commis
sioners came up for a moderation on gth June 1825, though Mr Strang and
they had already taken each other as minister and people, an irregularity for
which he was required by the Synod to make acknowledgments. He was
inducted to his fourth charge on 3oth June, the stipend promised being ,£150.
All we know further for the next five years is that the congregation removed
to Roxburgh Terrace in 1829. The church they left was private property,
and it is interesting to mark how it was tenanted by one congregation after
another during a period of thirty years. From 1803 till 1808 it was occupied
by the Relief congregation which removed to Roxburgh Place ; then Dr
M'Crie and his people worshipped in it till 1813, when they took possession
of what is now the M'Crie-Roxburgh Free Church. Then the Unitarians
had it for a number of years, and then it comes up in connection with the
name of Mr Thomas Grierson, a minister at large, and there his adherents
were formed into a new Relief congregation. Soon after they left it was
occupied by the Rev. Walter Tait, who was organising the Irvingite Church
in Edinburgh. The after vicissitudes of the humble chapel in Carrubber's
Close we do not need to follow out.
The building in Roxburgh Terrace entered on in 1829 was stated by Mr
Strang's successor to have been formerly a dwelling-house which was altered
into a church. The sittings were only 369, and it was rented from private
parties at £26 a year. Mr Strang died suddenly, 26th June 1834, in the
sixty-fifth year of his age and forty-first of his ministry. "Having gone to
his bed little removed from his usual health he was found dead next morn
ing.'"' In each of the four charges he held his course for the most part was
unhappy. The Rev. George Brooks of Johnstone, who remembered him
well, spoke of him preaching very tastefully composed sermons.
Second Minister. — RICHARD LOGAN, nephew of the Rev. James Logan
of St Ninians, and, like him, from Anderston, Glasgow. Ordained, i8th
December 1834. Presbyteries in other cases were accustomed to require
legal security for a permanent hold of the building, but on this occasion that
requirement was not insisted on. They might very fitly have repeated the
judgment they pronounced on Carrubber's Close, that the chapel "on account
of its smallness is inadequate to contain a congregation equal to the support
of a minister with becoming respectability in this city." In 1837 Mr Logan
put the number of communicants at 149, and the stipend at ,£105. The total
income was under ^140 a year. On i6th May 1842 Mr Logan's demission
was accepted, as he had made up his mind to connect himself with another
denomination. The Disruption was drawing on, and it is said that his
460 HISTORY OF U.P. CONGREGATIONS
inclination lay in the direction of the Free Church, but in the end he applied
to the Establishment, and the General Assembly of 1845 instructed the
Presbytery to take him on trials and admit him if found qualified. He was
inducted to St Andrew's quoad sacra Church, Dundee, as assistant and suc
cessor in 1846, and succeeded to the full charge in 1853. He died, I7th
July 1871, in the seventy-fourth year of his age and thirty-seventh of his
ministry.
The day after Mr Logan's resignation was accepted Roxburgh Terrace
congregation met and unanimously agreed to dissolve. This sudden move
ment upset the plans of the Presbytery, who had requested Mr Logan to lay
before the people their earnest desire that they should continue as a separate
society or, if they believed that impracticable, to unite in a body with the
congregation assembling in Freemasons' Hall. At a subsequent meeting
the commissioners were recommended to ascertain how many of the people
might be expected to act in concert for maintaining Christian fellowship in
connection with the Relief. The answer came that instead of continuing as
a separate congregation they would join their brethren in Freemasons' Hall,
and the Presbytery were pleased with the prospect of the two parties be
coming one. Here we pause till the other congregation is brought up to
the junction point.
ARTHUR STREET (RELIEF)
THIS congregation began with the large party that withdrew from the Cow-
gate Chapel in 1825. The original paper was signed by 889 members and
seatholders, but the application to be formed into a separate congregation
had only 552 names appended. It was explained that they were to meet in
the Caledonian Theatre till they got a chapel built. On the third Sabbath
of January 1827 their new church in Brighton Street was opened, with 1233
sittings. In view of a settlement ,£150 of stipend was promised, with ,£20
for sacramental expenses.
First Minister. — JAMES TURNBULL, from Bridgeton (Greenhead), Glas
gow. Ordained, 1st May 1827. In April 1834 the Presbytery received a
petition from the minister, elders, and 721 members formerly assembling in
Brighton Street intimating that they had removed to Freemasons' Hall.
" The chapel which they called their own was advertised to be sold for behoof
of the creditors, and they expected expulsion without any further notice."
" Their intention was to erect a chapel at a moderate scale of expense, and
they believed they were taking with them by far the largest portion of the
congregation." It was afterwards explained to the Commissioners of
Religious Instruction that the high feu-duty, amounting to ,£120 per annum,
was the cause of their leaving Brighton Street, and there would also be
heavy interest on borrowed money. So they disentangled themselves from
the encumbrance, and left the creditors to make of the building what they
thought fit. At Martinmas 1835 it was tenanted by the New North congrega
tion at a yearly rent of ^200, and with the Rev. John Bruce in the pulpit all
the sittings were let except 64. In March of that year Mr TurnbulFs con
gregation removed to a church in Arthur Street, with which their name was
to be long connected. The building had been erected for a Baptist con
gregation at a cost of ^3800, but they sold it now at a price equal to the
debt resting on it. It was bought, along with another building, by Mr
Turnbull's congregation for ^2100. The sittings were 700, but in 1836
galleries were being put up, which raised the accommodation to fully 1000.
The minister put the number of communicants at not less than 700, but he
PRESBYTERY OF EDINBURGH 461
was uncertain how many followed him when he left Brighton Street and
formed "a new congregation." He was in receipt of no fixed stipend during
the transition time.
All seems to have gone on well for several years after they entered their
second place of worship. Mr Turnbull, besides his regular work, contributed
largely to the Christian Teacher, a religious periodical supported by the
pens of Dissenting ministers. It was in its columns that his " Sketches from
Real Life" first appeared. But towards the end of 1841 the Presbytery had
to inquire into certain rumours which " affected the interests of Arthur
Street Church." It was also known that part of the session had recently
resigned office. At next meeting Mr Turnbull intimated by letter that he
was to demit on an early day. This step had been deferred, he said, as he
was endeavouring to get a bond renewed, that the ruin of the congregation
might be averted. Again there was delay and the issuing of another sum
mons to attend. On 8th February 1842 a letter was forthcoming, in which
he renounced the authority of the Presbytery, and withdrew from the Relief
denomination. He was twice summoned to appear, but, "for reasons satis
factory to his own mind," he refused, and on i8th February it was decided
to dissolve the connection and depose him from the ministry, but as Arthur
Street Church was his personal property they would not attempt to intimate
the sentence from the pulpit. Now came in a petition from 66 of the con
gregation asking to have sermon granted them in the Waterloo Rooms, but
before next meeting they had gone back to Freemasons' Hall. Here they
met for public worship till the congregation of Roxburgh Terrace broke up,
and the scattered fragments of the two ill-fated churches were gathered into
one. What follows will more fitly come under a distinct heading.
ARTHUR STREET AND ROXBURGH TERRACE (UNITED)
ON 25th June 1842 commissioners from both parties appeared before the
Presbytery requesting to have the union between them formally completed, and
wo of the ministers were appointed to meet with them that evening. At
next meeting they reported that the end had been gained. Mr Turnbull
was now losing hold of Arthur Street Church, and by September the united
congregation got a lease of the building for three years from the trustees of
his creditors, and they were to use all means to purchase it for themselves
within that period. Mr Turnbull lingered for a time in the locality, and in
the almanac list for 1843 ne 's entered as minister of Roxburgh Terrace,
so that he and such of his people as still kept by him must have taken
possession of the empty abode, but by another year the name disappeared.
All we know of him with certainty after this comes from an announcement
in the Scotsman of 26th June 1858 : "The Rev. James Turnbull, formerly of
Brighton Street and Arthur Street, and for some time past of East Grim-
stead, near London, died there on the 2ist inst. after a severe illness of some
months' duration." Let us hope that his troubled life had a serene ending.
First Minister. — GEORGE O. CAMPBELL, who had been ordained six years
before over Strathaven (West). The first call to Arthur Street he declined,
but the people forthwith sought another moderation, and acceptance followed.
The induction took place, I2th April 1843. Only 80 members signed the
call at the time and 20 afterwards. One of the commissioners was Mr James
Hogg, the publisher of Hogg's Instructor, an admirably conducted literary
magazine, of which Mr Campbell became editor for some time. Both he and
his predecessor did service with the pen. But they were to resemble each
other also in this, that with both their ministerial course was to end under
462 HISTORY OF U.P. CONGREGATIONS
a cloud. In August 1848 a committee of Presbytery framed a libel against
Mr Campbell on a serious charge, he himself having introduced the case
and invited inquiry. The taking of evidence occupied five or six sederunts,
and the verdict was " Not guilty as libelled," and Dr French was to preach
in Arthur Street next Sabbath and intimate the decision. In doing so he
informed the congregation that, as investigation went on, the innocence of
their minister became clear as noonday, and now he was restored to them
without the slightest shadow of suspicion resting on his name. So far well ;
but, my informant added, " the church has got very thin." The Presbytery's
decision only put back the fatal day. In October of the following year two
ciders of Arthur Street Church, and the treasurer, brought up before the court
enough to satisfy them that matters were seriously wrong all round. Again
there was a libel served, but the counts were manifold, and, to secure the
attendance of the accused, the Presbytery had to meet in Holyrood Free
Church, as he was sheltering from arrestment within the precincts of the
Sanctuary. The trial ended on 27th November 1849 with sentence of de
position, and again Arthur Street had passed through the hards. Mr Camp
bell is said to have now removed to England, but it was in Glasgow that
he died, 2ist July 1867, in the fifty-fifth year of his age.
It would not have been surprising though the congregation had resolved
to break up after these sad experiences, but elasticity was not destroyed,
and within three months they girt themselves for the securing of another
minister. They turned first to the Rev. Joseph Brown of Dalkeith, but he
did not incline to face the situation.
Second Minister. — • JAMES BALLANTYNE, who had been two years
minister in Earlston (West). Inducted, 3rd September 1850. Each of
these calls was subscribed by little more than 70 members, and on applying
for a second moderation the stipend was down from ,£200 to ^160.
Mr Ballantyne made himself specially active in the Temperance cause, and
there is evidence that the congregation improved much under his ministry,
but having resolved on leaving for Australia, he was loosed from his charge,
2ist November 1854. On I7th April 1855 he was inducted as colleague to
the Rev. Andrew M. Ramsay of Collins Street, Melbourne, but differences
having arisen in the church his friends withdrew and formed a new con
gregation, which is now known as Erskine Church, Carlton. On account of
ill-health Mr Ballantyne visited Scotland in 1876, and on returning he
resigned his charge by medical advice, but he edited the Presbyterian
Monthly Messenger, and was clerk of Melbourne Presbytery (South) to the
last. He died, gth March 1896, aged seventy-eight.
Third Minister. — ROBERT GEMMELL, from Dundee (now Dudhope Road),
.a minister of nine years' standing. This call, though not unanimous, was
signed by 257 members, and the stipend was ,£200. Inducted on 8th August
1855. The debt on the property was heavy, but Mr Gemmell exerted him
self earnestly and with considerable success to have it reduced. He also
took deep interest in the Presbytery's proceedings, and everything there, as
well as in the congregation, moved on with comparative harmony till a little
before the time when steps were taken for the appointment of a colleague.
Prior to that there had been a big inbreak on the strength of the congre
gation, and the providing of a junior minister was needed to repair the
breach, the arrangement being that he should receive ,£240 of stipend and
Mr Gemmell ,£80, with the allowance from the Fund for Aged and Infirm
Ministers. But ^320 was an overstraining of the congregation's ability,
and it did much to prepare the way for trouble and discord.
Fourth Minister. — THOMAS BOSTON JOHNSTONS, translated from Colins-
burgh, where he had been three and a half years, and inducted, i8th February
PRESBYTERY OF EDINBURGH 463
1875, ^ie understanding being that the senior minister was to be virtually in
the emeritus position. To enter in among details of what followed would be
irksome as well as profitless, but it was the proposal to introduce unfermented
wine at the communion, in order to meet the views of some outsiders, and
thereby better the position of the congregation, that led to turmoil and open
rupture. Mr Gemmell was bitterly opposed to the innovation, and the Pres
bytery pronounced the step "hasty and ill-advised," and enjoined the session
to return to use and wont, a decision which on appeal was confirmed by the
Synod. Other matters were now dragged in till the confusion threatened to
become interminable, monopolising the greater part of the Presbytery's time,
and in various forms engaging the attention of the Synod. The funds were
coming far short of requirements, and the Presbytery recommended a propor
tionate reduction of the two stipends, but taking into account Mr Gemmell's
allowance from the Aged and Infirm Minister's Fund. That was making
Mr Johnstone's .£240 and Mr Gemmell's ^80 + ^60 the basis of computa
tion. To this proposal Mr Johnstone and the commissioners agreed, but
Mr Gemmell first hung back, and then intimated to the Presbytery by letter
at next meeting that he would carry the case to the Synod. Meanwhile
feeling became so intensified in the congregation that the Presbytery re
solved to sever Mr Gemmell's connection if a proper sum were paid to him
in lieu of retiring allowance. The congregation had suffered severely during
the period of tumult, and the ,£260 that they agreed to give was believed to be
up to the measure of their ability. The case in its various aspects came
before the Synod in 1 878, and the action of the Presbytery was approved of.
Thus Mr Gemmell ceased to be one of the ministers of Arthur Street, but he
was to retain his place as a member of Presbytery and Synod.
Three years of conflict followed between Mr Gemmell and Edinburgh
Presbytery, during which it became evident that his seat in the court was
hurtful to himself and irritating to his brethren. At last he resigned his
connection with the Presbytery, and on I7th May 1881 his name was taken
from the roll with the sanction of the Synod. In addition to the .£260 from
the congregation a sum of ,£157, IDS. was raised by a Committee of Synod
to make up so far for its confessed inadequacy. Mr Gemmell died suddenly,
and on his knees, when conducting family worship on the morning of 5th
November 1886. He was in the sixty-ninth year of his age and forty-third
of his ministerial life. His only son is our minister in Douglas, Lanarkshire.
For Mr Johnstone deliverance had come through a call to Bolton, which he
accepted on 7th March 1882, leaving Arthur Street and its troubles behind
him. In 1890 he published "The Religious History of Bolton," and in 1894
he received the degree of D.D. from Philadelphia, United States. Three
years after this he appeared as the author of a more important volume on
" Scotland and Things Scottish." He has also contributed many minor
articles to the Dictionary of National Biography.
After Mr Johnstone had intimated his acceptance of the call to Bolton
it was stated that the congregation, instead of taking steps towards an
immediate settlement, would rather that Mr A. L. Laird, a second-year
student, should carry on the work among them for the time, and in the face
of a protest or remonstrance from Mr Gemmell this was agreed to. The
membership, which was returned at 340 in December 1880, was now down
to about 200, and the shrinking up of the communion roll was not yet at
an end.
Fifth Minister, — ANDREW L. LAIRD, M.A., a native of Larbert, but
came up to the Hall from Belhaven (Glasgow). Ordained, i4th May 1884.
The call was signed by 151 members, and the people undertook ^100 of
stipend. The place of worship had in the interim been overhauled and
464 HISTORY OF U.P. CONGREGATIONS
a tenement of houses erected on part of the site at an expenditure of ^2800,
and there was a prior bond of ^1000 on the property. The burden was
heavy, but the rents were expected to lighten it by yielding a good return
for a large part of the cost. During the years Mr Laird was in Arthur
Street the Mission Board supplemented his income to the extent of .£120
a year. On 27th July 1886 he accepted a call to Swalwell, a congregation
of some 70 members, near Newcastle. His stay in his second charge was
briefer than before, as he resigned, nth March 1887. Some time after
this he was inducted into Arthur's Hill, Newcastle, but on 7th June 1892 he
intimated to the Presbytery the demission of his charge, and it was agreed
by a majority to accept it at once. He then returned to Edinburgh, and
entered into fellowship with the Christian Church in Roxburgh Place, in
which, as they had no regular minister, he occupied the position of an
evangelist in October 1900.
Sixth Minister. — DAVID M'QuEEN, from Troon. Ordained, loth
January 1888. The congregation had previously called the Rev. Peter
Peace, M.A., from Blyth (Waterloo Road), a native of Orkney, who had
been a licentiate of the United Presbyterian Church, but the call, at his own
request, was set aside by Newcastle Presbytery. Arthur Street Church at
this time was in a lower position than ever, the membership at the end of 1887
being only 133, but there was vigorous work carried on by the Hall students,
with Mr M'Queen at their head, and in the course of six years their numbers
rose to 436. The congregation again became vacant on igth December
1893 through Mr M'Queen's acceptance of a call to East India Road,
London, whence he was recently removed to St Vincent Street, Glasgow.
Seventh Minister. — JAMES MILROV, from Freuchie, where he had been
minister for eight years. Inducted, 24th April 1894. The membership at
the close of 1899 was 311, and the people paid from their own resources
nearly ,£200 of the stipend, which was ,£230 in all.
LOTHIAN ROAD (UNITED SECESSION)
ON nth September 1826 the United Secession Presbytery of Edinburgh
had a petition for sermon presented to them from 134 subscribers. They
were to meet in a new church which was in course of erection at Gardner's
Crescent, and so far as the commissioners knew none of the applicants were
in communion with the Secession. Notice having been sent to the seven
sessions interested, six in Edinburgh and one in Slateford, and satisfactory
answers received, Mr Lothian of Portsburgh was appointed to preach in
Gardner's Crescent and open the church on Sabbath, igth November. On
6th February next 81 seatholders and ordinary hearers applied to be formed
into a congregation, and Mr Ritchie of the Potterrow and Mr Smart of
Leith were appointed to take the necessary steps. On 3rd April they in
formed the Presbytery that a church, with 72 members, had been constituted.
An election of elders was now proceeded with, of whom three were ordained
on the third Sabbath of May — James Douglas, Robert Brown, and Alexander
Blackie.
Next came the important step of choosing a minister, the stipend to be
^300, with £10 for sacramental expenses. The result is given in the Synod
Minutes for September 1827, when a call from Gardner's Crescent came up
to the Rev. John M'Gilchrist of Duns, the first of five which he received
from the metropolis within three years. It was signed by only 74 communi
cants, but in the paper of adherence, " subscribed by 441 ordinary' hearers,"
PRESBYTERY OF EDINBURGH 465
there^was the promise of greater things. Mr AI'Gilchrist was heard, and
the Synod agreed without a vote to continue him in Duns.
First Minister.— DAVID MARK, M.A., from Mauchline. Ordained, 6th
August 1828, on a harmonious call signed by 119 members, but the adherents
were less than half what they had been on the former occasion. In the
third year of Mr Marr's ministry the church in Gardner's Crescent, which
had been rented by the congregation, was sold to the kirk session of
St Cuthbert's, and passed into their possession in May 1831. The new
place of worship in Lothian Road was opened on the 29th of that month,
with sittings for nearly 1300, the cost being put at ,£3350. The membership
was already a good way over 500. Mr Marr died, i;th May 1834, in the
thirty-sixth year of his age and sixth of his ministry. A brother of his,
Mr John Marr, entered the Burgher Hall at Selkirk in 1815, but did not
live to complete his theological course. He died at Crofthead, Tarbolton,
roth January 1819, in his twenty-second year. It was at his death, Dr Reid
states, that the younger brother was induced to turn aside from farming and
devote himself to preparation for the ministry.
Second Minister. — ALEXANDER DAVIDSON, translated from School
Wynd, Dundee, where he had been minister for little more than two
years and had filled the church to overflowing. The first call to Lothian
Road was set aside owing to irregularities. In this connection Dr Ritchie
had it marked in the Minutes that he could not approve of this or any other
call if it included "the designations, managers and trustees, as such terms
involve no moral, religious, or ecclesiastical character.'-' All was put right
by the bringing up of a second call to Mr Davidson in a sounder form, and
he was inducted, 2ist May 1835. The stipend was struck now at a lower
figure, being ,£225 instead of .£310. With a heavy burden of debt on the
building it may have been thought wise to attempt nothing higher for the
time. In Gilfillan's " History of a Man " it is, we believe, Mr Davidson who
figures under the name of Henderson, "a tall, red-cheeked, fair-haired
young man," but his fancy description of the discourse which followed runs
into caricature, though he represents the impression it produced as " pro
digious." During Mr Davidson's brief ministry in Lothian Road there was
a marked rise in the membership, which amounted at his retirement to
about 700. Whether the violence of his delivery, taken along with the
excitement of a new charge, wore him out before his time we know not, but
ere he had been three months in Edinburgh his work was done. Pulpit
supply had now to be regularly provided, and for nine months the people
were kept in suspense, hoping for the best but fearing the worst. On
7th June 1836 reference was made in the Presbytery "to the continued
with which they were much gratified, came from Exeter, but it was followed
on ist November by a letter resigning his charge owing to continued indis
position. The congregation had nothing to urge against acceptance, and
having ascertained that their engagements to their minister "were in the
way of being fully and honourably implemented" the Presbytery on
6th December 1836 accepted the resignation. Mr Davidson survived only
twelve days. He died at Hayfield, near Rutherglen, i8th December 1836,
m the twenty-eighth year of his age and fourth of his ministry. Further
particulars are given in connection with School Wynd, Dundee.
Third Minister.— ANDREW THOMSON, B.A., from Sanquhar (South), a
grandson of the Rev. Andrew Thomson, who laboured there for nearly forty
years. His grandmother was a sister of the Rev. Patrick Comrie, Burgher
2G
466 HISTORY OF U.P. CONGREGATIONS
minister of Penicuik, and thus the name came into the family. At the
moderation the votes were divided, not very unequally, between Mr Thomson
and Mr Alexander Sorley, afterwards of Arbroath, there being 195 for the
former and 166 for the latter, and the call itself was signed by only
208 members. The ordination took place, 5th July 1837. Depressed,
perhaps, both in funds and in spirits through the long illness of their former
minister, the people only offered ^200 of stipend, with £10 for expenses.
But though all was not on the bright side at first it proved a fortunate
settlement, and when Mr Thomson's ministry there of scarce five years came
to a close the organisation was complete, and the congregation not only
larger by 200, but much better compacted than before. On 7th June 1842
Mr Thomson accepted a call to the collegiate charge of Broughton Place
Church, much to the chagrin of Lothian Road congregation. At a modera
tion which took place within seven weeks two candidates were proposed —
the Rev. James Robertson, who was in the second year of his ministry at
Musselburgh, and Mr John Steedman, probationer, afterwards of Stirling.
The former was chosen by a great majority, but the call was declined.
Fourth Minister. — WILLIAM REID, from Greyfriars, Glasgow, a son of
Dr John Reid, a Secession licentiate.* Ordained, 7th June 1843, the precise
date at which the church became vacant the year before. The call was
signed by 763 members, and by 1049 persons in all. The stipend was now
to be ^250. In 1846 Mr Reid published "Conversion practically Con
sidered," being twelve discourses on that all-important subject in its various
aspects. However, he was better and more widely known as a temperance
reformer. To the advocacy of the Total Abstinence cause he gave himself
with his whole heart from student days onwards, and in this connection he
appeared to full advantage, whether in the pulpit, on the platform, or
through the press. The membership of Lothian Road at the same time
rose till it reached 1300. But in 1865 an arrest was put on Mr Reid's
activities, and gradually his people as well as himself were forced to the
conclusion that the vigour of former days would come back no more.
During this period of partial suspense two unsuccessful calls were issued,
the first to the Rev. Matthew Crawford, then of Sanquhar, and the other to
Mr James Jeffrey, who was ordained soon after at Dalkeith. The first pro
posal was that each of the ministers should have a stipend of ,£300, but this
arrangement was afterwards modified, so that Mr Reid was to receive ^200
and his colleague ^350. About this time friction arose in the church, and Mr
Reid felt "that he could only secure needed rest and tranquillity by the
severance of the pastoral tie." But the attachment of the people to their
* John Reid, from Abbey Close, Paisley, was licensed by the Burgher Presbytery
of Glasgow on 3oth July 1799, but he soon after withdrew from preacher life. We
find him in June 1803 conducting an academy at Liverpool, whence he wrote
Edinburgh Presbytery stating that a small society of Seceders in that town had
desired him to preach to them on the Lord's Day. This may be taken as the first
movement towards the formation of Mount Pleasant Church, but meanwhile diffi
culties arose, and there was nothing done. Mr Reid afterwards took his medical
diploma, and practised as a surgeon in Glasgow, but it was chiefly as a teacher of
Oriental Languages that he was distinguished. He died, 23rd December 1830, aged
sixty-five. In a short notice of his death which appeared at the time it was stated
that he was "well known in the literary world for his philosophical pursuits. He
taught at various times students in no less than twenty-six languages," and was the
author of a Hebrew Lexicon and Latin Rudiments. He was married to a sister of
William M 'Gavin, author of "The Protestant," whose Life was given to the world
by Dr William Reid in 1884, as a duty he owed to his uncle's memory and his
uncle's worth.
PRESBYTERY OF EDINBURGH 467
minister forbade the carrying out of any such measure, and it was agreed
that he should hold the status of senior colleague, with ,£150 of stipend,
undertaking pastoral and pulpit work as he found himself able, but the junior
colleague to have the whole responsibility.
Fifth Minister. — WILLIAM FLEMING, translated from Kirkcaldy (Union
Church) after a ministry of twelve years, and inducted, 2oth March 1866.
This was the beginning of fourteen years of unremitting labour, visitation of
families and the requirements of a large sick list being as faithfully attended
to as though he had been still among the more limited demands of his first
charge, and pulpit preparation carried on as though his constitution had not
been amenable to the law of rest one day in seven. Dr Reid was only able
to render occasional assistance, the excitement of delivery being too much
for his impaired nervous energy. The spirit might be willing but the flesh
was weak. He was active, however, with the pen, and we have the fruits in
" Things to Come," " Children viewed in the Light of Scripture," and " Ever
lasting Punishment and Modern Speculation." These brought him the
degree of D.D. from New York in 1874. Shortly after gaining this distinc
tion he gave to the world what is in some respects his most valuable work,
" Plymouth Brethrenism Unveiled," with its fairness, its grasp, its thorough
ness, and its perfect acquaintance with that system in its varied workings
and deceitful fascinations. But about this time the congregation was much
disturbed on the question of communion wine, and Mr Fleming's heart, as
his son finely puts it, " was often overweighted with the burden of care and
his mind harrassed with the distractions of controversy." After the forma
tion of Argyle Place Church in 1876, with which some of his leading
opponents cast in their lot, quietness returned, which he was not long to
enjoy. On a Monday in 1879 one of Lothian Road elders mentioned to me
that something peculiar came over Mr Fleming at the afternoon service the
day before, and that an experienced medical man belonging to the church
said it was like paralysis of the tongue. On calling I was relieved to find
that he made light of it. It was only confusion occasioned by a slight lapse
of memory — he always dispensed with the manuscript. But the hand of
God had touched him, and this was the first warning which tells that the
clock is preparing to strike. He struggled on for months, but his hard day's
work was nearly done. A lengthened period of rest brought no restoring,
and a sudden attack of brain congestion forced him to decide that he must
let another take his place.
Sixth Minister.— JAMES AITKEN, M.A., who had been ordained at
Castle-Douglas in 1875, and was translated to North Shields (Northumber
land Street) within two years. Inducted to Lothian Road, 27th September
1881, neither Dr Reid nor Mr Fleming being able to be present at the
service. The arrangement as to stipends was that Mr Aitken should have
.£450, Mr Fleming ^150, and Dr Reid, at his own request, only ^100.
Lothian Road now became the third of our congregations that has had for a
short time a threefold collegiateship. Mr Fleming died, 25th July 1885, in
the sixty-seventh year of his age and thirty-second of his ministry. An In
Memoriam volume was published in 1886, consisting of nine discourses, with
a brief but graceful biographical sketch by his son, the Rev. John R.
Fleming, B.D., Bellshill. A like notice appeared in the U.P. Magazine soon
after his death by his brother-in-law, Professor Calderwood — they were
married to twin sisters. Dr Reid also, in his Temperance Autobiography,
published the year before his death, paid a tribute to Mr Fleming's memory
in the following terms : — " He was the finest preacher of the simple yet grand
truths of the gospel I ever met with." On the wine question, as was well
known, the two ministers did not see eye to eye, though they were both pro-
468 HISTORY OF U.P. CONGREGATIONS
nounced abstainers, but after the tumult was over and all was still the sur
vivor came forward and laid this little wreath of affection on his departed
colleague's grave. All went on comfortably with Mr Aitken, and after Mr
Fleming's death his stipend was raised to .£500, but the charge was heavy,
and on 4th February 1890 he accepted a call to Ryehill, Dundee.
Seventh Minister. — ROBERT J. DRUMMOND, B.D., from Kilmarnock
(Princes Street), where he had been ordained seven years before. Inducted,
3rd December 1890. Dr Reid died, I3th August 1896, in the eighty-third
year of his age and fifty-fourth of his ministry. Of most of the publications
which bear his name mention has already been made, but memory recalls
across the distance of fifty-five years two little tracts of his, entitled
"Moderate-drinking Christians on the Side of Intemperance" and "The
Church in a false Position," as most earnest and effective pleadings on
behalf of a cause which lay close to his heart. He left a son-in-law in the
ministry of the Free Church, the Rev. W. M. Sutherland of Clola, but it
was a case in which the marriage bond had been early dissolved by death.
The membership of Lothian Road at the close of 1899 was 1368, the largest
of our congregations in Edinburgh except Broughton Place, and the stipend
was £s 50.
MAYFIELD (SECESSION)
THIS congregation was an offshoot from Bristo at the time Mr William
Peddie was appointed colleague and successor to his father. The Synod in
May 1828 dismissed a representation and complaint from the dissatisfied
minority, and on 1st July sermon was applied for by 75 members of Bristo
church and 20 others not belonging to the Secession. At next meeting, on
5th August, supply was granted without any reference to neighbouring
sessions" owing to the " specialities of the case." The parties worshipped
first in Bethel Chapel, and then removed to Freemasons' Hall. On 4th
November Dr Ritchie reported that he had conversed with 91 individuals
already in communion with the Secession and also with 15 who approved
of our summary of principles. These, along with 4 who brought certificates
from other churches, were now congregated, being 1 10 in all. At Martinmas
they took possession of the huge chapel in the Cowgate, which they had
purchased from the proprietors at a costly price. The Relief congregation
which had occupied the building for ten years under the ministry of the
Rev. James Scott was now turned adrift, to meet in a temporary place of
worship till their new church in Bread Street was built. The new-comers
had a heavy burden to face from the very outset, but with a meeting-house
capable of accommodating 1800 people they may have felt that they had
a great future before them. On 3rd February 1829 they promised ^210
of stipend, with ^12 for expenses, and got the grant of a moderation.
They intended to have three services each Sabbath, but as this might over
tax the energies of a young minister in so large a house they would provide
for one of the services in another way. The call addressed to Mr John Reid,
probationer, was signed by 141 members and 74 adherents, and was duly
sustained. But at next meeting of Presbytery notice was received of a
competing call from Nicholson Street, Glasgow, and a letter was read
from Mr Reid declining in decided terms to be settled in the Cowgate,
the very place to which the Synod in the following week appointed him.
This decision only involved loss of time, as on 2nd June a committee of
Presbytery acknowledged themselves baffled in their attempts to remove
his scruples, and it was agreed that the congregation should be free to
proceed towards another moderation. By this time another call had come
PRESBYTERY OF EDINBURGH 469
out to Mr Reid from Dairy, in Galloway. It was a place which a preacher
so acceptable might have considered beneath his notice, but he accepted, and
was ordained there a few months afterwards.
The congregation now made a bold move. They would put in for the
Rev. John M'Gilchrist of Duns, whose fame as a pulpit orator was great in
Edinburgh. He had been called to Gardner's Cresent, now Lothian Road,
two years before, but declined, and a call to Rose Street for the second time
was now awaiting the decision of the Synod. If his services could but be
secured for Cowgate congregation their success, they no doubt reckoned,
would be speedy and certain. Rose Street had named ,£350 as the stipend,
but they could outbid them and give ^400. So in due time the competing
calls from Edinburgh to Mr M'Gilchrist, that from Rose Street signed by 676
members, while the Cowgate with a full muster only reached 180, came
before the Synod. Mr M'Gilchrist's mind, however, was not up to the
transporting point yet, and the Synod, without a vote, put the two calls on a
level and agreed that he should remain in Duns. With the next call they
came down to the earlier figure of ^210, and £12 for expenses.
First Minister. — WILLIAM NISBET, from Longridge. Ordained, 23rd
March 1830. Mr Nisbet had been on the preachers' list for over two years,
and until quite recently nothing better than Blyth, near Newcastle, had come
within his reach. After a long pause Arbroath (Erskine Church) followed,
but Mr Nisbet, with firmness which might have passed for temerity, set that
call aside and declared for the Cowgate, not fully alive to the congregation's
liabilities, which were out of all proportion to either their numbers or their
resources. The chapel they had bought for the goodly sum of ^6400, though
it only cost the former proprietors ,£4000 ten years before. The bargain was
that the purchasers should table down ^500 at once, and pay ^200 every six
months for the next five years. The other ,£4000 might remain on bond.
This was a big reality for Mr Nisbet to face, with a call signed by only 156
members. In those days, moreover, Bazaars and Extension Funds were
things unknown. It happened, however, that the confidence alike of
minister and people was justified beyond all reasonable expectation. In
1836 Mr Nisbet reported to the Commissioners on Religious Instruction a
communion roll of 932 and an average afternoon attendance of 1200. The
stipend, as was to be expected, kept as before, and on the weak point, the
amount of debt, information was withheld, only it was stated that it was
several hundreds less than at first, and it was expected to diminish year by
year. But as time passed Mr Nisbet must have become growingly alive to
the pecuniary burdens of the congregation and the perpetual drain on the
funds which these involved. Accordingly, on 3rd April 1838, he accepted a
call to Abbey Close, Paisley. During his stay in his first charge his success
as a preacher was marvellous, considering that he indulged in nothing-
sensational. Of his discourses Dr Eadie says : " Their power lay more in
the body of thought than in the edge with which any argument wa's brought
home or the striking illustrations with which any special thought was clothed.
There were no bursts, no elocutionary tricks, but the delivery was sustained,
forcible, and animated."
Second Minister.— WILLIAM BRUCE, from Dumbarton, son of the Rev.
William Bruce, who had been minister at South Shields, and is further re
ferred to under Bathgate (Antiburgher). Ordained, 2oth September 1838.
The number of members who signed the call was 567, and the stipend was
now lowered to ^125. It may have been thought needful to keep this part of
the expenditure down in order to have the debt reduced ; indeed, it was felt
about this time that unless that oppressive burden were very perceptibly
lightened they could scarcely afford to go on. It was once mentioned by
470 HISTORY OF U.P. CONGREGATIONS
Dr Bruce to the writer that when the subject of debt liquidation began to
be stirred throughout the Secession Church, and his people became fully
aware of their liabilities, several families sought away from the congregation.
But relief came from the sale of the chapel to the Roman Catholics in May
1856 for ^4300. They were fortunate now in securing the church which had
been built for Professor Paxton in 1821. The original cost was nearly ^2400,
but in 1843, the Original Secession congregation which worshipped in it
having got in among the breakers, it was sold to the Free Tolbooth congre
gation, which took possession on i8th June 1843 and parted with it in 1852.
It then became the property of the Protestant Institute, and by them it was
sold to the Rev. William Bruce's congregation for ^1500, a sum which was
raised by needed improvements to nearly ^2000. The big price received
for the Cowgate Chapel was entirely swallowed up in clearing off debt which
rested on that building, and after all was done a burden of .£1500 still re
mained. This made a total of ^3400 to be dealt with when the congrega
tion at Whitsunday 1856 took possession of Infirmary Street Church, the
sittings of which had been reduced from 1200 to 980. The debt, though
large, was now within manageable compass, and in sixteen years it was
entirely extinguished. The stipend of the minister by this time was double
what it had been in the first years of his ministry.
In 1876 Dr Bruce, who received the degree of D.D. from Glasgow Uni
versity in 1868, required, through declining strength, to be provided with a
colleague. The arrangement was that the stipend should be ^300 to each
minister. The membership was stated to be about 600. In the early part
of that year Mr John B. Hastings, now Dr Hastings of Palmerston Place,
Edinburgh, was harmoniously called, but he preferred a call he received the
same day from what is now Jesmond, Newcastle.
Third Minister. — ROBERT POLLOK WATT, M.A., from Kilmaurs. Or
dained, 1 3th February 1878. That evening Dr Bruce was presented by his
congregation with a gift of silver plate and ^500. He died, i5th November
1882, in the seventy-first year of his age and forty-fifth of his ministry. For
seventeen years he had been clerk to Edinburgh Presbytery, in which office his
influence was always on the side of conciliation and harmony. A few stray
sermons of his were published — one on the death of Dr John Ritchie, who
was a member of Infirmary Street church in his closing years. He is also
the author of two volumes of poems, "Hebrew Odes" and " Memories.'"'
Two of the hymns in the former had a place in the United Presbyterian
Hymnal, and one of them has been retained in the Hymnary, " Holy Father,
Thou hast given." But it is round the In Memoriam pieces that the
tenderest interest gathers. In the preface he tells that the composition of
the contents " has lightened hours which, from causes known to his people,
might have been too full of saddening recollections." The tombstone in
Grange Cemetery gives the explanation. It marks the resting-place of six
children whose ages varied from infancy to nine years, and also of their
mother, aged forty. A son and daughter, who had gone to homes of their
own, followed shortly before the volume was issued.
On Thursday, i8th December 1897, the new church at Fountainhall
Road, Mayfield, with sittings for fully 600, was opened by Dr Hutchison,
Moderator of Synod. The cost was £7000, of which ,£2600 was raised by
their own contributions, and ^2800 was got for the old building, which is
now a Working Men's Club and Institute. Adding the opening collections
to these big sums we have little more than ^1000 of debt remaining. The
removal lessened the pressure on a part of Old Edinburgh where U.P.
churches were too thickly planted, and it made enlarged provision for the
wants of a growing and important suburb, though it must have cost them
PRESBYTERY OF EDINBURGH 471
the loss of distant families. The membership at the close of 1899 was 324,
and Mr Watt's stipend since Dr Bruce's death has been .£400.
EYRE PLACE (SECESSION)
THIS congregation was Relief in the first instance, and began with a party
who broke away from Carrubber's Close (see Roxburgh Terrace) when the
majority were about to call the Rev. William Strang. They got sermon at
first in Richmond Court, but in April 1825 they intimated that they were
removing to the Freemasons' Hall, Xiddry Street, as their former place of
meeting was sold, and they had declined to buy it, as they believed it would
eventually be too small. In October they petitioned for a moderation, and
stated that with a view to permanence they were feuing a piece of ground at
Stockbridge for the erection of a church. Two months afterwards they
issued a call to Mr Alexander Laurie, who had been introduced to Glasgow
Presbytery for licence from Bellshill the year before. The stipend named
was .£150, and they would advance it as the funds improved till it amounted
to ,£300. The call was accepted, but in May 1826 it was found that owing
to the state of the congregation the trials for ordination could not be pro
ceeded with. However, Mr Laurie continued preaching to the people for
two years without the pastoral tie being formed, and on i6th April 1828 an
Edinburgh newspaper announced that on the previous Sunday " the splendid
new Relief chapel of Stockbridge was opened for divine service, when an
appropriate sermon was preached by the Rev. Mr Laurie." But by this
time the funds were exhausted, and a fortnight afterwards Mr Laurie tendered
his resignation of the call, which was accepted on 3rd June with expressions
of regret on the part of the church that this step had become a necessity.
Their resources were so reduced that they could not meanwhile pay for
preachers, and they solicited gratuitous supply. The building though taken
possession of was in an unfinished state, and for want of money operations
were at a stand. The Presbytery agreed to deal tenderly with the people in
their present difficulties, and with this ended the history of what was entered
as the Fifth Relief congregation in Edinburgh. Mr Laurie afterwards
officiated as a preacher within the bounds of Glasgow Presbytery, but on
2nd October 1831 he passes out of view, and we see him no more.
The scene opens anew on 3rd February 1829 with a petition to the
Secession Presbytery of Edinburgh from residenters in Stockbridge for
sermon, which four weeks afterwards was unanimously granted. On 7th
April 102 persons applied to be congregated, none of them being in connec
tion with the Secession, and Dr Ritchie was commissioned to take the usual
steps for that purpose. On 3rd May he announced that, having conversed
with 53 of their number, he could recommend them for admission to Church
fellowship, and they were congregated accordingly. The building was now
purchased from the creditors, who had exposed it for sale in a partially
unfinished state. The ultimate cost was ^2100, and the sittings were 1200.
Next came the constituting of a session, three elders being ordained and one
inducted.
First Minister. — ROBERT REX WICK, from \Vest Linton, where he had
been minister for eighteen years. At the moderation Mr Renwick had 64
votes against 47 for Mr Walter Duncan. The call was signed by 104
members, so many as 262 adherents, but 28 persons lodged a protest
against certain parts of the proceedings. They had been thwarted, they
said, in their wish to obtain a rehearing of Mr Walter Duncan, and the
majority had through canvassing swelled up the number of Mr Renwick's
472 HISTORY OF U.P. CONGREGATIONS
supporters, 34 having been brought in on that or the preceding evening, one
of them not over ten years of age. The Presbytery deprecated the gross
irregularities but sustained the call. The case was carried to the Synod,
where the opposition was overruled, and Mr Renwick translated to what
was now called St Bernard's Church, Stockbridge. The induction took
place, 7th October 1829. The stipend was to be ^212 in all. For a number
of years there was increase of a kind and a fair money return, but in July
1835 the elders and managers petitioned the Presbytery to examine into the
affairs of the congregation. On 5th October this was followed by the Pres
bytery being certified that the minister of Stockbridge had deserted his
charge, and full evidence of serious misconduct was brought forward against
him. On 3rd November he put in an appearance, and was suspended sine
die. In addition to other matters of offence there had been, as he acknow
ledged, excess in the use of spirituous liquor, and when out in this state
under the cloud of night he had given his good name entirely away. On ist
August 1837 Edinburgh Presbytery after dealing with his case under new
aspects deposed him from the office of the ministry. Down in England he had
been dabbling with forged certificates of ministerial character in order to
gain access to pulpits and perhaps keep himself off the rocks. The latter
part of Mr Renwick's life was spent in Berwick, his native place, where, as I
have ascertained, he built up character anew by a course of humble, con
sistent, Christian conduct. He died, 3oth March 1859, aged seventy-five.
Second Minister. — PETER DAVIDSON, who had been five years minister
in Arbroath (now Erskine Church). Inducted, 7th September 1836. The
stipend was to be ^180, and the call was signed by 321 members and 101
adherents. During the vacancy matters were in a depressed state, and
some of the trustees went the length of offering to sell the chapel to the
Established Church for ^1700. Besides a debt to this amount on the
property there \vas ,£350 due Mr Renwick as arrears of stipend. Thus Mr
Davidson had formidable difficulties to contend with from the first, and it
is also understood that his fidelity to the standard of Christian character
told seriously on the communion roll. But in course of time his gifts and
attainments came to be better recognised, and some families of high stand
ing placed themselves under his ministry. It was felt, however, that Dean
Street was not in the locality best adapted for him, and on i7th November
1861 he removed to Queen Street Hall with the sanction of the Presbytery.
It was his leading people that pressed for the change, he himself had mis
givings, and a considerable number of the congregation were resolved on
keeping by the old building. Mr Davidson had published in 1858 his best-
known book: "Opinions concerning Jesus Christ," and in 1861 he had
obtained the degree of D.D. from St Andrews University. At the time of
the Atonement Controversy he had also written what was considered a very
able pamphlet, entitled " The Two Gospels," in which the views of Dr John
Brown were upheld and those of Dr Andrew Marshall and others contro
verted.
In Queen Street there was the steady building up of a well-compacted
congregation, and in 1872 steps were taken to provide a colleague for Dr
Davidson. In contrast with the money arrangements when he came to
Edinburgh, and for many years afterwards, he was now to receive ^350, the
two ministers being made equal. The first they called was the Rev. James
G. Scott of St Andrews, who declined, but accepted Renfield Street, Glasgow,
in the follo\ving year.
Third Minister. — WILLIAM G. FORBES, from Paisley (Abbey Close).
Ordained as colleague to Dr Davidson, 25th February 1874. Mr Forbes
entered the Hall in 1859, but drawing back from the responsibilities of the
PRESBYTERY OF EDINBURGH 473
Christian ministry he settled down in business life for a lengthened period,
and this accounts for the fact that he was in his thirty-sixth year when
ordained. On 3rd June 1879 the Presbytery sanctioned an arrangement by
which Dr Davidson, at his own request, was relieved from pastoral duty, his
retiring allowance to be ^150 and the stipend of Mr Forbes ^300. It was
a large reduction from the original ^700. At this very time the congrega
tion was in course of planning for a new church. They had already in
possession ,£3000, which had been bequeathed to them by Mr W. H. Mac-
farlane, formerly one of their number, a brother of Dr John Macfarlane of
London, and they had raised ^1800. This led to the removal of the con
gregation from Queen Street Hall, which they had rented for nineteen and a
half years, to a fixed habitation in Eyre Place. The new church was
opened on Wednesday, 6th April 1881, by Principal Cairns, who preached
from the text, " A name that is above every name." There are sittings for
700, and the cost was ^8500, including halls. The membership at the close
of the preceding year was 246.
Dr Davidson died, i4th September 1881, in the seventy-eighth year of his
age and fifty-first of his ministry. He was a son-in-law of the Rev.
Alexander Young, Logiealmond, and three of his own sons are ministers of
the United Presbyterian Church — James, minister -emeritus of Finnart
Church, Greenock ; Robert of the Japan Mission ; and William B. Young of
Campsie. In addition to the publications already mentioned Dr Davidson
joined issue in 1863 with Bishop Colenso in a volume, entitled "The Penta
teuch Vindicated." He was also from first to last a consistent upholder of
thorough-going Voluntaryism both in Church courts and through the press.
The ministry of Mr Forbes was comparatively brief. He died, 8th May
1884, in the forty-sixth year of his age and eleventh of his ministry. A
volume of his discourses, with a brief but gracefully-written Memoir prefixed,
was published in the following year under the editorship of Mr Andrew
Mitchell, advocate, a member of Eyre Place session.
Fourth Minister.— JOHN PATRICK MITCHELL, M.A., translated from
Cupar (Bonnygate), where he had been colleague to the Rev. John Rankine
for seven years. Inducted, 8th September 1885. During the vacancy the
first the congregation called was the Rev. John G. Train of Buckhaven.
The membership of Eyre Place in 1900 approximated to 500, and the stipend
was ,£400.
During the eighteen years between 1829 and 1847 there was no increase
in the number of Secession churches in Edinburgh, and those of the Relief
were reduced by one. When the Disruption of 1843 came it left little room
for other denominations to lengthen their cords. In sketching the history
of the churches which have originated since then we shall set aside chrono
logical order so far and arrange them into three groups, the last two being
the Mission Church group and the Church Extension group. The six which
come under neither of these headings we take first, following the order of
time. These are Grange Road, North Richmond Street, Dean Street,
Mormngsicle, Rose Street, and Argyle Place.
474 HISTORY OF U.P. CONGREGATIONS
GRANGE ROAD
ON 2nd December 1847 the Presbytery of Edinburgh was asked to sanction
the purchase of a chapel in Duncan Street, Newington. The petition was
signed by forty-seven residenters, and it was explained that an attempt had
been made to form a Baptist church there a few years before, which had failed.
The place of worship, with 750 sittings, cost over ,£2000, and it was now
offered for .£1200. The proprietors, moreover, were desirous that, next to
the Baptists, it should be occupied by the United Presbyterians. The
nearest church of the denomination was Nicolson Street, half-a-mile away,
and there was the prospect of building going on in this south-eastern
suburb of the city. On 4th Janukry 1848 supply was appointed, and services
were begun on Sabbath, the 9th, by Dr Brown of Broughton Place. On 7th
March the station was formed into a congregation, and this was speedily
followed by the election and ordination of two elders.
First Minister. — JAMES ROBERTSON, whose earnest and fruitful ministry
of eight years in Musselburgh (Bridge Street) augured well for the success
of the new cause. He was called unanimously in June of that year, the
membership being 36, and on the day for decision u Mr Robertson, after a
long and feeling address, cast himself on the advice of the Presbytery."
In the whole circumstances of the case his brethren, without waiting, as has
been said, till another meeting, agreed by a great majority to recommend
acceptance, and the induction followed on nth October 1848. The stipend
was ,£150, but in May 1850 it was increased to ,£200, and it rose in sub
sequent years to .£250, £300, and finally to ^400. The gathering in and
compacting was such that in 1856 the congregation raised considerably
more than ,£1200, and Mr Robertson wrote in one of his letters : "The debt
on church and school property, which stood over at ,£1800, is now brought
to a perpetual end." Duncan Street had also become a beehive of missionary
and benevolent activity, the various evangelistic agencies being in a state
of thorough organisation and directed to the best advantage.
In 1 86 1 interference came from Dr Begg and the deacons' court of
Xewington Free Church. A circular had been issued from that quarter
representing Causewayside as in a peculiarly neglected state and appealing
for funds to meet the spiritual requirements of the district. The case ac
quired notoriety at the time, and led to a conference between the Free and
the United Presbyterian Presbyteries. A territorial church was declared
to be the object Dr Begg and his office-bearers had in view, its seat to be
in the northern part of the mission district on which Duncan Street con
gregation had been expending a large amount of labour and money year by
year. Yet Dr Begg informed the Christian community that "there is
perhaps no district in the kingdom in which the poor dwell so near the com
paratively rich and have upon the whole received hitherto so little direct
notice from them." Although the conference between the two Presbyteries
evolved little beyond harmless generalities the territorial church was not
proceeded with. In going over the merits of the case we are struck by the
change that has come over that part of the town since then. In the southern
division, which it was proposed to make over to Duncan Street congrega
tion, there were only ninety visitable families at that time, and away beyond
there were only green fields. In October 1877 there was a membership of
550, and on the accommodation of Duncan Street becoming unequal to the
wants of the congregation the church in Grange Road was built, with 1000
sittings. The cost amounted to ^6761, and the opening services were con
ducted on Sabbath, isth November 1863, by the Rev. John Cairns of
Berwick, the Rev. Charles J. Brown, New North Free, and the Rev. William
PRESBYTERY OF EDINBURGH 475
Robertson of Irvine. Duncan Street Chapel now reverted to the Baptists,
to whom it was sold for ^1700, and within little more than three years the
new church was free of debt.
Second Minister. — JOHN YOUNG, M.A., from Berwick (Church Street).
Ordained, 2nd October 1872, and on the 2gth of that month he became
Mr Robertson's son-in-law. The senior minister was to have ^400 of
stipend, as before, and the junior ^350. Mr Robertson was only fifty-five at
this time, but in view of his precarious state of health it was not surprising
that he felt unable to go on single-handed. In October 1873 a petition from
60 members was laid before the session in favour of unfermented wine at
the communion, and the decision to keep by a mild, natural wine led a
goodly number, including two elders, to withdraw and help to form the con
gregation of Argyle Place. In 1877 another company, headed by one of
their outstanding elders, Mr Duncan M'Laren, jun., was disjoined with the
full approval of their brethren, and went to aid in the formation of Rosehall
Church. The two groups together numbered about 80. In 1876 Mr Young
had been called to Bournemouth, but while the call was pending Mrs Young,
whose delicate health might have constrained a different decision, died, and
he remained in Newington. Up till now Mr Robertson had, with consider
able breaks, taken his share of pulpit work, but on 4th December 1877 ne
was relieved of responsibility, though retaining the status of senior pastor.
His heart's action, he explained, had been seriously affected by four successive
bereavements. He was now to have ^200 a year and Air Young ^500.
On 3rd June 1879 the long-standing malady suddenly prevailed, and Mi-
Robertson died in the sixty-third year of his age and thirty-ninth of his
ministry. His usefulness was prolonged to the very close by the interest he
took in evangelistic services and the ardour he threw into evangelistic
addresses. Specimens of these and of his sermons to the young are ap
pended to the memorial volume which fitly embalms James Robertson's
Life and Work. With less of the purely poetical than his brother in Irvine
he had more of the softly tender, and we may say regarding him : " He
touched nothing that he did not adorn." As the inscription in the vestibule
of Grange Road Church has it : " Redeeming love was his message ; the
winning of souls his mission ; the lambs of the flock he tended with special
care ; a man greatly beloved." Even those who heard him but seldom may
recall utterances of his like this: "We pray for the aged; smooth their
descent to the dark river, and when they stand on Jordan's brink what they
feared would be stormy billows may they find still waters."
Mr Young occupied the pulpit of Grange Road Church for other ten
years, except during a period of broken health, when the Rev. Peter
M'Dougall, afterwards of Stromness, became his locum tenens. He was
loosed from his charge on I4th May 1889 on being chosen by the Synod to
succeed Dr Scott as Home Mission Secretary.
Within a few weeks the congregation took steps to call the Rev. William
Watson, M.A., Dumbarton (Bridgend), but he declined. This was followed
by another unsuccessful call to the Rev. W. T. Bankhead, North Shields,
who in a few months accepted Ibrox, Glasgow.
Third Minister. — JAMES S. RAE, translated from Sunderland (Trinity
Church), and inducted, gth October 1890. The membership ten years after
wards was considerably over 600, and the stipend was ^500.
NORTH RICHMOND STREET
ON 2nd July 1850 a petition, signed by the Rev. Thomas Stevenson, the
whole of his elders, and over 400 members and adherents, was laid before
476 HISTORY OF U.P. CONGREGATIONS
Edinburgh Presbytery asking to be received into connection with the U.P.
Church. The membership was 346, and " they had a comfortable place of
worship in a good locality," a statement the latter part of which admits of
qualifications. Mr Stevenson had withdrawn from Bread Street and from
connection with the Relief Synod in a way which exposed him to censure
and also to grave suspicion. That after asking the Presbytery to investigate
into the ground of certain reports by which his moral character was seriously
compromised he should refuse to abide the result, but renounce their juris
diction instead, was hardly consistent, we might think, with conscious
innocence. But it seemed to be understood that the ill-judged step he took
in breaking away like a fugitive from discipline was to be ascribed to nothing
worse than characteristic indiscretion, and that the charge brought against
him was really baseless. It was the United Presbyterian and not the
Relief Presbytery he had to deal with now, and after receiving a report from
a committee of inquiry, and some delay, they spoke of referring the case to
the Synod for judgment. But that proposal was departed from, and the
sentence of suspension having been previously removed the Presbytery met
in North Richmond Street Church on 8th October 1850, according to pulpit
intimation. After sermon by the Rev. Francis Muir of Leith the Moderator
" narrated the steps which had eventuated in the deed of Presbytery," and
asked the congregation whether they adhered to the doctrine and discipline
of the Church and also to the ministry of their present pastor. Their assent
having been given, the questions of the Formula were put to Mr Stevenson
as at an induction, and he was formally admitted a minister, and his people
a congregation, of the United Presbyterian Church. Thus after five years
of isolation they were into ecclesiastical fellowship again.
First Minister. — THOMAS STEVENSON ; and in keeping with the above
we shall say inducted, 8th October 1850, over the people who adhered to-
him when he left Bread Street and who had kept by him ever since. Where
Mr Stevenson and his party worshipped at first has not been discovered, but
in the Almanac for 1847 they are entered as a Relief Congregation in
Carrubber's Close, " not in connection." There they continued till the
building in North Richmond Street, formerly a dispensary, was fitted up
for them, and thither they removed shortly before applying to the Presby
tery for admission. The stipend they gave was ^130. Mr Stevenson died,
3rd April 1859, in the forty-eighth year of his age and eighteenth of his
ministry.
Second Minister. — ALEXANDER C. RUTHERFORD, who since withdrawing
from the Evangelical Union had been four years in Buckhaven. When the
moderation was applied for the commissioners stated that the congregation
would now guarantee ^150 in all, or ^20 more than they had given their
former minister. As for membership, all they vouched for was "that 140
persons had communicated on the last occasion." After some demur the
proceedings were allowed to go on. The call was addressed to Mr Ruther
ford, and he was inducted to his fifth and last charge on ijth April 1860.
In a few years, no flow of prosperity having come in with the new ministry,
it began to be felt by the people, and by Mr Rutherford also, that coalescence
with some neighbouring congregation was urgently required if the cause
in North Richmond Street were to be preserved from extinction. The first
movement was in the direction of Arthur Street, the two ministers, Messrs
Rutherford and Gemmell, to be colleagues, but the negotiations ended in
worse than failure. After union with Mr Gillespie's people had been looked
at they turned to Henderson Church, South Gray's Close, where the Rev.
John Thomson from Stronsay had recently entered on abundant and what
promised to be very successful labours. Difficulties were soon got over,
PRESBYTERY OF EDINBURGH 477
both parties being in earnest, and the union was consummated in April 1867.
What follows is deferred till the history of Henderson Church in its separate
state has been overtaken.
Mr Rutherford, whose connection with North Richmond Street virtually
ceased when the union took place, died at Joppa, igth January 1878, in the
sixty-ninth year of his age and forty-first of his ministry. One of his sons,
the Rev. John Rutherford, B.D., was ordained over St Nicholas U.P.
Church, Aberdeen, and is now a parish minister in Kirkwall. Another, the
Rev. T. R. Rutherford, M.A., attended the Divinity Hall of our Church four
sessions, and then was received into the Establishment by the Assembly of
1875 as a student to be taken on trials for licence. He is now parish minister
of Dunkeld. Their father also left behind him a family of pamphlets, most
of them bearing on the pros of Morisonianism, and a few of them on the
cons. Without going into either class we may close by quoting George
(iilfillan's estimate of his early friend while yet in his prime: "Alexander
Rutherford, whatever we may think of his sentiments, has many admirable
qualities. He has a force of impulsive thought, a warmth of heart, an
impetuosity of disposition, and a fluency and energy of speech, which
render him no common man. But it were flattery and not friendship to
say that he has ever subjected those powers to a thorough training or
learned properly to control them." The Presbytery also, after his death,
put on record their pleasant remembrance of the honest and warm-hearted
service he had done during the course of his forty years' ministry.
DEAN STREET
ON 5th November 1861 three elders and 99 members of Dr Davidson's con
gregation petitioned the Presbytery to be recognised as a distinct church.
The great majority were to remove to Queen Street Hall on the third Sabbath
of that month, and this was a minority who wished to remain in Dean Street.
Supply of sermon was granted, and it was arranged at their urgent request
that no vacant Sabbath should come in to break the continuity. On 2nd
December the petitioners were congregated, though it might have been
simpler to declare them a congregation from the outset, with the three elders
to form a session. At this time there was a debt of ,£1200 on the church,
but it was stated that the Elders' Association of Edinburgh and Leith had
agreed to raise the sum of ^500 to aid in the liquidation. Their brethren
who were leaving also intended to give every assistance in their power to
those who remained. In the Report of the Debt Liquidation Board to the
Synod in May 1863 there is mention of ,£150 being granted to Dean Street
congregation to enable them to clear off the ^450 still unpaid.
First Minister. — ANDREW GARDINER, M.A. Inducted, 25th March 1863.
Next day was the twenty-second anniversary of his ordination at Kincardine.
The call was signed by 122 members and 57 adherents, and the stipend at
first was ,£210 in all. In 1878 Mr Gardiner had the degree of D.D. from
the University of St Andrews. Within these fifteen years the membership
of the church had increased to over 600, and the stipend had been raised to
,£400. On 7th February 1882 Dr Gardiner expressed to the Presbytery his
wish to withdraw from the active duties of the ministry, and the congregation,
which though numerous was not wealthy, agreed to allow him ^50 a year.
In granting them a moderation soon after the Presbytery expressed their
opinion that the retiring allowance was inadequate, and asked them to recon
sider the matter, but nothing followed.
Second Minister.— JOHN KERR CRAIG, from the Free Church, Lochwin-
478 HISTORY OF U.P, CONGREGATIONS
noch. Mr Craig had been ordained over the E.P. church, Ramsbottom, in
1871, the place where Dr George Brown laboured from 1818 to 1829. In
the following year he removed to Ancoats, Manchester, from which he was
translated to Dean Street, and inducted, igth October 1882. The stipend
was to be ,£300. On 24th February 1891 he accepted a call to'be colleague
to the Rev. Walter Muckersie, Frederick Street, Glasgow. Mr Craig left
Dean Street well equipped with mission premises, the expenses of which
were met to a large extent by the proceeds of a bazaar. During this
vacancy the congregation called the Rev. A. Johnston Millar of Milnathort
and the Rev. William Steedman of Eaglesham, but they both declined. The
stipend was now to be ^300, with ^30 in lieu of a house.
Third Minister. — THOMAS ANDERSON, from the Free Church, Falkirk.
Ordained over the E.P. congregation of Kingston and Surbiton, London, on
1 9th June 1879, ar>d inducted to Dean Street, i6th February 1892, as col
league to Dr Gardiner, a relationship which was dissolved on the following
day by the Doctor's death, in the seventy-eighth year of his age and fifty-first
of his ministry. His jubilee had been feelingly celebrated in Dean Street
on 1 3th October 1890. Dr Gardiner was a man of scholarly attainments,
which he kept up faithfully to the very last. When he was minister of
Kincardine George Gilfillan took occasion to enter in his Journal : " His
wife has been an invaluable ally," and she was equally so in Edinburgh.
Mrs Gardiner was a sister of the Rev. John Guthrie, D.D., one of the
founders of the E.U. Church, who, like Dr Gardiner himself, was a native
of Milnathort. She was a lady of great sagacity and high-toned Christian
character. The Rev. James Gardiner of Uddingston, we may add, is the
Doctor's nephew. At the close of 1899 Dean Street had a membership of
719, and the stipend was ,£335.
MORNINGSIDE
IT was reported to Edinburgh Presbytery by their Mission Committee on
3rd June 1862 that "certain inhabitants of the village of Morningside" de
sired to have a preaching station erected there. A suitable hall, they stated,
was available, and ,£600 was already subscribed for the building of a church.
Four months passed without sermon being commenced, as it was deemed
prudent to wait until they saw a probability of their efforts being crowned
with success. Plans were among hands now for a church with fully 400
sittings on the ground floor and room for a gallery to accommodate other
200, the entire cost not to be over ^2300, and the Presbytery appointed a
committee to obtain subscriptions from members and friends not connected
with the district. On the evening of Monday, 2Oth July 1863, 33 persons
with certificates from U.P. sessions were formed into a congregation. Next
came the election and ordination of elders, the number being limited to two.
Everything was as yet on a humble scale.
On Thursday, 5th November, the church was opened by Dr Cairns of
Berwick, and this may have stimulated the thought of having him for their
minister. Accordingly, within three months the people were forward for a
moderation, with a stipend of ^300 guaranteed. On the church being filled
they were to give ,£400, and should a gallery be required and similarly occu
pied they would raise the figure to .£500. It issued in a call to Dr Cairns
signed by 46 members and 33 ordinary hearers. In the array of names
there was nothing imposing, but strong influences, denominational and other
wise, were at work to induce him to remove to Edinburgh. He declined, but
PRESBYTERY OF EDINBURGH 479
not till "after a period of hesitation more perplexing than any other in his
life."
First Minister. — JAMES BROWN, M.A., from Creetown, where he had
laboured for five years. Inducted, 23rd November 1864. But progress did
not answer either to expectation or to the high-pitched standard of expendi
ture. Morningside, though improving, and certain to improve year by year,
had scarcely passed as yet from the status of a village to that of a suburban
district of Edinburgh. Even the fact that Dr Cairns had been nearly won
over might militate against the patient waiting for success. Then a rumour,
which proved too true, that the building was insecure thinned the attend
ance in threatening weather. The crisis came on Friday, 24th January 1868,
when, before the force of a violent gale, the gable of the church yielded, and
minister and people were brought face to face with ruined prospects and
superadded expenditure. Mr Brown now came forward, and, with the view
of giving the managers and congregation a free hand, tendered his demission,
and in the circumstances the congregation deemed it inexpedient to offer any
opposition, "while cherishing an affectionate remembrance of his fidelity and
diligence in the discharge of his pastoral duties and the ability and edifying
character of his pulpit ministrations." With expressions of sympathy the
connection was dissolved on 3rd March 1868, and next year an important
field of labour opened for Mr Brown at Lochgelly, where comfort and
prosperity have attended him.
Second Minister. — DAVID KING, LL.D., translated from Westbourne
Grove, London, where he had laboured earnestly since 1862, "battling
against the discouragement of weakness and often against great nervous
depression." Inducted, ist April 1869. The hope was that in this quiet
suburb of Edinburgh Ur King might find a sphere adapted for him, amidst
abated strength and in life's advanced afternoon. But though there were
seasons of strung-up energy, which recalled better days, the power of en
durance was denied. Brethren aided, Professor Calderwood in particular,
but the thought of leaning partially, and often to a large extent, upon others
brought discomfort, and the resolution was formed to retire. A colleague
was spoken of, that the Doctor's pulpit gifts might be conserved to the con
gregation so far as health permitted, but he kept by his purpose of unquali
fied resignation. The demission was accepted, 4th March 1873. The
congregation arranged for a parting testimonial, and aided largely by his
admirers and sympathisers throughout the denomination, and specially in
Glasgow, they presented him with a cheque for ,£3300 and a silver salver
with a suitable inscription. Dr King died in London, 2oth December 1883,
in the seventy-ninth year of his age and fifty-fourth of his ministry. The
Memoir by his widow and daughter, published in 1885, with specimens of
his sermons, "will tell to later generations what Dr King did as a preacher,
as an adept in the work of Church organisation, and as a great orator plead
ing for union and for help to the oppressed." His publications link themselves
with the history of Greyfriars, Glasgow, and not with that of Morningside,
Edinburgh.
Third Minister. — ALEXANDER MAIR, M.A., translated to Morningside
after a ten years' ministry at Stow. Inducted, 8th October 1873. Though
still weak in numbers, there being only 99 names at the call, the stipend was
to be ^200. Two years before this the debt of ^1500 which rested on the
building was reduced to .£500, the people having raised ,£800 and the Board
having allowed ,£200. The congregation as yet was only amidst the first
stirrings of the giant strength to which it has since attained. In 1877 Mr
Mair had the degree of D.D. conferred on him by Glasgow University.
His book, entitled "Studies in the Christian Evidences," published in 1883,
480 HISTORY OF U.P. CONGREGATIONS
reached a second edition in 1889, and is much valued. In December
1878 Dr Mair was called to Belhaven, Glasgow, but declined. A church of
much larger capacity was now required to meet the increase in membership
and the wants of the district. Accordingly, the present stately place .of
worship, with 1000 sittings, was opened on Sabbath, i6th October 1881, Dr
Mair officiating in the forenoon and Professor Calderwood in the afternoon.
The entire cost, including organ, furnishings, and the price of a very costly
site, was scarcely under ,£16,000, but the opening collections reached ^1813.
The smaller and humbler building close by was now disposed of to the
Independents. The congregation, composed largely of better-class families
from the neighbourhood, has pressed forward since then into the front rank
of liberality among the churches of Edinburgh, and at the close of 1899 the
membership was 780 and the stipend £700.
ROSE STREET
ON 6th May 1873 trie Presbytery of Edinburgh had a protest and appeal
brought before them against a deed of Rose Street session refusing to
transmit a memorial from certain elders and members who desired to con
tinue in the present place of worship. As happened in 1821, when there was
a removal to Broughton Place, the proposal to divide was looked on with
disfavour by the majority, and was even considered to be scarcely consistent
with good faith. Besides, it was certain that if carried out it would lessen
very decidedly the money they expected to derive from the proceeds of the
old property. However, under the auspices of a Presbyterial committee an
amicable adjustment was arrived at. To put it briefly, the purport was this :
that if, when the time for removal came, any portion of the people wished to
retain the church as a place of worship, and if the Presbytery agreed to
form them into a congregation, they were to have the property at ^4500.
Accordingly, on I3th May 1875, 21 1 members, including five elders, petitioned
the Presbytery to be recognised as agreed above. The removal was to be
carried through on 27th May, and Dr Peddie was to preach in Rose Street
on the following Sabbath, the five elders to be at the same time constituted
into a session.
First Minister. — W. D. MOFFAT, M.A., from Alva, where he had been
minister for five years. Inducted, i6th November 1875. Stipend ^400, which
was raised to ^500 two years afterwards, but, the church being unfavourably
situated, it has been kept from holding its own, and there has been a coming-
down to the former figure. There are large funds already available for
building a church in a more suitable part of the town, but the majority of
the members have never seen their way to resolve on removing, very much,
perhaps, from inability to decide where they ought to go. At the close of
1899 there was a membership of 330. Some years before this they were
entirely free from debt.
ARGYLE PLACE
ARGYLE PLACE was looked on at first as having for its distinctive badge un-
fermented wine at the communion. On 5th December 1876 some 26 persons
who had obtained certificates of disjunction craved the Presbytery of
Edinburgh for supply of sermon with the view of being formed into a new
congregation on the south side of Edinburgh, near Meadow Place. They
PRESBYTERY OF EDINBURGH 481
worshipped for a time in the Literary Institute, South Clerk Street, and on
3rd April 1877 they were formed into a congregation.
First Minister, — JOHN KAY, M.A., a native of Greenock, and brought up
in the Reformed Presbyterian Church. He was ordained at Airdrie in that
connection on 2gth April 1850. In 1859 he was translated to Castle-Douglas,
and from thence he removed to Coatbridge in 1871. He had now become
widely known as a zealous temperance advocate, so that the attention of the
South Side congregation was naturally turned to him as a fit man to have for
their first minister. The call, signed by 34 members, was sustained, 8th
January 1878. The people wished to have matters expedited, and for that
purpose a special meeting of Presbytery was summoned at their expense.
Mr Kay was to decide on another call from the East Free Church, Ruther-
glen on the 27th, and it was thought desirable that the two should be dis
posed of at the same time. Commissioners were forward at Hamilton from
the South Side congregation, expecting notice by telegram that their call
had been sustained, but instead of this they learned that they had come on
a blank errand. The Presbytery met in Edinburgh, but refused to move a
finger in the matter, because they found that though that was the tenth day
since the notices were issued the rules required that there should be ten free
days. It was moved that, as "the special circumstances of the case did not
admit of ten days' delay (ten free days), the Presbytery sustain the action of
the Moderator and proceed with the business for which the meeting has been
called." Put to the vote this was negatived, and the Presbytery broke up.
It led to some delay, but after all formalities had been duly attended to the
call was accepted under the Mutual Eligibility Act, and Mr Kay was in
ducted, 2 ist March 1878, the stipend promised being ,£300. A site having
been acquired with some difficulty at Argyle Place, owing to the Presbytery's
Church Extension Committee having prior possession, the building pro
ceeded, the congregation worshipping meanwhile in the Oddfellows' Hall,
Forrest Road. At the time of the induction there was only an interim
session, but soon afterwards four of their own number were elected, all of
whom had been in office before — one in Morningside, another in Newington,
a third in Lothian Road, and a fourth in Barclay Free Church. Their own
place of worship was opened on Thursday, 27th May 1880, by Dr Thomson
of Broughton Place, with sittings for 900, and finished at a cost of about
^5000.
Though for a lengthened period the burden of debt was heavy it came
to be reduced stage by stage, and in less than five years the membership
amounted to 335. In 1882 Mr Kay obtained the degree of D.D. from
St Andrews University, and in 1884 he published a volume of sermons,
entitled " Paulus Christifer." Though in the Free Church Assembly of
1877, when the question of Disestablishment was up, he delivered a speech
so markedly on the Conservative side that it drew forth Dr Begg's delighted
approval, Mr Kay seemed to adapt himself without difficulty to his altered
latitude in the United Presbyterian Church. It may be, however, that, in
connection with semi-political matters, he over-exerted himself, and the
nervous system yielded to the strain. But the shadows were now beginning
to gather, and on 27th September 1888 he died, in the sixtieth year of his
age and thirty-ninth of his ministry. At the close of 1887 there were 321
names on the communion roll.
In their vacant state the congregation called the Rev. R. D. Shaw of
Brandon Street, Hamilton, but other candidates had a large following, and
the call was declined. The stipend undertaken at this time was ^350.
Second Minister. — THOMAS S. DICKSON, M.A., translated from Bell
Street, Dundee, where he had made full proof of his ministry during a
2 H
482 HISTORY OF U.P. CONGREGATIONS
period of ten years. Inducted, nth February 1890. Since then the debt
has been nearly wiped off, so that at the Union with the Free Church little
more than £200 was left. The stipend is now ,£400, and the membership at
the close of 1899 was 350.
MISSION CHURCHES
WE come now to a little group of congregations which originated in con
nection with Home Mission work. These are Abbeyhill, Henderson Church,
Gilmore Place, and Canongate. They began at a time when Mission
churches had come into high repute and were the order of the day. It was
understood that they were solving the problem of how the lapsed masses in
our cities and large towns are to be reclaimed. A calm and impartial
estimate of the movement in its strength and in its weakness, to what extent
it has succeeded and to what extent it has failed, would be worth attempting,
but for this there is meanwhile neither time nor space. The history of these
four congregations we take up one by one in immediate succession.
ABBEYHILL
IN 1855 the Mission Committee of Broughton Place Church invited the
Rev. William Gillespie of Shiels, Aberdeenshire, to undertake the super
intendence of their mission operations in the Canongate, and, having
accepted, he was loosed from his charge on I4th August of that year.
Broughton Place agencies had been at work in that district for at least
twenty years, but now the design was to have a regular congregation formed
on the territorial system. It happened, however, that the engagement be
tween Broughton Place Missionary Association and Mr Gillespie came to an
end in little more than four years. It appears for one thing that the sum
contributed by those in attendance on Mr Gillespie's services amounted to
less than £2 a year, and it is not surprising that Broughton Place people,
though they declared themselves satisfied with Mr Gillespie, wished to have
the Mission placed on a footing which would yield a larger money return
over against their ,£400 of annual expenditure. Henderson Church shows
the method they adopted with a view to greater success.
The next stage brings us to the formation of Blackfriars congregation.
On 6th March 1860 147 persons describing themselves as connected with
the Mission presented a petition to the Presbytery, in which they pleaded that
they had become sincerely attached to Mr Gillespie and that they were
grieved when they learned they were not to have him for their minister.
They were meeting meanwhile in Adair's Hall, which was a good way up
the High Street, and they were renting Mary's Chapel, on the other side, at
some ^?2i a year, with sittings for 300. They believed they would be able to
contribute ^60 annually, and friends had pledged themselves for other ,£30
or ^40. They also hoped to be aided from the Home Mission Fund. The
Presbytery hesitated to take up the cause, but on 4th September 1860 it was
ascertained that 104 persons had been examined for admission to Church
fellowship and that their moral character was certified by Mr Gillespie.
These were congregated forthwith. Then after an election of elders a
moderation was granted, the stipend promised being ,£140, ,£50 or ^60 from
the congregation and the rest from other sources.
PRESBYTERY OF EDINBURGH 483
First Minister. — WILLIAM GILLESPIE, whose earlier history is given
under Shiels. Inducted as minister of Mary's Chapel, igth March 1861.
The call was signed by 48 members and 65 adherents. Six years after this
the congregation represented to the Presbytery that their place of worship
was a hindrance to their prosperity, and a committee was appointed to look
out for a suitable site and also to take into consideration the character of the
building proposed and the cost. This was followed by an appeal for aid to
the congregation in that formidable undertaking, but it was three years
before operations were entered on. The new church, with sittings for 500,
was opened, Friday, I3th July 1871, by Dr Eadie, the cost being .£1700, of
which the larger part was secured previously. The name of the congregation
was now changed to Blackfriars Street. The Home Mission Board had
been accustomed granting them ,£60 a year of supplement, but in January
1872 the hope was expressed that the congregation would henceforth
be self-supporting. Anyone who knew the surroundings could have told
that this calculation would not be verified. For the next twenty years the
membership kept about 200, and the stipend from the people averaged ^100
a year. Mr Gillespie retired from active duty in 1889, and died, 8th
December 1891, in the seventy-second year of his age and forty-ninth of his
ministry. A little volume, "The Land of Sinim," gives his experiences of
China and his views of Chinese Missions.
Second Minister. — WILLIAM ALLAN, M.A., from St James Place, Edin
burgh. Ordained at Holywell, 2nd December 1884, a small congregation
in Cumberland, which kept by the U.P. Synod at the Union with the English
Presbyterian Church. Though it had a membership of not more than 50,
the state of the district and the distance from other churches made a regular
dispensation of ordinances all but imperative. After labouring in this
quiet sphere for five years Mr Allan, who had large experience in mission
work, accepted a call to Blackfriars Street, and was inducted as colleague
and successor to Mr Gillespie, 2oth March 1890. The call was signed by
169 members and 43 adherents. The people were to contribute ^80 for
stipend, besides ^30 to the senior minister, and they were to be allowed a
grant of £jo from the Home Board for two years. At Mr Gillespie's death
the stipend was raised to ^100, which, with supplement and allowance for
house rent, made ,£192 in all. On 5th March 1895 the congregation got
permission from the Presbytery to remove to Abbeyhill to supply the place
of an Extension Church there. The church in Blackfriars Street was
bought by the Canongate congregation, and under that heading the price
paid and the circumstances which made the transference desirable are
recorded. At the Union in November 1900 the congregation was still
worshipping in an iron church, but the new erection, with sittings for 750,
was nearing completion. The cost was estimated at ^5000, but additional
expense was incurred in getting a secure foundation, so that the entire sum
will approximate to ,£6000. A bazaar brought ,£570, but the stately church
will be entered under a burden of not less than ^3000. They meet this with
a membership of at least 300, although, owing to heavy demands otherwise,
the stipend from the people remains at ^100.
HENDERSON CHURCH
THE Missionary Association of Broughton Place Church having resolved on
having a regular territorial congregation formed in the Canongate parted
with the Rev. \Villiam Gillespie. They then entered into partnership with
the sister association in Rose Street, and in February 1860 the two societies
484 HISTORY OF U.P. CONGREGATIONS
invited the Rev. Peter Davidson of Brechin to undertake the superintendence
of the Mission, with the view of having it wrought up into a regular charge,
but he did not accept. Toward the end of the year they were more suc
cessful, and on i2th November the Rev. A. L. Simpson was introduced to
his new field of labour by Urs Thomson and Finlayson. On 5th February
1 86 1 a congregation was formed of 83 members, of whom only 8 were re
ceived by certificate. The meeting-place in Skinner's Close was originally
an Episcopal chapel, but in 1801 it was rented by the Original Burgher
congregation, then in course of formation. In 1808 they purchased it for
^560, and this sum remained a dead weight upon the building. In 1836
they had a membership of 200, but after the Disruption their minister, the
Rev. Andrew M'Kenzie, was translated to Penicuik. The people then
amalgamated with a sister congregation and removed to the Free Tron, a
little farther up the High Street. The building now lost caste, and was
turned into a low-class theatre. It next became the property of Rose Street
congregation, to be known as Henderson Church, with sittings for between
300 and 400.
First Minister. — ADAM LIND SIMPSON, who, after labouring for fifteen
years in Forres, had been obliged to retire owing to weakened strength. In
1857 he was appointed Synod Librarian, and also acted for fifteen months as
editor of the U.P. Magazine. In this latter capacity he experienced discom
fort through Dr James Taylor coming into keen collision with the Rev.
Henry Renton in the columns of the Magazine, and, on the ground that he
had " undertaken an important charge," he retired from the situation. He
was inducted to Henderson Church, 3oth July 1861, and was loosed, 5th
September 1865, on accepting a call to Derby. When in Edinburgh he
published a small volume, entitled "The Upward Path," consisting of lectures
delivered on Sabbath evenings to his own congregation. His aim, when
minister in South Gray's Close, seems to have been to make his discourses
simple though clear and tastefully adorned, but he probably felt that his
sphere there was not that for which he was best adapted. He was more in
his element when lecturing on works of art to cultured audiences in the
Philosophical Institution of Edinburgh.*
Second Minister. — -JOHN THOMSON, formerly of Stronsay, Orkney. In
ducted, 1 6th April 1866. The call was signed by 165 members, and the
* In Derby, as in Henderson Church, Edinburgh, Mr Simpson had a congrega
tion to build up, but the material was very different. Though a stipend of ,£300 was
engaged for the call was signed by only 42 members, and with but a sparse Scottish
element to draw from rapid increase could not be looked for. Having worshipped in
a hall for four years the congregation entered their new church on Thursday, 2Oth
May 1869, built at a cost of ^3000, with sittings for 500. In this his last field of
labour Mr Simpson continued twenty-three years, and in 1 893 he retired into the emeritus
position, and returned to Edinburgh, to spend there the evening of his days. When in
Derby he appeared repeatedly before the public as an author, and in 1873 he obtained
the degree of I). D. In particular, he published a volume of sermons, entitled " The
Far and Near View." But let us make mention of a separate discourse on " God is
Love," of which the divisions, slightly modified, may be given for their comprehensive
simplicity — (i) In the nature of God we have love in its essence ; (2) In the works
of God we have love in its outgoings ; (3) In the redemption of God we have love in
its triumphs ; (4) In the law of God we have love in its limitations ; and (5) in the
presence of God we have love in its perfect fruition. Dr Simpson died at Bridge of
Allan, I2th November 1893, in the seventy-seventh year of his age and fifty-second of
his ministry. Not long before the end some of his clerical compeers and other friends
joined in celebrating his jubilee, when he was presented with 300 guineas as a token
of esteem and affection. His last piece of literary work was a richly-finished Intro
duction to Dr John Ker's " Thoughts for Heart and Life."
PRESBYTERY OF EDINBURGH 485
congregation were to pay ^50 of the stipend. According to certain heads
of agreement the Missionary Societies of Rose Street and Broughton Place
were to contribute other ,£75 each for three years. During the same period,
and so long as they saw fit, Rose Street was to give the use of the church
rent free, and to exercise a watchful care over the congregation, and at the
end of the time specified was to withdraw from connection with the
Henderson Church Mission. But these arrangements were speedily lost
sight of in another and a larger movement. Before Mr Thomson had been
a year in his new charge proposals were made to have him transferred along
with his congregation to North Richmond Street Church, to carry on the
whole work there, though nominally colleague to the Rev. A. C. Rutherford.
Negotiations were speedily brought to a successful termination. At this
point we take farewell of Henderson Church. It is enough to state further
that the property was, till within recent years, utilised for Home Mission
purposes by Rose Street, now Palmerston Place, but it has since been cleared
away under the City Improvement Act.
NORTH RICHMOND STREET (UNITED)
First Minister. — JOHN THOMSON. Inducted on Tuesday, i6th April
1867, the same date at which he was inducted to Henderson Church the
year before. On the previous Sabbath the two congregations met in North
Richmond Street Church at the ordinary hours of public worship, when
the Rev. Thomas Finlayson preached by appointment of Presbytery and
declared the union consummated. According to the terms of agreement
Mr Thomson was to be the acting minister, and Mr Rutherford was to be
relieved of all responsibility for the discharge of pastoral duties and should
also cease to have any control over the church affairs, though retaining his
status as senior minister and receiving an allowance of ,£50 a year until
placed as an annuitant upon the Aged and Infirm Ministers' Fund. The
Missionary Society of Broughton Place declined to interfere with the union
negotiations as their relation to Henderson Church was to be only tem
porary, but they agreed to continue the ,£75 for the ensuing year, and would
leave further proceedings open for consideration. Rose Street, in keeping
with what had been previously arranged, was to retain a closer connection.
As for internal arrangements, the two sessions and the two sets of managers
were amalgamated.
The united congregation was at once confronted with a heavy under
taking, the enlargement of the church being an obvious necessity. The
debt of ^227 which rested on it at Mr Rutherford's induction in 1860 was
liquidated the following year by the aid of a grant of ,£75 from the Board,
but unhappily a debt of ^200 had been contracted since. The front of the
building was now to be extended to the edge of the pavement, and the cost,
with existing liabilities, would amount to over ^2000. To assist them Rose
Street Missionary Society agreed to give ,£300, which was afterwards in
creased to ^400, on condition that the congregation should raise ^150 for
the same object within eighteen months, which they did, and greatly more.
Thus the work went on, and North Richmond Street Church, as we now
have it, with sittings for 700, was opened on Thursday, 2nd July 1868, by Dr
Black of Wellington Street, Glasgow. Mr Thomson was loosed from his
charge on 3rd September 1872, having accepted a call to Campbeltown.
The membership when a moderation was next applied for was given as 413.
The first call, addressed to the Rev. J. R. Houston of Carluke in January
1873, was unsuccessful. The remaining debt of ,£1000 had been reduced by
486 HISTORY OF U.P. CONGREGATIONS
one-half in 1870, with the aid of ,£150 from the Liquidation Board, and the
Presbytery now reckoned the stipend of ,£250 as not quite up to the con
gregation's ability.
Second Minister. — THOMAS KENNEDY, translated from Kinross (East).
Inducted, roth September 1873. Obtained the degree of D.D. from Princeton
University, New Jersey, in the following year. Was elected one of the
Synod clerks in May 1879, a position which he has occupied ever since,
except during the Synod of 1893, when he was elevated from the clerk's
table to the Moderator's Chair. Dr Kennedy retired from the active duties
of the ministry on 4th October 1892, and was enrolled minister-emeritus.
As he declined all mention of a retiring allowance the congregation, with
the Presbytery co-operating, took steps at once to present him with "a sub
stantial token of their affection and esteem."
Third Minister. — JAMES ROBERTSON, from Braehead. Ordained, 3Oth
May 1893. The stipend has been raised since then from ^250 to ^275, and
the membership in December 1899 was 622.
GILMORE PLACE
ON 6th December 1859 Dr Johnston of Nicolson Street reported to Edin
burgh Presbytery that the church in the Yennel, which had been vacated by
Mr Groom's congregation in the previous May, was now opened as a Mission
Church under the superintendence of the Rev. Duncan Ogilvie, late of
Broughty Ferry. He also stated that of the ^1000 to be paid for the build
ing ,£550 was already subscribed and that the congregations of Lauriston
Place and Lothian Road were to hold themselves responsible for the greater
part of the ^200 guaranteed for stipend. On 6th November 1860 it was
reported that a congregation was formed, with 46 names on the communion
roll, 30 of these having been received after examination and 16 by U.P.
certificates. Had a fair percentage of the old congregation remained when
the body of the people removed to their new church in Lauriston Place, and
had the continuity not been broken by the closing of the doors for six months,
Mr Ogilvie might have had a more hopeful beginning. As it was, he had
to lay the foundations anew. A church being now constituted and two elders
ordained, a moderation was arranged for, the stipend, as already stated, to
be £200.
First Minister.— DUNCAN OGILVIE, M.A., who had been ordained at
Broughty Ferry fourteen years before. Inducted to Portsburgh, i8th March
1861, the call being signed by 46 members and 64 adherents. In 1866 he
published "Christ Contemplated from Birth to Baptism,'"' and in 1869 he
received the degree of D.D. from Aberdeen University. Though Dr
Ogilvie's work in the Vennel was uphill every way his yearly accessions
averaged about 50, and visitation was kept up with untiring activity. How
ever, after twelve years of gradual progress the congregation was disturbed
by the question of communion wine, and for this and other reasons the
Doctor began to look in a new direction. Though he was in his fifty-fifth
year a door opened at Falkirk (now Graham's Road), and the call was
accepted, 4th June 1872. Before the close of the year Portsburgh people
called the Rev. Alexander M'Donald, Lochmaben, but he declined the
invitation.
Second Minister. — ROBERT SMALL, who had been nearly ten years in
Southend, Argyllshire. Inducted, I4th April 1873. The stipend was to be
.£250, of which ,£120 was to come, at the outset, from the Missionary
Association of Lauriston Place and ^80 from that of Lothian Road, the
PRESBYTERY OF EDINBURGH 487
congregation giving only ^50. The membership had decreased considerably
during the vacancy, and it had suffered prior to that, as successive changes
were made in the communion arrangements. When unfennented wine was
introduced some were dissatisfied and left ; then, the two cups having been
tried without bringing back harmony, there was the return to "a mild
natural wine,:! and that led to a further cutting down at the other extreme.
The names on the roll could not now be reckoned over 180. At the second
communion after this unfermented wine was again introduced, and the
peace of the congregation remained unruffled. As years passed the quota
of stipend contributed from their own funds rose gradually from ^50 to
,£150, but at that point the maximum was reached. It was in these circum
stances that some of the leading men, encouraged by members of the Church
Extension Committee, launched the proposal for removing from the Vennel
to another locality. As some questions bearing on the rights of property
now emerged, and even threatened to find their way into the Court of
Session, a summary of the merits may be given. The trust-deed bore that
trustees were to hold the building for behoof of the congregation, and it was
enacted that they were not " to sell, alienate, or dispone without the consent
of the Presbytery, given at two consecutive monthly meetings/' In 1880
the congregation without a single dissentient voice formally resolved to
arrange for the building of a new church in some other part of the town.
The Grassmarket had been largely depopulated by the clearing away of
" lands " to make room for the Corn Exchange and a long array of lodging-
houses. The district, besides, was overwrought, having the Working Man's
church at its centre and a Free church only a little way from each ex
tremity. More than this, the Evangelistic Association of Lauriston Place
had recently come in to work independently of Portsburgh Church, and the
impression was that the proposal to remove would commend itself to all
concerned. In 1873 the Missionary Associations of Lauriston Place and
Lothian Road engaged to stand by Portsburgh Church for other five years.
That period was now overpast, and they were still requiring to subsidise the
minister's stipend to the extend of .£120 a year. In these circumstances the
congregation, with concurrence of the trustees, petitioned the Presbytery for
liberty to sell the building and remove to Gilmore Place, but, betwixt this
and their next monthly meeting, the way was blocked. A written opinion of
the Lord Advocate (M'Laren) was brought forward from Lauriston Place to
confuse the issues. The purport thereof was this, that the trust-deed did not
permit the removal of the mission church from the district of the Grass-
market, but it was afterwards ascertained that on giving this opinion the
Lord Advocate had never seen the clause quoted above, on which the rights
of parties turned. A wearisome struggle of nearly two years followed, but
the difficulty was got over through the opinion of counsel, based on the
entire document, being obtained to the effect that the trust-deed gave full
power to sell the building for behoof of the congregation and apply the
proceeds towards the erection of the new church.
The congregation was now to enter on altered lines. The aid from
Lauriston Place and Lothian Road, so long continued, was withdrawn, and
the stipend of ^270, as the minister had foreseen from the first, was reduced
to the minimum. The congregation suffered at the transition time, some
families withdrawing owing to distance and others from the wish to escape
money burdens. The new church, with sittings for over 800, was opened on
Sabbath, 28th June 1881, by Dr Thomson of Broughton Place, who con
ducted the forenoon service. The entire cost was about ,£3636, and in
addition there was some ^940 paid for the site. To meet this two bazaars,
in which sister congregations aided very largely, were required at an interval
488 HISTORY OF U.P. CONGREGATIONS
of several years. The two brought little short of ^2000, and the old pro
perty in the Vennel was bought by the Salvation Army for ^1360. The
remaining debt was reduced early in 1897 to ^560, and as the site is a
freehold the interest is only equivalent to a yearly feu of less than ^20.
The stipend from the people, which owing to other demands was only ^130
in 1890, rose first ^5 each year and then ,£10, till in 1895 ,£180 was reached,
and at this point further aid from central funds was declined. In 1894
Mr Small received the degree of U.D. from St Andrews University. On
the first Sabbath of January 1897 he experienced a sudden and serious break
down of health, and on 2nd November he was enrolled minister-emeritus.
From the congregation he was to receive a retiring allowance of ^25, which
they hoped would be raised to ^,40 as the funds improved.
Third Minister. — A. MACAuLAV CALDWELL, from Coldstream (West),
where he had been colleague to the Rev. Peter Mearns for five years. In
ducted, 26th April 1898. The stipend from the people was to be ^150 at;
first, and this was to be raised to ,£250 by a grant of ^250 from the Board,
extending over three years in lessening proportions. The membership at
the close of 1899 was 418, and there was the sure prospect that the self-
supporting point would be reached, if not overpassed, before three years
were expired.
CANONGATE
WHEN Henderson Church was united to North Richmond Street in 1867
Broughton Place congregation returned to carry on Mission work in the
Canongate with energy. To perfect the machinery they built a church at
an expenditure of about ^3200, with sittings for 360, and it was opened on
22nd November 1869. Then in April 1870 they obtained the Presbytery's
sanction to dispense sealing ordinances there, the members being included
in the communion roll of Broughton Place Church. This, however, was only
a transition arrangement, and on 4th February 1871 a petition with 113
signatures was laid before the Presbyter}', with the approval of Broughton
Place session, requesting to be formed into a Mission congregation.
There being no objections Dr Thomson met by appointment with the
applicants on 2Oth March, and they were congregated.
First Minister. — JOHN WILSON, M.A., from Stronsay, where he succeeded
the Rev. John Thomson of North Richmond Street four years before. In
ducted, i gth December 1871. The call was signed by 90 members, and
Broughton Place guaranteed a stipend of ^250 for five years. On 3rd March
1874 Mr Wilson accepted a call to Stow. When the case came before the
Presbytery a paper with reasons against the translation was given in from
Broughton Place Missionary Society, as parties deeply interested. Object-
tions were made to the reception of this document, the argument being that
the two congregations, Stow and Canongate, along with Mr Wilson, were all
who had the right to be heard. This opinion prevailed, and the paper was
set aside.
Within three months a moderation was obtained, but it issued in a divided
call with only 69 signatures, while 34 were in opposition. The successful
candidate was Mr John Taylor, who was also an elder in Broughton Place
Church, a circumstance which might partly account for the support he
obtained. The call was sustained, but Mr Taylor cleared the difficulty by
declining to accept. He was ordained some time later as minister of
Hawkhill, Dundee.
Second Minister. — ROBERT GRAY, who had been ordained at Cullybackey,
Ireland, on roth September 1868. Translated to Canongate, where he was
PRESBYTERY OF EDINBURGH 489
inducted, 22nd December 1874. The present call was signed by 121
members. In 1878 there were 275 names on the communion roll, which
rose to nearly 300, though that figure was never quite reached. The people
at this time contributed ,£75 of the stipend, and in 1887 their proportion was
raised to ^100, while Broughton Place all through furnished ^,175. This
went on till January 1891, and then matters took an unpleasant turn. For
some ten years there had been a feeling among the directors of Broughton
Place Missionary Society that Canongate congregation was burdening their
funds too long, and that the money which they were expending on its
maintenance might be better employed. This feeling culminated in a
formal notice, unanimously adopted by Broughton Place congregation, that
the support they had given the Canongate Church for twenty-one years was
to be withdrawn at the close of 1892. Presbytery and Synod were now
called in to further new adjustments, but no continuance of the past relation
ship could be arrived at. The directors of Broughton Place Missionary
Society were willing to grant the Canongate congregation the use of the
church for other five years with certain reservations, but the offer was
declined, one reason being that a considerable number of members would
leave if it were accepted. So on the last Sabbath of 1892 the congregation
worshipped for the last time in the building they had occupied from the
beginning. For two years they met for Sabbath services in the Canongate
Institute, and then the way was opened for the securing of a permanent place
of worship. There being two Mission congregations in or about the Canon-
gate, each of them largely subsidised from central funds, the Mission Board
considered that the arrangements would require to be modified one way or
another. It came to this, that Blackfriars congregation resolved to leave the
district and remove to Abbeyhill, and the right thing was that the Canongate
congregation should get possession of the building they were to vacate.
Not without difficulty the bargain was struck, the price to be paid being
^1355, and on Sabbath, gth June 1895, Mr Gray and his people entered into
possession of their newly-acquired place of worship. The expenses of the
purchase were met to a large extent by the proceeds of a bazaar, and in
December 1896 Mr Gray announced to the Presbytery that his congregation
was no\v in a position to clear off the entire debt contracted by the re
moval. It was naturally expected that a goodly number of families finding
Abbeyhill too far for them to go would keep by their old pews, but estrange
ments had come in, and the benefit accruing in that way to the new occu
pants was scarcely appreciable. But it is much for the minister and
congregation of Canongate to know that they have a comfortable church
of their own to meet in, and without encumbrances. The membership at
the close of 1899 was 278, and the stipend paid by the people ,£100.
EXTENSION CHURCHES
HAYMARKET
THIS was the first of seven congregations originated in Edinburgh by the
Presbytery's Church Extension Committee, though it only preceded London
Road by a single Sabbath. After careful inquiry Haymarket was marked
out to\vards the end of 1869 as a district where a preaching station might be
opened without injury to existing interests. This was a part of the town
where building operations were going on and where there was the prospect
of a large and growing population, while the nearest United Presbyterian
490 HISTORY OF U.P. CONGREGATIONS
churches were those of Bread Street and Lothian Road, about half-a-mile
distant from the nearest point. On Sabbath, 5th November 1871, the iron
church, which had been brought from Woolwich and fitted up at an expense
of ^300, was opened by Professor Calderwood, the convener of the Ex
tension Committee, and on 6th August 1872 a congregation \vas formed
with a membership of 53. The Mission Board had previously allowed a
grant of ,£50 to meet current expenses and ,£200 towards the purchase of
the iron church.
First Minister. — THOMAS KIRK, from Brechin (Maisondieu Lane), where
he had been ordained five years before. Inducted, 2Qth April 1873. The
stipend was to be ,£250, including ^100 from the Home Mission committee
for the first year, .£75 for the second, ^50 for the third, and ,£25 for the
fourth. The call was signed by 63 members. The iron church was the
property of the Presbytery, but the congregation were to have it for three
years, by which time it was expected they would have a substantial church
of their own. Unfortunately, these arrangements were interfered with by a
fearful storm in the early morning of Wednesday, 2ist October 1874, which
brought down the gable of an unfinished four - story tenement on the
iron fabric and crushed it into fragments. The loss came heavy on the
Extension Fund of the Presbytery, a great part of which had been raised by
voluntary assessment on the stipends of the ministers. It was a much more
serious matter, however, for the congregation and its minister, as they had
to worship in halls outside the immediate locality till their new church was
in readiness, which was not till December 1875. ^ was opened on Sabbath,
the 1 7th of that month, with sittings for 840, the cost being about ^6000.
Of this sum upwards of ^3000 had been already obtained. In 1878 the
membership was 350, and the stipend ^300, which was more than the funds
could permanently afford. The congregation from first to last has had
difficulties to contend with, but only a trifling amount of debt now remains,
thanks very much to successive bazaars, and there is the promise of growing
prosperity. At the close of 1899 there was a communion roll of 445, with a
total income of nearly ^400, but the stipend was reduced to ,£200 in 1895.
LONDON ROAD
THIS station was opened in the High School on the second Sabbath of
November 1871 , a week after Haymarket, and at the other extremity of the
town. In the first stages of their progress the two kept almost abreast,
though in the money element London Road was considerably ahead. In
June 1872 the foundation stone of the hall was laid, for which ,£450 had
been promised at least a year before. On 6th August, the same day as
Haymarket, the congregation was constituted with a membership of 47, and
in November they issued a call to Mr James S. Rae, who set it and several
others aside and accepted Ecclefechan. The signatures amounted to 64,
and the stipend to be ,£250.
First Minister. — JOHN D. BOWDEN. Inducted, 29th May 1873. Mr
Bowden was from Edinburgh (Rose Street), and had been ordained at
Liverpool (Princes Road) as successor to the Rev. A B. Grosart, I2th
October 1868. The present call was signed by 85 members. At the
moderation 33 voted for Mr Bowden and 30 for Mr James P. Wood, after
wards of Haddington (East). In the end of 1874 the stipend was increased
^50, and a year later it was increased another ;£ioo, making ,£400 in all.
The reason assigned for the second addition was the popularity of the
minister, but this further step was premature, as the event showed. The
PRESBYTERY OF EDINBURGH 491
new church was opened by Dr Eadie on Sabbath, 6th June 1875, when the
collections amounted to ^187. The estimated cost was ^7000, but the total
amount, including the hall and other extras, reached ,£8500. In the course
of a few years the burdens became very oppressive, and owing to the state
of the funds Mr Bowden was asked to forego the last rise of ^100. This he
agreed to, though he afterwards spoke of raising that sum for his own
behoof from friends outside. After this the wheels dragged heavily, and
amidst growing difficulties managers were resigning and families withdraw
ing, till the membership was reduced from 620 to 350. But meanwhile the
Presbytery had been called in for advice, and after some committee workings
Mr Bowden resigned, and the connection was dissolved, 6th November 1883.
Some time afterwards he joined the Established Church, and his name
appeared in 1885 as minister in that connection at Dresden, and there he
has since remained.
After a vacancy of one and a half years the congregation gave a unani
mous call to the Rev. Walter Brown, M.A., of Galashiels, but he declined to
remove at that time.
Second Minister. — DAVID RITCHIE KEY, M.A., from Ladyloan Free
Church, Arbroath. After being three years in full communion with the Free
Church he passed over to the Baptists, and was ordained at Galashiels in
that connection on igth May 1881. In May 1884 his application to be
admitted into the U.P. Church was laid before the Synod. It bore that
after taking his diploma he attended the Baptist Hall in Glasgow four
sessions of two months each, and also one session at Glasgow University for
Hebrew. He had now changed his views on the subject of baptism, and
having always been a Presbyterian in principle, with decided opinions as to
spiritual independence, he wished to be received into their communion as a
minister of the gospel. The petition was granted, and on answering the
questions of the Formula he was regularly admitted by the Presbytery of
Melrose on 3rd June. Inducted to London Road on 3oth September, the
call being signed by 241 members, and the stipend to be ,£310. Notwith
standing the outcome of three bazaars in Mr Bowden's time, and manifold
efforts besides, the bonded debt still stood at no less than ^4300, and there
were overdue accounts as well. With so much to face it was encouraging
for minister and people that at the first communion there were 70 accessions.'
Then, as the result of special collections and a fourth bazaar, the debt was
reduced to .£2500. On this sum encroachments were made from time to
time, till it was further reduced to .£1500, and by means of a fifth bazaar and
in other ways this was finally liquidated in May 1898. Mr Key's stipend
had risen step by step till it reached ,£400, and the membership at the
beginning of 1900 was 1155. On 22nd May thereafter he accepted a call
to St Nicholas Church, Aberdeen, and at the time of the Union London
Road was vacant.
ROSEHALL
THIS congregation, though it owed its origin to the suggestions of the
Extension Committee, took an independent position from the first. On 3rd
October 1877 the committee reported that they had secured a site at Dalkeith
Road for the proposed new church on the south side of Edinburgh. Attempts
had been made to have it planted between Grange Road and Morningside,
but this seemed now to be a more eligible opening, and services were com
menced in Clare Hall, Minto Street, as a temporary place of meeting, on the
first Sabbath of November. These arrangements were sanctioned by the
492 HISTORY OF U.P. CONGREGATIONS
Presbytery with the concurrence of sessions, and all the more readily that at
the outset subscriptions were announced to the amount of over ^1200. The
cause owed much for a time to the fostering care of Professor Cairns, who
preached almost regularly on Sabbath evenings. On 4th June 1878 the
station was congregated with a membership of 42, and before another meet
ing five elders were inducted, all of whom had held office before, two in
Broughton Place, one in St James Place, one in Grange Road, and one in
Lauriston Place. In September 1880 the congregation brought out a divided
call to the Rev. William Hutton of Birkenhead, but good feeling prevailed,
and for the sake of harmony it was allowed to drop. On Sabbath, I2th
December, the new church, with 650 sittings, was opened. The expense of
the building was ,£7300, which furnishings and other accessories raised to
^8675. Over against this large sum there is a strong backbone of wealth,
as is shown by the heading of the subscription list, three members having
given ^500 each, one ^250, seven ^100, and eight ,£50. " How happy some
o'er other some can be ! "
First Minister. — WILLIAM MORISON, M.A., translated from St Andrew
Place, Leith, in the twelfth year of his ministry. Inducted, 28th December
1880. The stipend promised was ^500, and the membership was returned
at 75, but at the close of the following year it was 226. Since then the debt
of ^5000 on the building has been successfully grappled with, but the
standard of liberality required all along has militated against growth in
numbers. At the close of 1899 there were 408 names on the communion
roll, and the stipend was ^600.
MERCHISTON
ON 7th February 1882 a preaching station was opened in this district by Dr
John Ker with the sanction of Edinburgh Presbytery. The district had
been selected for mission work sometime before by the Students' Missionary
Society, and an iron church was now erected by them with sittings for 300.
On 27th March 1883 a congregation was formed with a membership of 34.
About a year after this the management and the whole responsibility were
handed over from the Students' Society to the congregation. In October
1884 a moderation was applied for, which resulted in a divided call to the
Rev. James M. Scott, then of Waterbeck, and now of Junction Road, Leith,
which was declined.
First Minister. — JOHN POLLOCK, translated from Freuchie after a
ministry there of five years. Inducted, 26th February 1885. On 3rd
November 1887 the congregation removed from the iron church in Yeaman
Place to their own hall in Polwarth Gardens, which was opened that day by
the Rev. Principal Cairns. It is seated for 500, and along with a vestry and
other accommodation suited to their prospective church, it cost slightly over
,£3000. On 2nd June 1891 Mr Pollock was loosed from Merchiston on
accepting a call to Shamrock Street, Glasgow, leaving a membership of 400.
The minister and congregation of Gilmore Place objected to the action of
Edinburgh Presbytery in setting up a church in the district as premature.
They had recently removed by advice of the Extension Committee to this
neighbourhood from the Vennel, and believed themselves entitled to a little
time for gathering up strength in their new situation, but now through the
enormous increase of population all ground of complaint was removed. In
October 1891 Edinburgh Presbytery sustained a call from Merchiston to the
Rev. Colin Nicol, Banchory, which was declined.
Second Minister. — DUNCAN SILLARS, originally from Glasgow (East
PRESBYTERY OF EDINBURGH 493
Campbell Street). He was ordained at Leeds (Cavendish Road Church) on
4th December 1876; from thence he was translated to Oxendon, London,
in 1884. Having accepted Merchiston he was inducted there on 25th
February 1892. In May of that year Mrs William Nairn, Murrayfield,
Edinburgh, signified her wish to erect a church in memory of her brother,
Dr John Ker, and gift it over to Merchiston congregation. This was done,
and the commodious building, with sittings for 1000 worshippers, was opened
on Thursday, 2nd November 1893, when a dedication service was conducted
by Dr Thomson of Broughton Place, the minister of the munificent donor.
The entire cost, amounting to ^6000, was defrayed by Mrs Nairn, and the
church, with great appropriateness, bears the name of the " John Ker
Memorial." The debt which rested on the side buildings was previously
cleared off by the exertions of the people and the aid of friends, that having
been stipulated for. The congregation had a membership of 785 at the close
of 1899, and the stipend was ,£400.
BRAID
THIS station was opened on Sabbath, 1st January 1883, the services being
conducted in the forenoon by Professor Calderwood, the convener of the
Presbytery's Church Extension Committee, and in the evening by Professor
Johnstone. A generous friend, known afterwards to be Dr John Ker, had
provided an iron church for Extension purposes within the bounds of Edin
burgh Presbytery at a cost of ,£500, and the Braid district was the first to
get the benefit. The Presbytery, with the consent of sessions, sanctioned
the steps that were taken by the Extension Committee to meet the prospective
wants of this growing suburb of Edinburgh. After a time Mr W. B. Y.
Davidson, now of Campsie, was engaged as regular supply, and on I5th
October a congregation of 40 members was constituted. This was followed
by the election and induction of four elders, all of whom had been in office
before, one in Lauriston Place Church, one in Morningside, one in Birken-
head (Mr Hutton's), and one in West St Giles Established. In June 1884
a moderation was applied for. The ordinary income at this time was about
,£200, but a few of the members had guaranteed ^280 of stipend, and the
entire sum undertaken was .£350. The call, signed by 55 members and 25
adherents, was addressed to the Rev. John B. Hastings, then of Newcastle,
who declined.
First Minister. — WALTER BROWN, M.A., who had been eight years in
Galashiels (South). Inducted, i6th March 1886, the membership now being
104. The new church, with sittings for 750, and built at a cost of ^6000,
was opened on Sabbath, loth July 1887, by the Moderator of Synod, the
Rev. J. B. Smith of Greenock. By this time the members had subscribed
over .£1650, of which £600 was from Councillor Steel, one of the four elders,
and now Lord Provost of Edinburgh, and ,£500 was from Mr John Farmer,
the father-in-law of the Rev. James Brown, Lochgelly. A grant of ^1000
was also obtained from the Extension Fund, and by the efforts of the con
gregation year after year the debt, with the addition of expenses incurred by
the ^introduction of an organ and improvements on the property, has been
reduced to little account. The membership at the Union was close on 800,
and the stipend ,£450.
GORGIE
Ax their meeting on ist September 1896 the Presbytery of Edinburgh with
the concurrence of sessions sanctioned the opening of a preaching station in
494 HISTORY OF U.P. CONGREGATIONS
this western suburb of the city, and the Students' Missionary Society forth
with commenced operations there. Their meetings were held at first in the
hall of Gorgie Free Church, but in May 1897 their own hall, seated for about
300, was opened, the cost being over ^1400, of which sum £2OOwas received
from the Home Mission Board. On the first Sabbath of April 1898 Mr
Clark, a third-year student who was about to receive licence, entered on
regular work in this rapidly increasing district, and on 2ist June 1898 a
congregation was erected with a membership of 63.
First Minister. — J. AITK.EN CLARK, from Galashiels (East). Ordained,
1 7th January 1899. There were now 1 50 members, and the stipend was to
be .£225, the Mission Board furnishing ^100 for three years and the
Presbytery's Church Extension Committee becoming responsible for the
rest. At the close of 1899 the membership amounted to 323, and the income
for the year was over .£360. The hall having become too strait for the
congregation a new church is about to be erected to accommodate 820 at an
estimated cost of .£5600. For this a grant of ^75° is promised by the Home
Mission Board, with ^500 from the permanent loan fund, and a bazaar is ta
be held in October 1901 to aid in reducing the debt.
GREEN BANK
THE hall at Greenbank, with accommodation for 400, was opened on Sabbath,
27th May 1900, by Professor Hislop, Convener of the Presbytery's Extension
Committee. It is situated at the southern extremity of the Braid district,
and originated partly in the want of due accommodation in Braid Church.
At a meeting of Presbytery in November 1898 an elder of that congregation,
who had already secured what was sanctioned as a suitable site, undertook
to build a church hall and convey it to trustees on terms not exceeding the
expenses that might be incurred, an offer which was gratefully accepted.
In January the plans, which had been submitted to the Presbytery, were
approved of, and after a time building operations were begun, which when
completed were found to have cost the goodly sum of ,£3700. This was
a formidable burden to begin with, even though the donor lessened it by
,£1200 on making it over to the congregation. The station was placed
under the charge of Mr David S. Brown, M.A., a student on the verge of
licence, at a salary of ^100 a year, and on i6th July 1900 a congregation
was formed consisting of 35 members, of whom 17 were certified from the
Braid Church. Soon after a session was constituted by the induction of two
elders, both of whom had held office in the Braid congregation. At the
Union in October there were 60 names on the communion roll.
FOUNTAINBRIDGE (UNITED PRESBYTERIAN)
THIS congregation originated in the rupture of an Evangelical Union Church
which met in Waterloo Rooms under the ministry of the Rev. G. T. M.
Inglis. The dispute, so far as we can make out, turned on the merits or
demerits of the minister, and the party which withdrew had their place of
worship for a number of years in the Calton Convening Rooms. They
brought in the Rev. William Dunlop from Dalkeith to take the pastorate,
and their brethren from whom they parted secured the services of the
Rev. William Adamson (now Dr Adamson of Windermere), and are known
as Buccleuch Congregational Church. Mr Dunlop removed to the Artillery
PRESBYTERY OF EDINBURGH 495
Hall, Grindlay Street, where he was succeeded by the Rev. John Kirk,
son of Professor Kirk, D.D. In 1877 the present church in Fountainbridge,
with accommodation for 500, was built at a cost of ,£3000. In 1891 Mi-
Kirk withdrew from the situation, but a number of attached friends having
gathered round him the pastoral tie was formed between them, and they now
form the Evangelical Union Church, Dairy Road, Edinburgh.
First U.P. Minister. — JOHN MyiR, from Brighton Street, Edinburgh.
Ordained over the Evangelical Union Church, Gallon, Glasgow, on 26th
April 1888. After three years he resigned, and was inducted into Fountain-
bridge, loth November 1891. When the Congregational Union and the
Evangelical Union became one Mr Muir and his congregation occupied
equivocal ground for a time, though it was understood they were cast
ing in their lot with the churches which adhered to their old position, and
in 1897 Mr Muir presided at the E.U. Conference. But finding themselves
at last in an isolated state they decided by a majority of 62 to 10 to apply
for admission to the U.P. Church, influenced so far by a preference on the
part of many for the Presbyterian form of Church government. The property
was free of debt, and the strength of the vote made the majority masters of
the situation. On inquiry it was ascertained that Mr Muir in addition to
a literary course had attended a full curriculum of five years at the Evan
gelical Union Hall, and had also studied one session at the U.P. Hall, and
another at the Free College, Edinburgh. With regard to his doctrinal views,
he explained that under the Declaratory Act he had no difficulty in acced
ing to the standards of the U.P. Church. The Synod in May 1899 granted
the petition of minister and congregation, and on the 3oth of that month
they were formally received by the Presbytery of Edinburgh. The list of
members previously given in numbered 116, but about two dozen were lost,
who refused to acquiesce in the transition. The stipend was ^150. It is
unfortunate that this little congregation is so much overshadowed by larger
and stronger sister churches in the immediate neighbourhood.
LEITH, KIRKGATE (ANTIBURGHER)
IN the origin and early history of this congregation we have the Rev. Adam
Gib at his worst and at his weakest. On ist April 1765 he had a petition
laid before his session purporting to be from the members of their congrega
tion residing in and about Leith. It made mention of the precious privileges
they had enjoyed under the ministrations of their own pastor, but in asking
sermon they pleaded the interests of the aged and infirm among them, and
also urged " the deplorable situation of the people in this place who are
groaning under the want of the gospel." A similar petition was presented
to the session a fortnight later, subscribed by 42 members, and accompanied
by a paper of adherence from 48 men, residenters in Leith. They requested
the session " to take the above case under their serious consideration and
represent the same to the reverend Presbytery' at their next meeting." This
was agreed to, and on the motion of the Moderator three of their own
number were appointed to back the petitioners from Leith, with the view of
having them erected into a distinct congregation. At the meeting of
Presbytery Mr Gib insisted that though they had only one probationer at
command he should be sent to preach a Sabbath at Leith, and also that the
people there should be at liberty to apply to ministers of other Presbyteries
to come and preach to them. Yet all the while he was bitterly opposed to
the whole movement.
During the summer months there were few preachers available for Leith
496 HISTORY OF U.P. CONGREGATIONS
owing to " the throng of communions," and on 29th October a paper was
given in to the Presbytery signed by 4 members from Leith, but drawn up,
as he himself admits, by their minister, "with some alterations and addi
tions." In it the petitioners for sermon were very unceremoniously dealt
with, and those outsiders who had joined with them were described as " men
of lo'ose principles and practice, in a religious sense." They used to attend
Whitefield, and several of them were accustomed worshipping in Bristo
Church with "the Burghers." The strife now got fierce in the session, and
three of the elders, whose names came to figure in certain pamphlets —
Messrs Kinnear, Beatson, and Morton— found themselves in open warfare
with their minister. These were the men who on the motion of Mr Gib had
been appointed by the session to support the petitioners from Leith before
the Presbytery, but he ultimately explained that he took this step because
he found them zealous about that affair, and he was bent on giving them full
scope " by laying the reins upon their neck." On 3ist December Leith people
petitioned for a disjunction from Edinburgh, and Mr Gib insisted on the
request being granted, even "adding tears to his arguments." This last
touch might have been taken for caricature, but his own account of the
matter is that he could not bear the thought of these people being staked
down with him against their will. "These considerations," he adds, "con
curring with my bodily infirmity, reduced me to a degree of weakness which
I had never before been overtaken with about any business, that of bursting
out into a weeping aloud upon the subject." Every scruple about granting the
disjunction was now overcome. This was on the last day of 1765.
Mr Gib now flattered himself with the hope "that the petitioners might
come back to Edinburgh congregation in good humour if once they found
the vanity of their new measures after getting all their will." His influence
in the Presbytery was such that it appeared doubtful for a time whether the
deed of disjunction would not be cancelled, but the Synod in August 1766
" found it would not be for edification to dissolve the congregation so
recently erected." Another stage of progress was reached when a session
was constituted by the ordination of four elders on 3rd January 1768. In
May 1769 a protest from 9 residenters in Calton against a refusal of Mr
Gib's session to grant them disjunctions was brought before the Synod and
dismissed. To abate friction of this kind the Synod decreed, a year later,
that people living between Edinburgh and Leith should have it in their
option to belong to either congregation, and they also decided to annex
Leith congregation to the newly-formed Presbytery of Kirkcaldy.
First Minister. — JOHN PROUDFOOT, whose native congregation we can
not condescend on, though Pathhead has been named. We know, however,
that he was appointed by the Antiburgher Synod to be sent on a mission to
America, but he refused to go. He was ordained, 27th October 1772, by
Kirkcaldy Presbytery, and that same day the Presbytery of Edinburgh met
at Leith, under the directions of Synod, to receive Mr Proudfoot to a seat
among them as a member of court. On the ground of alleged irregularities
in the reception of members Mr Gib and his session had declared they could
hold no communion with the congregation of Leith or with any brother
who might be ordained over them, but an accommodation of these differences
had now been arrived at in a way, and so Leith was restored to its rightful
Presbytery. There was a lull now, but in two years the storm broke out
anew. On 25th October 1774 Mr Gib read, and laid on the Presbytery's
table, a protestation full of heavy charges against Mr Proudfoot. The paper
bore that the Leith minister had associated himself with disaffected members
of Edinburgh congregation, that in dealing with him once and again "for
satisfaction" Mr Gib had been loaded with grievous reproaches, and that
PRESBYTERY OF EDINBURGH 497
recently Mr Proudfoot had carried the matter to a desperate issue by
coming up to Edinburgh at the request of one of Mr Gib's rebellious elders
and officiating at the marriage of his daughter without Mr Gib being-
acknowledged. These matters were gone into by the Presbytery, and the
offender was subjected to rebuke. He submitted, and then appealed to the
Synod against the whole procedure. In conducting his case Mr Proudfoot
did himself harm by his long and unruly papers, and his appeal was dis
missed as groundless. This was in May 1775, and before their next meeting
the Presbytery, in response to a complaint from the Associate Session of
Edinburgh, found that Mr Proudfoot and his session had been guilty of dis
orderly conduct in receiving into membership a residenter within the city of
Edinburgh not formerly a Seceder. Here was additional material for them
to bring before the Synod. The decision layover till May 1776, when Mr
Proudfoot declared his resolution to avoid everything that might give ground
of offence to his brethren or to the congregation of Edinburgh. He was
then admonished by the Moderator, and the whole affair, it was understood,
took end.
But there was worse to follow. In September 1780 one of his elders
wished the Presbytery to inquire into certain clamours that had arisen
against Mr Proudfoot, "that the credit of a witnessing confession," he said,
"may not be brought into ignominy and reproach." At next meeting the
party condescended on two appearances his minister had made on com
munion Sabbath evenings, the one at Dalkeith, the other at Burntisland.
The session, on the other hand, gave in a paper in which they represented
that after hearing Mr Proudfoot upon these "clamours" they were satisfied.
The Presbytery instituted inquiries on the ground of public report, and,
having obtained acknowledgments from Mr Proudfoot that he had been
" too much and too unseasonably in company," referred the whole affair to
the Synod, assigning as a reason that a considerable body of people had
come up from Leith to their meetings as if for the purpose of overawing
their proceedings. When before a committee of Synod Mr Proudfoot con
fessed that he had on several occasions gone much aside, but he was resolved
to guard against everything of the kind in all time coming. He was accord
ingly rebuked and admonished from the Chair, and it was hoped that all
differences in Leith congregation relative to that affair would be thereupon
buried.
There was now a pause of four years, and then five elders of Leith
session, being the majority, gave in a paper to the Presbytery complaining
of several things in Mr Proudfoot's conduct. Proceedings were postponed
for months, and then the cognoscing of witnesses brought out the fact of a
relapsing " into that behaviour for which he had been rebuked." The elders
also complained of him setting their measures aside by an appeal to a
skeleton meeting of the congregation. In April 1785 the Synod unanimously,
with the exception of the elder from Leith, decided that Mr Proudfoot
should be suspended from office, but at next meeting he acknowledged that
he had disregarded the sentence and occupied his pulpit as usual. He then
read a paper, laid it on the table, and bade the Synod farewell. Sentence of
deposition was now carried without one contradictory voice. This was on
3ist August 1785.
Though the majority of Mr Proudfoot's people kept by him the six com
plaining elders and probably the cream of the congregation placed themselves
under Mr Gib's ministry. But neither Mr Proudfoot nor his adherents were
left out of all ecclesiastical fellowship. Two other ministers were also in a
state of exclusion from the Antiburgher Synod : the Rev. David Smyton of
Kilmaurs, and the Rev. Josiah Hunter of Falkirk, and at least a year before
2 I
498 HISTORY OF U.P. CONGREGATIONS
this they had joined hands on the " Lifter " question, and were endeavouring
to make it the basis of a new denomination. They now took Mr Proudfoot
into partnership with them, but little can be ascertained about what went
on in Leith while that connection lasted. For Mr Proudfoot the end came
on 1 1 th June 1787. The Caledonian Mercury had announced on Saturday
the c;th, that "yesterday the Rev. John Proudfoot, minister of the Associate
congregation of Leith, had the misfortune to break his leg in leaping over
a ditch in the meadows, on his return from the review." He was immedi
ately conveyed to the Royal Infirmary, where amputation of the limb had
to be performed. It was added, "We are glad to learn that Mr Proudfoot
is a good deal better to-day, and great hopes are entertained of his recovery."
But on Monday his death was announced, with the explanation that " he
fevered on Saturday night, and continued very bad till this morning about
two, when he expired. He has left a widow and several children." He was
in the fifteenth year of his ministry.
KIRKGATE (BURGHER)
ON 4th September 1787 the Burgher Presbytery of Edinburgh received a
petition from a number of people " who were formerly under the inspection
of the deceased Rev. John Proudfoot," praying to be taken into Church
fellowship. We find from another source that during the three months which
had intervened since their minister's death they had sermon occasionally
from members of the "Lifter" Presbytery, Mr Hunter of Falkirk having
preached one day at Leith and Mr Smyton's colleague, Mr Robertson,
another. But regular supply was not to be had in this way, and it was
sound policy to go over to the Burghers. They acceded, they said, upon the
footing of the original Act and Testimony, burying all differences that had
arisen since then, which would include disputes about either the Burgess
Oath or the "lifting" of the communion elements. In no long time they
obtained the grant of a moderation, ^100 being the stipend they proposed
to "ive and in June 1788 they called a minister of great popularity, the Rev.
Robert Jack, Linlithgow. The call was signed by 212 members and 228
adherents, numbers which give an encouraging view of the congregation's
prospects. It is likely there had been accessions from Burgher families in
Leith who formerly went up to Rose Street or Bristo, Edinburgh. Mr Jack
being continued in Linlithgow the people fell back on a probationer.
First Minister.— THOMAS AITCHISON, from Dunbar, who had been
previously called to Scone, but firmly refused to accept. Having been
rebuked by the Synod for his resistance to authority, and the call laid aside,
Mr Aitchison had the way opened up for his settlement at Leith, which took
place, gth December 1788. A few years after this the church was rebuilt,
with upwards of 1000 sittings. All went on harmoniously under Mr
Aitchison, so far as appears, till about 1815, when some dispute arose, and
a party was formed, headed by seven elders, who broke away from Kirkgate,
and were active in originating North Leith congregation. Mr Aitchison
died, 3rd April 1826, in the sixty-third year of his age and thirty-eighth of
his ministry. It is recorded that "he was a warm evangelical preacher, much
beloved by those who knew him for his kind and hospitable disposition, and
useful above many of his contemporaries." He was married in 1808 to the
only daughter of the Rev. Robert Shirra, Kirkcaldy.
During this vacancy a call to Mr Alexander Fisher brought the con
gregation' into competition with Queen Anne Street, Dunfermline, and
Nicolson Street, Edinburgh. At the Synod one of the speakers urged
PRESBYTERY OF EDINBURGH 499
against Leith that the cause began in 1788 with a mere handful, but, be
that as it may, here was a call subscribed by 577 members and bearing
762 names in all. But Dunfermline carried over Leith by 20 votes, and
over Mr Fisher's strongly expressed aversions besides.
Second Minister. — EBENEZER HALLEY, who had been ordained at St
Andrews in August 1826. Attracted by his pulpit gifts Kirkgate congrega
tion called him within a twelvemonth, but the Synod in September 1827
refused to translate. A second call, which came up in May next year, signed
by 592 members and 344 adherents, was more successful, and Mr Halley
was inducted, 4th June 1828. Eight years after this the communicants were
760, and the stipend was ,£260. But on 27th November 1837 Mr Halley
married the daughter of a respectable farmer in Orwell Parish, who, unfor
tunately, was his servant at the time ; and within a few months the managers
felt the debt of ^1900 on the church to be unbearable and demanded relief.
On 28th March 1838 the Presbytery declined to accept his offered resigna
tion ; and five elders, being present, laid down their office on the spot, which
was at once accepted, and at another meeting four others followed their
example. On ist May a committee of Presbytery reported about pecuniary
difficulties. Mr Halley had already intimated to a congregational meeting
that he was to insist on the acceptance of his demission, and, commissioners
having now expressed acquiescence in view of his own comfort and peace of
mind, the connection was dissolved. Having emigrated to the United States
Mr Halley was pastor of the Associate Reformed Church at Salem for ten
years. He then joined the Presbyterian Church, and held a charge in Troy
from 1848 to 1855. He next removed to Albany, where he ministered till
1875, and then retired on a yearly allowance. He died, 3ist October 1881,
in the eighty-first year of his age and fifty-sixth of his ministry. He latterly
held the degree of D.D., and was also chaplain to the State Senate at
New York.
Third Minister. — WILLIAM MARSHALL, son of the Rev. Dr Marshall,
Kirkintilloch. Accepted Leith in preference to Duntocher and Musselburgh
(Bridge Street), and was ordained, i7th January 1839. The father of the
young minister preached from the text : " Glorious things are spoken of thee,
O city of God," and the reporter added : " We fondly hope that this settle
ment will be the commencement of unmixed good to the congregation."
There was to be disintegration instead, to the brink of ruin. In the Annals
of the Original Secession Church it is stated that Mr Marshall separated
from the United Secession Synod '' owing to doctrinal disputes," but it was
on other lines that the Presbytery of Edinburgh, at a special meeting on
7th May 1846, suspended him from the exercise of his official functions and
from the fellowship of the Church. He had thrust serious charges on Dr
Heugh of Glasgow during his last illness in a spirit which no amount of con
troversial antagonism could even palliate. Those who wish to learn his
state of mind at this time have only to look into the pamphlet he published
after the Doctor's death, entitled "Duplicity and Falsehood Exposed."
When his appeal from the Presbytery's sentence came before the Synod his
father made common cause with him, but no other member attempted to
say a word in his defence. The decision of Presbytery being confirmed,
Mr Marshall read a paper renouncing the authority of the Synod, and was
declared no longer a minister or member of this Church. The Moderator
of Presbytery on appearing next Sabbath to preach in Kirkgate church and
intimate the sentence was refused admission. The severance took place on
Wednesday, 1 3th May, and the congregation at a meeting held next even
ing were unanimous in declaring themselves out of connection with the
United Secession Church. Thus was Mr Marshall kept master of the field.
500 HISTORY OF U.P. CONGREGATIONS
In Oliver & Boyd's Almanac for 1848 there is entered among the ecclesi
astical denominations of Scotland for the first and last time " The Calvin-
istic Secession Presbytery." The clerical members were three in number —
William Scott, Leslie ; William Marshall, Leith ; and William Mitchell,
Portobello. Mr Scott left the Secession Church in 1845, on the Atonement
question, and Mr Marshall excluded himself in 1846. In their isolated state
they entered into fellowship with each other, being at one in their doctrinal
views. But it was on I3th April 1847 that the Calvinistic Secession Presby
tery acquired visibility. That day the two met at Portobello for the ordina
tion of Mr William Mitchell, Dr Marshall of Kirkintilloch being associated
with them for the time. The Doctor preached, and the burden of his ser
mon, according to the newspaper report, was the duty of separation from the
Secession Church. Then Mr Scott, as Moderator, put the questions of the
Formula and gave the addresses, after which Mr William Marshall closed
the service. Mr Mitchell, who was set apart that day for sacred functions,
was a brother of the Rev. Dr Mitchell, parish minister of Whitburn, and a
man of mature years, who had passed through no theological course. He
had once been high in the service of a bank, but all not having gone on
smoothly he turned into another path of usefulness. Thus there was now
a threefold cord formed, though not one of the kind which is not easily
broken.
On 28th April 1848 the Calvinistic Secession Presbytery met at Leith,
apparently by special summons. Mr Marshall's demission of his charge
was accepted, and a member was appointed to preach the church vacant.
Commissioners from Kirkgate disowned the authority of that body, and the next
Tuesday an extract Minute of a congregational meeting was laid before the
U.P. Presbytery of Edinburgh. It was a petition to be received back into
the denomination. That day week a committee of Presbytery met first with
the elders and managers, when three declarations were adopted to the
following effect :— (i) That they withdrew from the Secession Church through
sympathy with their late pastor and from being misled by his misrepre
sentations ; (2) That they never held the Presbytery or Synod to be in
doctrinal error even on the Atonement ; and (3) That they cancelled all
former Minutes bearing on their severance from the Secession Church. The
committee then met with the congregation, when these resolutions were
unanimously adopted. Next day commissioners were present before the
Presbytery in support of the former petition, which was granted, and Kirk-
gate, Leith, was back to its place on the Presbytery list again.
Fourth Minister. — ALEXANDER D. KININMONT, translated from Cross-
ford, where he had been minister nearly six years. Inducted, 24th July 1849.
The call was signed by scarcely 100 members and by 40 adherents, a con
trast with the day when they sent up a call to the Synod laden with well-
nigh looo names. The stipend was to be ,£130. On 2ist November 1854
Mr Kininmont was loosed from his charge, having arranged to go out to
Australia under the auspices of the Mission Board. On leaving he spoke
of the membership having increased from 99 to 240 during his ministry.
The debt, which was heavy, had also been reduced by ,£300, with the aid
of .£100 from the Board. Whether a case from Kirkgate Church which came
before the Court of Session soon after influenced Mr Kininmont's resolution
to resign we know not ; it was fitted at least to cause him discomfort. A
member of the congregation had published a pamphlet, in which he treated
his minister very disrespectfully for some interference with his domestic
affairs. The session cited him twice to appear before them to be dealt with,
but instead of complying he wrote them withdrawing from the congregation,
whereupon they suspended him from Church membership. This proceeding
PRESBYTERY OF EDINBURGH 501
he considered illegal, and so injurious to his character and status as to
entitle him to claim ,£500 in name of damages. The Lord Ordinary having
pronounced against the pursuer he carried the case into the Inner Court,
where his advocate pleaded that his client had suffered a civil wrong, and was
entitled to a civil remedy, and that after he withdrew from membership the
session had no right to subject him to any sentence whatever. The Court
required nothing to be said on the other side, but simply adhered to the
Lord Ordinary's Interlocutor, with expenses, one of the judges remarking
that the wrong came first from the side of the pursuer. " He suspended the
kirk session, and the kirk session suspended him." The case is important as
illustrating the authority which dissenting church courts have in adminis
tering discipline.
But it is needful at this point to come back to Mr Marshall after he
ceased to be a member of the Calvinistic Secession Presbytery. Those of
his people who adhered to him built the place of worship in Junction Road
which is now occupied by the Wesleyan Methodists. On 2nd November
1848 he applied for admission along with his congregation to the fellowship
of the Original Secession Church, and was received on the 2ist of that
month. The new church was opened on 4th January 1849, the services
being conducted by Dr Marshall in the forenoon, Mr Marshall in the after
noon, and Dr M'Crie in the evening, when the collections amounted to ^40.
The misconduct for which Mr Marshall had been placed under discipline by
his former brethren the Original Secession Presbytery passed over without
inquiry. They did not consider it necessary, they said, to open up the
question, " seeing that the whole dispute appears to have sprung out of a
great and important controversy regarding doctrine." The Presbytery also
"desired to express their sympathy with the opposition managed by Mi-
Marshall against the views of the prevailing party in that Church." In the
face of fierce opposition from the Rev. Archibald Brown Mr Marshall
received the right hand of fellowship from the Moderator, and his name was
added to the roll. But the accession did not bring unmingled comfort. A
venerable member of that Synod once complained to the writer that after
professing to accept their Testimony in its plain meaning Mr Marshall was
no sooner in among them than he preached Voluntaryism from some of their
pulpits. It was very much for this reason that when his father sought
admission at the Synod of 185 1 the door was virtually closed against him. Mr
Marshall, though not present at the Original Secession Synod in 1852, went
with the scrimp majority which united with the Free Church. Four years
later he succeeded his father at Kirkintilloch, where we shall meet him
again.
As for Mr Kininmont, he was settled over M'Kenzie Street congregation,
Melbourne, soon after reaching Australia. In 1857 the Home Synod re
ceived a memorial signed by Mr Kininmont and another minister, with their
representative elders, stating that, not agreeing with the Union, they had
withdrawn from fellowship with their brethren and formed a Presbytery,
which they wished to be recognised as connected with the parent Church.
But beyond a general advice to have divisions healed there was nothing
done. In 1859, having returned to Scotland for the sake of his wife's health,
he had his name placed on the probationer roll. After being engaged for
upwards of a year in this capacity he returned to Australia, where he was
received into the United Church. Then came his induction into Union
Memorial Church, North Melbourne, on ist July 1861, where he remained till
the end of 1878, when he retired under the pressure of age. He died, igth
May 1881, in the thirty-eighth year of his ministry.
Sixth Minister. — JAMES S. MILL, from Dysart congregation, whose
502 HISTORY OF U.P. CONGREGATIONS
minister, the Rev. William A. Pettigrew, was afterwards his father-in-law.
Called also to Hexham, and ordained at Kirkgate, Leith, 2oth November
1855. The stipend was to be ^150, and the call was signed by 125 members.
But the property had long been oppressed with debt, which may account for
the willingness Mr Marshall and his adherents showed to withdraw from the
building and erect a smaller church for themselves. Now under the stimulus
of a successful ministry the congregation set about having the remaining
burden of ^1600 removed, and in 1861 they were in the midst of an effort
toward that end, with the aid of only ,£100 from the central fund. But
numerous improvements carried out on the building from time to time cost
nearly an equal sum, which was all completely wiped off some years before
the old building was disposed of. Increase went on till the membership was
returned at four figures, and the stipend rose to ^400. A new church on a
different site was opened, 7th October 1886, with sittings for 1050, and cost
ing, before everything was finished, not less than ^7215. The old building
was disposed of for ^1000, and has been converted into a theatre. The
liabilities of the congregation were now about ^5000, but they were reduced
before the Union to half that sum. At the close of 1899 the communion
roll was put at 900, and the stipend was as above.
ST ANDREW PLACE (ANTIBURGHER)
ON 4th September 1787 both the Burgher and Antiburgher Presbyteries of
Edinburgh happened to have meetings, and each of them received a petition
from Leith for sermon, the one from those who had adhered to Mr Proudfoot,
and the other from those who had left him and adhered to the Synod. The
former, as has been stated under the previous heading, were the majority, and
they retained possession of the building in Kirkgate. The others were few
in number, and for the last two years had been attending ordinances at
Edinburgh, and the Antiburgher Presbytery being " in doubts as to their
capacity to support a congregational state " referred the case to the Synod,
which was sitting at the time. Next day the application was granted, and
Mr Gib, though present, seems to have made no opposition, as he did to a
like proposal twenty years before. After Mr Proudfoot's deposition Synod
and Presbytery continued to recognise the Kirkgate minority as a congrega
tion, even though meetings for public worship were discontinued. The
session now met anew on 5th October 1787, when four of the elders who had
withdrawn from Mr Proudfoot's ministry two years before were present.
Mention was made of their adverse situation as to a place of worship, and in
January next year they were going on with the building of the church in
Storey's Alley, which was occupied long afterwards by the Independents,
with sittings for between 600 and 700. It was sold in 1842 by St Andrew
Place congregation for ,£250.
First Minister. — ROBERT CULBERTSON, from Morebattle. Ordained,
ist September 1791. The call was signed by 57 male members, which helps
us to estimate the aggregate strength of the congregation. But the Minutes
show steady growth under Mr Culbertson's ministry, and in 1802 a number
of the members moved for a new place of worship. This was not to be for
many years to come, but the old church, it is understood, got enlargement in
1806. Mr Culbertson was very active on the New Light side in the contro
versy which led to the formation of the Constitutional Presbytery. At this
time he was a leading contributor to the Christian Magazine, and in that
capacity, and otherwise, he had to stand the brunt of Professor Bruce's
animadversions in his "Review of the Proceedings of the General Associate
PRESBYTERY OF EDINBURGH 503
Synod.'"' Mr Culbertson published about this time his "Consolation to the
Church" and his "Essence of Old Light Principles," both bearing upon
questions which had been in keen agitation among the Antiburghers for
years. But as an author he was best known by his Lectures on Revelation,
which were published in 1817, and passed through several editions. In 1823
the congregation called Mr James Whyte to be his colleague, but were dis
appointed. Mr Culbertson died after a short illness, I3th December 1823,
in the fifty-eighth year of his age and thirty-third of his ministry. Dr
Harper, who could speak of him from personal acquaintance, has described
Mr Culbertson as "a man of clear intellect and practical wisdom rather
than of shining parts." His discourses are said to have been characterised
by simplicity, clearness, force, and brevity.
Second Minister. — JOHN SMART, M.A., son of the Rev. Dr Smart of
Stirling (Erskine Church). The Synod in September 1824 had preferred
St Andrew Place, Leith, to Potterrow, Edinburgh, but when under trials
for ordination Mr Smart received another call from Melville Street, Glasgow
(now St Vincent Street). The Presbytery, however, did not deem it ex
pedient to sist procedure, and he was ordained on 2nd March 1825. • At
the Synod Mr Smart had expressed himself clearly in favour of Leith, and
at his ordination he was presented with a gold watch and appendages " as
a mark of esteem for having so decidedly preferred the call of that congrega
tion." The signatures of members, it may be added, were 250, and the
stipend was to be ^200, with sacramental expenses. In the second year
of Mr Smart's ministry the present place of worship was built at a cost of
nearly .£5000. It was opened on the first Sabbath of April 1827, with sittings
for 1254, which was about double the accommodation in the old church. In
1829 Mr Smart was called to succeed Dr Waugh in Wells Street, London,
but the Synod at his own request, and without a vote, refused to translate.
Seven years after this the communicants amounted to 600, and the stipend
was ,£262. The congregation at this time was reducing the debt on the
church by about ,£100 a year. In 1831 Mr Smart was appointed Presbytery
clerk, an office which he continued to hold till shortly before his death, and
the duties of which he discharged with accuracy, tact, and dignity. In 1849
he obtained the degree of D.D. from Edinburgh University. In 1869 steps
were taken to provide a colleague for Dr Smart, who was beginning to feel
the pressure of years. They began with a call to Mr John Sellar in August
of that year, which was protested against by 160 members on the ground of
informality and for other reasons, but all was put right by a unanimous
agreement to have it set aside. A second call was addressed to Mr Sellar
in February 1870, with considerably more signatures, but other calls were
no\v coming in, and he gave the preference in the end to Sanquhar (South).
St Andrew Place congregation now fixed on Mr Robert French, the names
having risen from 269 to 432, but Dunfermlinc (Queen Anne Street) followed
in a few days, and was accepted. The money arrangements were that the
senior pastor should have ,£400 a year and the junior ^300.
Third Minister. — ANDREW H. ANDERSON, from Kinclaven. Ordained,
on a yet more largely signed call, i7th January 1871, and Dr Smart died on
2ist June following, in the seventieth year of his age and forty-seventh of his
ministry. We recall with interest his words to Mr Anderson in the prospect
of having him for his colleague : " Unless I have greatly mistaken myself
you will find me affectionate, considerate, and strictly honourable in all my
ways/' Dr Smart wrote a Memoir of the Rev. Alexander Nisbet of Ports-
burgh, who had been brought up under his pastoral care, and also a Memoir
of his own father, each of which was prefixed to a volume of their discourses.
A similar service was done to his own memory the year after his death by
504 HISTORY OF U.P. CONGREGATIONS
Professor Harper, between whom and himself there had been close and
uninterrupted intimacy during the long period of their combined ministry
in Leith. When Mr Smart was recovering from a severe illness in 1838
his subsequent biographer wrote : " I feel as if one of my most valued pos
sessions on earth were spared to me." "A man of natural majesty, manli
ness, and chivalrous friendship."
Mr Anderson, finding himself unable to bear up under the pressure of
ministerial work in so large a congregation, resigned his charge in less than
two years, and his resignation was accepted, ist October 1872. With
restored health and spirits he was inducted to Aldershot, 2nd September
1873. In May 1875 ne declined Singapore, but accepted Pollok Street,
Glasgow, on 8th November following.
Fourth Minister. — THOMAS BOBBIE, translated from Stranraer (West)
after a ministry of nearly nine years, and inducted, 2nd April 1873. Was
loosed, 5th December 1876, on accepting a second call to Lansdowne,
Glasgow, to be successor to Dr Eadie.
Fifth Minister.— WILLIAM MORISON, M.A., originally from Moffat con
gregation. Mr Morison was ordained at Leeds, 29th April 1868, and from
thence was removed to Pendleton, where he was admitted, 6th September
1870. Inducted to St Andrew Place, Leith, 26th June 1877, and loosed on
8th December 1880 on accepting a call to the recently-formed congregation
of Rosehall, Edinburgh. In the course of three months the Rev. J. B.
Hastings of Barras Bridge, Newcastle, was called to St Andrew P'lace,
but declined.
Sixth Minister.— PETER WILSOX, M.A. Inducted, 6th October 1881,
after a ministry of four and a half years in Whiteinch, Glasgow. In 1898
Mr Wilson published " Leaders in Literature," being a series of articles on
Ruskin, Robert Browning, Matthew Arnold and other literary men of
illustrious name. The membership of St Andrew Place at the close of
1899 was nearly 800, and the stipend during Mr Wilson's ministry, and
before it, has been ^600.
NORTH LEITH (BURGHER)
ON 4th June 1816 a petition for sermon signed by 62 inhabitants of Leith
was presented to the Burgher Presbytery of Edinburgh, who saw at a glance
that several elders and members of Kirkgate Church were among the appli
cants, and this was reckoned enough to bar procedure. The commissioners
thereupon withdrew the petition, but at next meeting its place was taken by
another, with the names of 113 men appended, who stated "that they are
either members in connection with other denominations or not yet in con
nection with any Christian society." They explained that they had taken a
lease of the old parish church of North Leith, which had been recently
vacated, and they wished supply of sermon. The petition being unani
mously granted two representatives of Kirkgate Church intimated a protest
and appeal to the Synod. There had been great want of harmony in their
session for some time prior to this, and four of the elders, with the party
which sympathised with them, may be looked on as the strength of the
present movement, though good order required them to keep meanwhile in
the background. The Synod, when the case came before them, u affirmed
the sentence of the Presbyter)' of Edinburgh granting supply to a number
of people in North Leith." For thirty years each of the large Secession
bodies had been represented by a single congregation in Leith, and it was
more than time that a third were added.
On 4th February 1817 Mr Primrose of East Calder stated to the Presby-
PRESBYTERY OF EDINBURGH 505
tery that, as appointed, he had preached at North Leith, and examined 25
persons belonging to no congregation of theirs, and had declared them
congregated. He had also talked with 47 persons belonging to Mr
Aitchison's church, who had obtained certificates from their session, which
bore that the parties, having ceased to attend public ordinances in Kirkgate
Church for more than six weeks, were held to be no longer in religious fel
lowship with that congregation. The Presbytery, while not admitting that
six weeks of such absence from public worship excludes from communion,
found that these 47 persons were no longer claimed by Mr Aitchison's
session and that their moral character was unexceptionable, and hence they
ended the matter by simply annexing them to the membership of the new
congregation. This was followed by the formation of a session, 7 of the 8
members having previously held office in Kirkgate Church. Next came
readiness to proceed with the calling of a minister, ,£250 being promised.
Their choice fell on the Rev. John Brown of Biggar, who was now acquiring
distinction. The call was signed by 118 members and adhered to by 288
ordinary hearers, but Mr Brown's wish was to remain in Biggar for the
time, and the Synod set aside the call. This failure threw them back for a
year, but on the first and second Sabbaths of July 1818 Mr James Harper,
a young licentiate, occupied the pulpit, and a moderation was forthwith
applied for. The number of members signing the second call had increased
by 20, but the adherents were fewer, though they still numbered 231. A call
to Mr Harper from Stonehouse was already on the field, but the Synod
without hesitancy preferred North Leith. There was a temporary holding
back on Mr Harper's part from the responsibilities of a ministerial charge, but
the difficulty was surmounted, and the ordination took place, 2nd February
1819, the young minister's father, the Rev. Alexander Harper of Lanark,
preaching from the text : " Take heed therefore unto yourselves, and to all
the flock over which the Holy Ghost hath made you overseers."
The new church was opened on Sabbath, 2nd May 1819, with sittings for
1 100, the same which they still occupy, but it has been partially recon
structed. In 1836 the communion roll reached 730, being almost abreast of
Kirkgate and considerably ahead of St Andrew Place. The stipend was
now .£280. In May 1843 Mr Harper was appointed to the Chair of Pastoral
Theology in the United Secession Hall, and that year he received the degree
of D.D. from Jefferson College, Pennsylvania, to which a like honour was
superadded from Glasgow in 1877. At the Synod in May 1846 Dr Harper
was transferred, unwillingly on his part, to the Chair of Systematic Theology,
rendered vacant by Dr Balmer's death, and when the Chairs were readjusted
at the Union of 1847 he was appointed to that of Systematic and Pastoral
Theology conjoined. His course of lectures extended over three years, two
of these being assigned to the former department and one to the latter. In
1864 the charge in North Leith became collegiate, and this the more readily
owing to the double functions which Dr Harper had so long discharged,
while, in addition to the demands of the pulpit and the Chair, the duties of
a large pastorate were carefully and systematically attended to. The first
the congregation called was Mr James Graham, afterwards of Broughty
Ferry, but the votes were much dispersed and the signatures inadequate, so
that, though the Presbytery sustained the call, it was wisely declined.
Second Minister. — ROBERT LYON, from Old Kilpatrick, and ultimately
from Greenock (Union Street). Called first to Aberdeen (Belmont Street)
and then to North Leith. Ordained as colleague to Dr Harper, i8th
October 1864. The senior pastor was to have his former stipend of ^300
continued, and the junior was to receive a like sum. At the celebration of
Dr Harpers jubilee in 1869 he was presented with a testimonial, consisting-
506 HISTORY OF U.P. CONGREGATIONS
of a silver salver, with the sum of ,£1200, and at the reconstruction of the
Theological Hall he was chosen Principal. On 2nd January 1877 the first
collegiate relation was dissolved on Mr Lyon accepting a call to the North
Church, Perth.
Third Minister. — ALEXANDER BROWN, who had been five years in
King Street Church, Kilmarnock. His stipend was to be ,£450, the arrange
ment with Dr Harper to continue as before. Inducted, I4th June 1877, and
translated to Pollokshields, 5th July 1881, having been sole pastor for fully
two years. Principal Harper died, 13th April 1879, in the eighty-fifth year
of his age and sixty-first of his ministry. During his long life course he had
taken an active part in ecclesiastical and also, though to a less extent, in
social movements. His interest in the Voluntary Controversy is attested by
his published lecture on " The Civil Establishment of Religion." Along with
Dr Cairns he was convener of the Synod's Union Committee from 1863 to
1873, and published a pamphlet on that question after antagonism became
fierce. Of his sermons there was one of marked excellence published,
entitled " Christ's Resurrection : the Pledge and Pattern of the Resurrection
of His People," which had been preached on the occasion of the death of his
father-in-law, the Rev. James Peddie, D.D. But the chief production of his
pen is the " Life of the Rev. Ebenezer Erskine" in the " United Presbyterian
Fathers," a memoir of wide grasp and incisive vigour. His Memoir of Dr
Smart has been referred to already, and will be referred to again. As a
professor his lectures were marked by a closeness of texture which made
note-taking difficult and called for unbroken attention. But it was as a
critic of students' discourses that he in some respects stood unrivalled.
There was the prominence he gave to clear method and logical construc
tion, qualities in which the pulpit is apt to be defective in these later times.
There was the masterly skill with which the discourse was taken to pieces
and its defects noted, and, though a high standard was rigorously applied,
there was kindliness, unless where indolence or pretension crossed his path,
and then there was sometimes a terrible edging of severity. Dr Harpers
seventh son, Mr John Dick Harper, entered the Divinity Hall in 1861,
and died, i8th February 1863, in his twenty-fourth year. A selection from
his papers, with Memoir by the Rev. James Jeffrey of Pollokshields, then a
student, was printed for private circulation. The Life of Principal Harper
by Dr Thomson of Broughton Place, a faithful, full-length portrait, no way
overdrawn, was published in 1881, and was followed in a few months by a
second edition, issued in a cheaper form.
After Mr Brown removed to Pollokshields North Leith congregation had
a period of turmoil to pass through. In January 1882 the Presbytery delayed
granting them a moderation owing to want of harmony. A large party were
bent on calling the Rev. J. Reid Howatt of Camberwell, London, but the
motion to go forward was carried by only 127 against in. Before next
meeting of Presbytery Mr Howatt, who had declined a call to Junction
Road three years before, intimated to his friends in North Leith his un
conditional withdrawal from being a candidate. They were not to be
baffled, however, by what they may have ascribed to the action of a hostile
minority, and in the face of strong opposition it was decided by 166 against
155 to insist on the moderation. But the Presbytery had the power of apply
ing a veto at this point, and instead of an English Presbyterian minister
from London North Leith congregation obtained a United Presbyterian
minister from Dublin.
Fourth Minister. — JAMES STEVENSON, who had been translated from
Dennyloanhead, and inducted into Dublin, i8th July 1866. Thence he was
called to Port-Glasgow (Clune Park) in 1878, but declined. He no\v removed
PRESBYTERY OF EDINBURGH 507
from the distant outpost which he had occupied for sixteen years, and was
admitted to North Leith, 28th September 1882. Mr Stevenson's jubilee was
celebrated on Thursday, 25th October 1900, a few days before the Union,
when he was presented with a silver salver and .£280. The membership at
the beginning of that year was 788, and the stipend .£600.
JUNCTION ROAD (RELIEF)
IN May 1822 it was announced in an Edinburgh newspaper that the con
gregation which had for some time occupied the old North Leith Church had
applied to the Relief for sermon and that on the previous Sunday it was
opened by the Rev. James Scott of Cowgate Church, and there was a crowded
audience. This relates to a petition subscribed by 40 residenters in Leith
which had been presented to the Relief Presbytery of Edinburgh on 3oth
April. It bore that there was a general desire for the setting up of a Relief
congregation in the town and that with this view several of the petitioners
had taken a lease of the old parish church of North Leith which had been
occupied by the Rev. James Harper's congregation from 1816 to 1819. Now
it was to be turned into the cradle of another Dissenting congregation, at a cost
of ^50 a year. On 28th May the applicants were received under the Presby
tery's inspection, and for nine successive Sabbaths the pulpit was occupied by
members of Presbytery in rotation. In January 1823 there is mention of Mr
Francis Muir preaching at Leith, and a few weeks after that a moderation
was obtained. There being no session as yet and no communion roll it
was arranged " that in the first instance all seatholders of respectable char
acter, arrived at years of discretion, shall be allowed to vote in the election
of a minister." There was some difficulty at this point, the lease of the old
church being only for two years and the Presbytery wishing security for
permanence, but this was got over by the commissioners undertaking to
have a church built before the expiry of " the present tack.:> They also
promised a stipend of ,£150, with ^10 for sacramental expenses.
First Minister. — FRANCIS MUIR, from Strathaven. The call was signed
by 269 persons, mostly men, and Mr Muir was ordained, nth June 1823.
The duty of addressing minister and people fitly devolved upon Mr Kirk-
wood of St James Place, Edinburgh, as about 100 or 120 members of his
church who came up from Leith were identifying themselves with the new
cause. At the close of the service Mr Muir craved leave to have a session
appointed, which led to the ordination of four elders in due time. While
the church was in course of erection a question arose as to the rights of
proprietors, and the rule was ultimately made to run thus : " That no
person, whether proprietor or seatholder, shall be eligible to the manage
ment unless he be also a communicant, and should he cease to be so he
shall also cease to be a manager." Another rule proposed amounted to
this : that though the election of a minister or precentor lay with the com
municants the right to nominate candidates was to be vested exclusively in
the proprietors. The latter part of this rule had also to be erased, and the
nomination and election declared to belong alike and exclusively to those in
full communion. We find next from the public prints that on Sabbath, 3Oth
January 1825, the church in St Anthony's Road was opened by Mr Muir,
who preached from the text : " Lord, I have loved the habitation of Thy
house and the place where Thine honour dwelleth." The sittings were
1230, and the cost was nearly ^4000.
In 1836 the minister stated that at his first communion the members
were 270, and there were now at least 850 names on the roll. The stipend
5o8 HISTORY OF U.P. CONGREGATIONS
had been raised to ^210. In December 1864 a moderation was applied for
with the view of obtaining a colleague for Mr Muir, each minister to receive
a stipend of ,£250. All went on without let or hindrance, and the end was
speedily gained.
Second Minister. — JAMES DEANS, B.A., son of the Rev. George Deans,
Portobello. Ordained, 2ist March 1865, as colleague and successor to
Mr Muir, who continued to take his share of pulpit and pastoral work
almost to the end. He died, I3th September 1871, in the seventy-fifth year
of his age and forty-ninth of his ministry. Mrs Muir was a daughter of the
Rev. James Logan of St Ninians, and one of their sons is the Rev. Gavin
Struthers Muir, latterly of Slateford ; while the Rev. James Rennie of St
Vincent Street, Glasgow, is their son-in-law. In the last year of Mr Muir's
sole pastorate a liquidation effort begun in 1844 reached its completion, and
the debt which had rested on the property from the beginning was entirely
swept away. Originally it was held in shares of ^10 each, but these had
been all bought up some time before. The church during Mr Muir's
ministry enjoyed unbroken peace, and he could say at the close that, so
far as he knew, no one had left the congregation from personal hostility to
himself during all these forty years. This accords with Dr Harper's testi
mony in his Memoir of Dr Smart. He speaks of " Francis Muir, whose
downright honesty and genuine good nature were such that he never lost a
friend nor made an enemy by the plainness of speech with which he ex
pressed his convictions." "A trio," he added, "of intimate and united
fellow-workers in the same field of ministerial labour, two are taken, and
the oldest is left to find a melancholy solace in recording these dimmed
remembrances of an unbroken brotherly fellowship for a space little short of
fifty years."
During the thirteen years Mr Deans laboured in Leith the membership
rose from 700 to over 1000 ; but, having resigned owing to the state of his
health, he was loosed from his charge, 3rd September 1878. He then retired
into private life at Harrogate, where he still resides. A few months after
wards the Rev. J. Reid Howatt, Camberwell, London, was called to be his
successor, the stipend promised being ^500, but he declined to accept.
Third Minister. — WALTER DUNCAN, M.A., called from Dumbarton
Bridgend), where he had been ordained five years before. Inducted to
Junction Road, 3Oth September 1879. Finding himself the centre of incur
able dissension in the church Mr Duncan withdrew from the unenviable
situation, and his resignation was accepted, ist August 1882. Next year,
on 26th April, he was inducted into Ancoats, Manchester, from which he
was translated to the English Presbyterian Church, Doncaster, in 1889,
where he still ministers.
Fourth Minister. — GEORGE GORDON M'LEOD, son of the Rev. Adam
Gordon M'Leod, of Croy Free Church, Presbytery of Nairn. Ordained
Free Church minister at Carnwath, i6th November 1876. Inducted to the
English Presbyterian Church, Walsall, 6th February 1881. Admitted to
Junction Road under the Mutual Eligibility Act, 22nd February 1883.
Died of a sudden and very severe illness, 5th June 1886, in the thirty-fourth
year of his age and tenth of his ministry. A memoir of Mr M'Leod was
published soon after his death, and a volume of sermons, entitled " Ancient
Light on Modern Life," also prolongs his memory. He was buried at
Nairn, near his native place.
Fifth Minister. — JAMES MAILER SCOTT, M.A. Translated from Water-
beck, where he had been for nine years, and inducted to Junction Road on
a unanimous call, 22nd February 1887. In the following year the funds of
the congregation afforded a rise' of stipend from .£400 to .£500. In 1890,
PRESBYTERY OF EDINBURGH 509
owing to disputes over the question of unfermented wine at the communion,
there was a partial secession, which led to the formation of Ebenezer Church.
Since then the blank places have been filled up, and the membership at the
close of 1899 was 1 187.
BONNINGTON (UNITED PRESBYTERIAN)
ON 2 ist February 1871 a number of office-bearers and members of the
denomination interested in the locality represented to the Presbytery's
Extension Committee that steps should be taken to have a church formed in
Bonnington, but owing to other demands on the funds there was nothing
done till 1874, when a site was secured at Summerside Street and a local
committee appointed to superintend operations. On 5th December 1875 a
hall, erected at a cost of fully ^1300, was opened for public worship, and it
was agreed that ^25 should be allowed from the Extension Fund for each
of the first two quarters to help with current expenses. On 7th March 1876
a petition to have a congregation formed was presented to the Presbytery
from 41 members, 25 hearers, and 36 persons belonging to other congrega
tions, who were willing to aid though not prepared as yet to give in their
formal adhesion. The result was that on 4th April a congregation was
constituted, with 42 names on the communion roll.
First Minister. — JOHN HUTCHISON, D.D., from Renfrew, where he had
been ordained thirteen years before. Inducted, 8th February 1877. The
call was signed by 52 members and 24 adherents, and the stipend under
taken was ^350. The new church, with sittings for 720, was opened by
Principal Cairns on Friday, 3oth April 1880, the total cost being ^8780,
which included the following gifts : — pulpit from the minister, an organ from
one elder, and a bell from another. The debt at this time amounted to
fully ,£4700, and the membership at the beginning of the year was 175.
But Dr Hutchison, amidst the duties of the pastorate, published in 1884
Expository Lectures on the ist and 2nd Epistles to the Thessalonians, and
these were followed in 1887 by a corresponding volume on Philippians.
In both, and also in his " Messages to the Seven Churches in Asia," the
fruits of exegetical scholarship are presented in popular form and with
literary effect. In 1895 the Doctor, who was possessed of independent
means, arranged to forego his claims on the congregation, and while re
taining the position of senior pastor allow a colleague to take his place.
Second Minister. — ROBERT SMALL, M.A., from Ecclefechan, where he
had been five and a half years. Inducted, i6th May 1895, *he stipend being
.£350, as it had been all along. At the Jubilee Synod in May 1897
Dr Hutchison was elected to the Moderator's Chair, and was prominent
throughout the celebration. During the years of the collegiateship he took
one of the services very regularly on alternate Sabbaths unless when other
engagements came in. He also divided the Week-Evening Services with
the junior minister. During the session preceding the Union he acted as
Interim Professor of Apologetics and New Testament Exegesis in Glasgow-
Free Church College. In 1898 Mr Small was called to Wallace-Green,
Berwick, but having intimated his declinature the call was not prosecuted.
In the beginning of 1900 Bonnington had a membership of 465, and the
stipend was ,£450. The debt at the Union was about ,£1300, and was in
course of being rapidly reduced.
5io HISTORY OF U.P. CONGREGATIONS
DALMENY STREET (UNITED PRESBYTERIAN)
ON 4th March 1879 Professor Caldenvood, convener of the Extension Com
mittee, reported to the Presbytery that a site for a new church had been
secured at Leith Walk, a district where buildings were rapidly rising, and
from which the distance to the nearest Edinburgh and Leith churches was
considerable. The hall was opened on the first Sabbath of July, and Mr
A. R. MacEwen, a divinity student, now Dr MacEwen of Glasgow, had
previously entered on house-to-house visitation among the people. On 7th
October a congregation was formed consisting of 80 members, all of whom
had certificates from other congregations, and in May 1880 it was intimated
that four elders had been ordained. This was followed by an unsuccessful
call to Mr MacEwen, who accepted Moffat. After this a divided call was
issued to the Rev. George Douglas, then of Walker, and now secretary of the
Religious Tract Society, but being signed by not more than one-fourth of
the members it was allowed to drop. The stipend offered at this time was
.£300, but the annual income was under ^200, and the Board could not
grant more than ^250 in five yearly instalments.
First Minister. — GEORGE B. CARR, translated from Tranent, where he
had been colleague to the Rev. William Parlane for four years. Inducted,
23rd June 1881. The new church was opened on Friday, 6th October 1882,
by Principal Cairns, the estimated cost being ^3000, and the sittings 820.
The membership was considerably over 300, but, unfortunately, there was no
backbone of wealth among them, and the pressure came by-and-by to be
severely felt. Towards the close of 1883 the Board granted aid to the ex
tent of ,£100, with the hope that the Presbytery would furnish ^150 to make
up deficiencies. The relief not being permanent Mr Carr, in view of
financial difficulties, offered in November 1887 to demit his charge. In
vestigation disclosed the yearly liabilities of the congregation to be ^570,
while the income, including ^100 from the Home Board, was only ^450.
A bond of ^1500 on the property involved serious demands on the funds, and
a committee, with Principal Cairns at its head, was appointed to take
measures for having this burden removed. Largely through the influence
of the convener, under whose pastoral care Mr Carr had been brought up,
a sum of ^1200 was raised, to which the congregation added ,£268 by
special effort. The result was that, after meeting some floating accounts, the
bonded debt was reduced to ^200, and the way opened up for better days.
In the early part of Mr Carr's ministry the district around Dalmeny Street
deteriorated a great deal through so much of the scum of Edinburgh
being driven outside the city boundaries by the working of the Municipal
Improvement Act, and finding he could no longer undertake the work de
manded of him he resigned his charge, 2nd August 1893, the people ex
pressing their deep sense of his faithful and devoted labours among them.
After crossing the Atlantic Mr Carr was in no long time appointed to the
Chair of English Literature and Moral Philosophy in Lincoln University,
Pennsylvania, a position which he continues to occupy, and in 1897 the
Senatus conferred on him the degree of D.D.
Second Minister. — ALEXANDER B. DYKES, M.A., translated from Gore-
bridge, and inducted, I5th February, 1894. The membership at this time
was 342, and the stipend promised was ,£250. At the close of 1899 there
were within a unit of 500 names on the communion roll, and the stipend was
^300.
PRESBYTERY OF EDINBURGH 511
WARD IE (UNITED PRESBYTERIAN)
ON 3rd February 1885 a. petition signed by 65 members and concurred
in by 66 ordinary hearers was laid before Edinburgh Presbytery praying
that the usual steps be taken to erect them into a congregation. They were
meeting in a hall in Granton Road, and there was an attendance of about
too persons. At next meeting, a motion that the petitioners be erected into
a congregation being carried by 28 votes against 24, the case was taken by
protest to the Synod. There it was argued that the population round about
was comparatively sparse and that for us to enter that field would be an
encroachment on the recently formed Free Church at Wardie. To this it
was replied that the proposed centre was a mile and a quarter from the
nearest United Presbyterian church and that within a fair distance there
was a population of at least 4000. The Synod after hearing both sides
dismissed the appeal, and on 26th May a congregation was formed with a
membership of 58. The opposition arose partly from certain irregularities
connected with the opening of the hall for Sabbath services. An elder in
Bonnington Church had applied to the Presbytery's Extension Committee to
have a station commenced at Granton Road, but as their funds were limited
and the case did not seem urgent they declined to adopt the proposal.
Believing that their policy was wrong the mover took up the work on his
own responsibility, and under his auspices a student of divinity preached in
the hall to about 40 persons on the fourth Sabbath of November 1884, with
the notice posted up outside, " United Presbyterian Church Services." This
was not in keeping with Church order, but the mover having owned that in
some respects he had gone too far, and having also intimated that he in
tended to build a hall on a suitable site at his own expense, the irregularities
were got over and the movement entered on constitutional lines. The
congregating followed on 26th May 1885.
First Minister. — JAMES MACLEOD, from Glasgow (Regent Place). The
call was signed by 91 members and 42 adherents, and Mr Macleod, who
had officiated there from the very beginning, was ordained, I7th December
1885. A year after this the congregation removed from the wooden structure
in which they had been worshipping since before the ordination to a sub
stantial hall, which their chief supporter had built according to promise.
All went on well thus far, but in 1 887 an unexpected crisis came. Owing to an
adverse turn of fortune's wheel the proprietor of the hall was prevented
handing it over to the congregation free of expense, as he fully intended.
But though some members broke away in view of liabilities the people as a
whole strung themselves up to meet the realities of the situation, and in a
few months they were able to announce that, with the aid of a grant from the
Extension Fund, the property was their own, and unburdened. These
exertions helped to bind them more closely together. The membership at
the close of 1888 was 198, and this brought out that they would soon have
to face the building of a new church. To prepare for the outlay a bazaar
was held in October 1890, and another followed. On 5th November 1893,
the Building Fund having grown considerably in the interval, the church,
with sittings for 500, was opened, when the services were conducted by
Principal Rainy, Principal Hutton, and Professor Orr. The cost of the
building, including the organ, was about ^5000. In the end of 1896 the
debt amounted to over ,£1600, but it was being reduced year by year. At
the Union of 3ist October 1900 the church was on the point of being re
opened, with additional accommodation for 230, the enlargement to cost
,£1600. The membership was now close on 450, and the stipend ^350, so
5i2 HISTORY OF U.P. CONGREGATIONS
that even those who looked with disfavour on the station in its beginnings
have reason for thankfulness that other views prevailed.
EBENEZER CHURCH
THIS congregation was not originated by the Presbytery's Extension Com
mittee, but it has taken the place of an Extension church. It was shown at
the time that while in 1860 the United Presbyterians formed 8 per cent, of
the population of Leith they were only 5^ per cent, in 1891. However, the
movement which led to the formation of Ebenezer Church arose out of
serious differences in Junction Road session. In February 1890 364
members petitioned for the introduction of unfermented wine at the com
munion, and the matter being referred to the congregation it appeared that
a majority were favourable to the proposal, whereupon the session unani
mously agreed to make the change. A reaction now set in, and in a paper
headed " Defence League " about 70 members declared for a reversal of the
session's decision, with a threat that unless this were complied with they
would " stop supplies at the church door and otherwise." As the outcome a
petition was presented to the session with 577 names affixed asking for a
return to former arrangements. There happened to be an election of elders
at this time, and the six chosen were all opposed to the movement for
unfermented wine, and to this circumstance they were largely indebted for
the support they obtained, and seven of the session refused to countenance
the ordination. Two cups were now proposed by way of compromise, but at
a meeting of session held on loth September 1890 twelve voted to continue
the use of port wine at the communion, and the other ten resigned office and
left the congregation.
Steps were now taken by the minority and their adherents to have a new
congregation formed on the lines of evangelistic and temperance work, and
with that view it was agreed on 2gth October to rent the Masonic Hall and
commence public worship there on Sabbath first, and by way of equipment
one of their number, Mr John Harrow, junior, announced the gift of an
American organ and a pulpit Bible. There was now for three months the
regular meeting together on the Lord's day, and the communion was even
dispensed outside regular Church connection, but on 3rd February 1891 they
presented a petition to the .U.P. Presbytery of Edinburgh, signed by 119
members and 24 adherents, to be formed into a congregation. The petition
was granted, and on 22nd April, after sermon by one of the Presbytery's
committee, 99 members with disjunction certificates were congregated under
the name of Ebenezer Church. On 5th July nine elders were inducted,
eight of whom had left Junction Road, and one had come from the session
of North Leith. Another, who could not be present that day, was ordained
a fortnight later. These constituted a strong session for a newly-formed
congregation. In December following the Rev. William Mowat of Galashiels
(West) conducted a week's evangelistic services among them as one of the
Synod's deputies, and in March 1892 he was called to be their minister, but
further procedure was arrested by a letter from Mr Mowat bearing that he
had decided to remain in Galashiels. Mr George Erskine Nicol, now in
Nairn, was then engaged to carry on the work as a student for twelve
months, and this brings us forward to June 1893.
First Minister. — JOHN DRYSDALE ROBERTSON, who had been for nine
years in Darvel. Inducted, 2nd August 1893. The call was signed by 106
members and 39 adherents, and the stipend was to be ,£200 in all, but in
1897 it was raised to .£250. The new church, or rather Junction Street
PRESBYTERY OF EDINBURGH 513
Hall remodelled, was opened on Thursday, 5th December 1895, by the Rev.
David Kinnear of Dalbeattie, Moderator of Synod. It cost about ,£3350,
including the price of the feu, and it accommodates between 750 and 800
people. The Board made a grant of ,£250, and the debt is now reduced to
^500. The present membership is within a few units of 400. The congre
gation has all along been active on the lines of evangelistic and temperance
work, and it has had its reward.
EASTERN DIVISION
HADDINGTON (ASSOCIATE)
ON 3rd March 1737 several Praying Societies in East Lothian applied to the
Associate Presbytery for a day of fasting, but it was doubtful whether they
were sufficiently acquainted with the grounds of the Secession. On the last
Wednesday of September Messrs William Wilson and Thomas Mair preached
at Haddington, and were able to testify that they were a body of people
deserving of particular notice. Owing to want of preachers all the additional
services they had was a day of humiliation until December 1738. On I7th
February 1741 three elders and 40 members acceded in East Lothian, and
on ist December they were followed by other 30, so that there was now
more material to work on. In the early part of 1742 they called Mr George
Brown, a young man who had recently got licence, and was sent to Had
dington as his first vacancy, but the Presbytery kept the call in abeyance
till Perth had time to come forward, and then they appointed him to the
more important place. East Lothian had ground for complaint, and it was
hard to get them into good temper again. The issue of their second call
reads as follows in the Presbytery Minutes : — " Mr Walter Loch, probationer,
being in adorable providence removed by death since last meeting of Pres
bytery, the calls to him from Stitchel and Haddington do fall, of course."
Of Mr Loch all we know is that his name first comes up on I5th April 1742,
when he received £2 from the Student Fund, but there is reason to believe
that he belonged either to the congregation of Edinburgh or of Dalkeith.
First Minister. — ROBERT ARCHIBALD, from Perth or its neighbourhood.
When Mr Archibald was on trials for licence he signified that he had not
been taught Hebrew, and the Presbytery recommended him to study that
language, but allowed his examinations to pass. He was ordained, igth
September 1744. About this time two men who on account of discourage
ments in obtaining a minister had returned to the Established Church
applied to be received back into membership. This evidently bears on the
loss of Mr Brown, and the session, considering "the many temptations that
people had been exposed to," merely admonished them to be more steadfast
for the time to come. Soon after Mr Archibald's ordination a large addition
was made to the session, which consisted of three elders, one in Gullane, one
in Holden, and one in Spott. The districts to be provided for were Had
dington, Dirleton, Dunbar, Stenton, Chesterhill, and Samuelston. This
resulted in a session of twenty-one elders and seven deacons. As the Breach
of 1747 drew on there were tokens that Haddington was to be seriously
involved. At one of their meetings it was reported that a certain town
councillor belonging to the congregation had taken the Burgess Oath, which
was declared to be "as bad as any in the kingdom." On this question a
disruption ensued at a meeting on 4th May 1747, when Mr Archibald
withdrew to the manse with the few who adhered to the Antiburgher Synod,
2 K
514 HISTORY OF U.P. CONGREGATIONS
the number being ultimately nine — seven elders and two deacons. At this
point the Secession cause in Haddington, as in Edinburgh and Perth,
branches into two. In each of the three places the Burghers were a majority
in the session, while the Antiburghers had the minister with them and a
large section of the people. It was natural that the leading men in town
congregations should favour toleration as to the swearing of the Oath that
they might not be involved in civic disabilities. So it happened that in
Edinburgh, Perth, and Haddington the aristocratic party prevailed, and the
minister and his adherents were deprived of the place of worship.
HADDINGTON (ANTIBURGHER)
AT a meeting of Mr Archibald and his session on 28th June 1747 the
Moderator proposed that active measures should be taken with Bailie
Caddell and another elder, who had been the ringleaders in revolt, and had
drawn the majority of their brethren after them. They had attempted to
seize the meeting-house by violence, had carried off the minutes of session
and the poor's money, and had withdrawn from attendance on gospel
ordinances as dispensed in the place. It was therefore resolved to lay
them aside from the exercise of their office until their conduct should be
pronounced on by a higher court. This resulted in the suspension of
thirteen elders and six deacons. After this the minister kept possession of
the pulpit for some time, but in July 1748 it was recorded in the Minutes
how the Burgess party had excluded the congregation from their place of
worship and how the Moderator had granted the use of his garden for the
services. There they worshipped for nearly four years, though in winter
they may have had at times to betake themselves to shelter of some kind.
An entry of date 3Oth April 1752 marks the transition to the newly-fitted-up
meeting-house, with accommodation for nearly 400. The building had been
a malt store, but it was now converted to a better purpose. In the beginning
of 1755 steps were taken for an addition to the eldership, when one was
required for Prestonpans district, one for Dirleton, one for East Linton, two
for D unbar quarter, one for Stenton and Garvald, one for Gifford, and one
for Saltoun and Samuelston. On I7th May 1762 the session of Perth
(North) granted some supply to Mr Archibald and his family in distress.
He died, 2nd October, in the fifty-eighth year of his age and nineteenth
of his ministry. The Synod three years afterwards made an allowance to
his children, who were described as orphans in destitute circumstances, and
there is evidence of the same thing in the records of Kinclaven session, and
also in those of Alloa (Townhead). In 1763 the congregation called the
Rev. Richard Jerment, who was in the midst of discouragements at Peebles,
but the Synod refused to let him go. The callers numbered 157, and
assuming that these were all male members it gives a congregation propor
tionate to the capacity of the building. In the early part of 1765 they
renewed their call, but the Synod still refused to translate.
Second Minister. — LAURENCE WOTHERSPOON, from Abernethy. Called
also to Hawick (West), but Haddington was preferred. Ordained, loth July
1766. Three years before this Mr Wotherspoon passed through a process
of discipline before the Presbytery of Perth and Dunfermline, which might
have blighted his prospects as a preacher. Under the tuition of Mr
Alexander Pirie, teacher of the philosophical class at Abernethy, he became
liberalised, and an essay of his found a place in the Royal Magazine. In
that production he caught up the tone of refined Moderatism, affirming that
PRESBYTERY OF EDINBURGH 515
the man of polite education "stands in the fairest way for gaining the
applause of his indulgent Author," and that such a man will reckon it his
highest honour "to dress himself in the lovely garments of charity and
universal benevolence.'"' Pirie was of opinion that there was little of either
good or evil in the essay, but the Synod declared that it contained within
it "a dangerous and detestable scheme of doctrine," and the writer was
rebuked and suspended from Church fellowship. Mr Wotherspoon after
making ample retractation was restored to his status as a student, and in
the course of another year he was taken on trials for licence, and then came
the two calls above mentioned and his ordination at Haddington. In April
1779 the congregation asked pulpit supply "in respect of their minister's
distress." He presided at a meeting of session on 2nd July, and in an after
Minute it is entered that he died about the beginning of August. He was
in the thirty-seventh year of his age and fourteenth of his ministry, so that he
must have been a youth of twenty when his pen brought him into trouble.
Third Minister. — ROBERT CHALMERS, from Dennyloanhead congrega
tion and Dunipacc parish. Ordained, I7th August 1780, the call being-
signed by 113 male members. Mr Chalmers went along with Professor
Bruce and the Rev. Thomas M'Crie in the steps which led on to the
formation of the Constitutional Presbytery, though he says : " When the
other brethren gave in their last paper to the Synod in May 1806 he had
not enough clearness to concur in it." Hence he was absent when that
Presbytery was constituted at Whitburn in August following. Like Mr
Archibald fifty years before, Mr Chalmers found himself deserted by the
majority of his elders. During the time the minister occupied middle
ground the subject was talked over at meetings of session. " Some acknow
ledged a change in some particulars but approved of it ; others affirmed
there was no difference between the two Testimonies and designed to
hold by both." One read a paper declaring his decided opposition to the
New Testimony, and one or two wished time for deliberation. At a meeting
on 1 8th May 1807 all the elders except two declared they intended to con
tinue with the Synod, and to Mr Chalmers it clearly appeared from that
moment that no communion could be consistently held between him and
them. On 2ist June he read a paper from the pulpit defining his position,
and on the 2gth nine of his elders preferred a complaint against him before
the Presbytery. Having renounced the authority of that court he was
deposed on 28th July, but Dr Jamieson of Edinburgh and Mr Buchanan
of Dalkeith craved to have it marked that "in voting for deposition from
the office of the ministry they were to be understood as meaning a deposi
tion from any right to exercise it in connection with this Church." It was
the bone out of joint making a socket for itself. At the separation a large
majority of the congregation went with the minister, but of the fourteen
elders twelve adhered to the Synod.
Mr Chalmers and his adherents acquired the church and the manse from
the minority on payment of ,£610, of which ^350 went for the church. On
ist July 1835 they obtained for their junior minister Mr William White.
Mr Chalmers died, 2gth December 1837, in the eighty-second year of his
age and' fifty-eighth of his ministry. Of his gifts as a preacher Dr Wylie
has stated that the grace and solemnity of his delivery and the weight of
his matter made his discourses always impressive, and that his method in
the pulpit was eminently clear and logical. A volume of his sermons was
published in 1798, and a tract on Missionary Societies about the same time,
in which the broad basis of these associations is made out to be incon
sistent with the Secession Testimony. A daughter of Mr Chalmers was the
second wife of Dr M'Crie, the biographer of Knox, and another daughter
5r6 HISTORY OF U.P. CONGREGATIONS
was the wife of his son and successor, afterwards Professor M'Crie of the
E.P. Theological College, London. A third daughter of Mr Chalmers was
married to the proprietor of Kinmundy, a family long connected with the
Secession Church and the Secession ministry.
This congregation was bound to suffer decline, and in 1838 the com
munion roll was down to 120, and 17 of the families came from more than
four miles, fifteen being given as the greatest distance. The stipend was ^,100,
with manse and garden. Mr White who, as editor of the Original Secession
Magazine, had done much to advance the movement, went into the Union
with the Free Church in 1852. He died, i3th October 1871, in the sixtieth
year of his age and thirty-seventh of his ministry. He was an able and
voluminous writer, and his best-known book, on "The Principles of Christian
Union," had a wide circulation. After his death an attempt was made to
obtain another minister, but in 1876 the congregation dispersed, and the
property was disposed of to the Town Council in 1881. The church is now
used as a public reading-room and library.
HADDINGTON, EAST (BURGHER)
Ax the Burgher Synod, held a few weeks after the Breach, a protest was
brought up from 18 members of Haddington session against the action
of Mr Archibald and his supporters. The party which they headed in the
congregation also petitioned for advice in their present circumstances, con
sidering themselves as sheep without a shepherd. As the counterpart of
this it was represented to the Antiburgher Presbytery of Edinburgh in
November 1750 that fourteen elders and six deacons had embarked with
"the separating brethren," and in 1752 twelve of the elders were summoned
to compear and answer for their conduct. It was labour lost, but the forms
of discipline had to be kept up. The comparative strength of the two parties
cannot be ascertained, but the advantage probably lay on the Burgher side.
The other congregation, besides having the session reduced to a fraction
of what it had been, was obliged to surrender the place of worship. The
trustees in their case, as in that of Perth and Edinburgh, took the Burgher
side, and were regarded by the law as absolute proprietors. But though
the pulpit was available the Burgher Synod was in no haste to grant sup
plies in such cases, as there were still faint hopes of coming to an accom
modation with their brethren. In 1750 the congregation called the Rev.
William Hutton of Stow to be their minister, but Perth and Dalkeith were
in competition with them, and the Synod gave the last named of the three
the advantage.
First Minister. — JOHN BROWN, from Abernethy. The struggles of Mr
Brown's boyhood and youth are so well known that they need not be recounted
here. He was admitted to the study of theology under Ebenezer Erskine
without having attended at any university, but this was nothing uncommon
with Secession students in those days. Indeed, the philosophical class was
meant to supersede a course of training at seats of learning where error
might be imbibed. But there was this peculiarity in Mr Brown's case, that
he passed into the Burgher Hall a self-taught man. He speaks, indeed, of
having got "some regular instruction in philosophy," and there is reason to
think that Mr Shirra, afterwards of Kirkcaldy, tutored a few of the Burgher
students in this department of learning immediately after the Breach. Mr
Brown entered the Hall in 1748 and got licence on i4th November 1750.
He had sided with the Burghers, drawn partly, perhaps, by attachment to
PRESBYTERY OF EDINBURGH 517
Ralph Erskine, whose ministry he attended while teaching a school at
Gairney Bridge. On the merits of the question he had no favour for the
Burgess Oath, though he did not consider that the non-swearing thereof
ought to be made a term of communion. Neither was the treatment he
received from his minister, the Rev. Alexander Moncrieff, who gave way to
the suspicion that the unassuming youth was acquiring scholarship from a
forbidden quarter, fitted to influence him in favour of the Antiburghers.
On becoming a probationer Mr Brown was called first to Haddington
and then to Stow, and to the former of these places he was appointed by the
Presbytery of Edinburgh, in keeping with his own preferences, though it was
the smaller congregation and the less inviting. After obtaining licence he
preached on one occasion near his native place, and we find from the
Minutes of Abernethy session that some of their members were censured
for having gone to hear "John Brown, pretended preacher." He was
ordained, 4th July 1751. His stipend at Haddington was ,£40 at first, and
it never rose above ^60, but he was always content, and felt that he had
enough and to spare. From the session records we learn the extent of Mr
Brown's Sabbath labours. During eight months of the year public worship
began at ten o'clock, and the forenoon service included a lecture and sermon.
In the afternoon there was a second sermon, and "exercise" in the evening.
In winter they met at eleven, and the afternoon service was dispensed with.
He visited the whole congregation once a year, and went over them in diets
of examination twice a year. The session, which consisted of twelve elders
and six deacons when his ministry began, met statedly on the first Monday
of each month, when three of the elders or deacons prayed, with praise and
religious conference between. The congregation at that time drew from a
wide circumference, mention being made of members in the parishes of
Spott, Whittingehame, D unbar, and Pencaitland. In course of time Burgher
churches arose at Tranent and Dunbar, cutting off families from the ex
tremities to the west and east, but Mr Brown looked with favour on these
disjunctions. He was appointed Professor of Theology by the Synod
in May 1768, and afterwards declined an invitation to remove to America to
fill a corresponding Chair in connection with the Dutch Reformed Church.
He died, igth June 1787, in the sixty-fifth year of his age and thirty-sixth of
his ministry. At the meeting of Synod in September following a letter
addressed to his former students, as if from his death-bed, was read and
inserted in the Minutes, beseeching them to do their utmost to transmit
Christ's truths faithfully and diligently to posterity.
An entry in the session Minutes records that by his first marriage
Mr Brown had two sons, John and Ebenezer, of whom the former was long
minister at Longridge and the latter at Inverkeithing. It is further stated
that he left " a widow, with four sons and two daughters, all young." Of the
sons, one became Dr Thomas Brown of Dalkeith. Another was Samuel, the
father of Dr John Croumbie Brown and Dr Samuel Brown "the alchemist,"
a man of rare literary gifts. A third was William, who was ordained as a
missionary to China. He studied medicine with that view, and hence he
was generally known as Dr William Brown. His design of engaging in
foreign service having been upset he became secretary to the Scottish
Missionary Society, and also published several works, the most important
being his " History of the Propagation of Christianity among the Heathen
since the Reformation." He died, ijth May 1863, in the eightieth year of
his age. Of Mr Brown of Haddington's daughters, one was the mother
of the Rev. John Brown Patterson, parish minister of Falkirk, and the
Rev. Alexander S. Patterson, D.D., ultimately of Hutchesontown Free
Church, Glasgow. Mrs Patterson died, 26th July 1843.
Si8 HISTORY OF U.P. CONGREGATIONS
A list of Mr Brown's published works is given in the Appendix to
Dr M'Kerrow's History of the Secession, and a more complete list in
Dr M'Kelvie's Annals. His "Historical Account of the Rise and Progress
of the Secession" and his "Re-exhibition of the Secession Testimony
Defended" are of great denominational value. His pamphlet, entitled "The
Absurdity and Perfidy of all authorative Toleration of gross Heresy," etc.,
takes us back to times when the standpoint on such matters in Secession
circles was widely different from what it is now. His Self- Interpreting Bible
is above the need for special notice, and his two Catechisms, familiarly
known as the " Little and the Big Browns," did much to train the young of
Secession families in Bible doctrine adapted to their years. His Dictionary
of the Bible still carries interest, but it has not been improved by attempts
to bring it up to date. We return now to the history of Haddington
East.
Second Minister. — BKNONI BLACK, from Jedburgh (Blackfriars). Or
dained, i Qth August 1789. The call was subscribed by 126 members and
38 ordinary hearers, and the stipend promised was ^60, with house and
garden. The call itself was addressed to Mr Benjamin Black, and the
minister who presided at the moderation explained that " the misnomer had
been occasioned by his and the people's ignorance of Mr Black's name."
But the Presbytery was in difficulties, and to satisfy uneasy feeling the form
of a call was brought up at next meeting directed to Mr Benoni Black, and
signed by three elders, one deacon, and six members, with a petition from
the congregation to proceed towards the ordination, which was agreed to.
In 1805 the second church, which had served the congregation forty years,
was taken down, and another, with 450 sittings, built in its place, and
opened the following year. The first of the three must have been of frail
construction or of slight dimensions, as it had to be superseded in less than
a generation. During Mr Black's ministry the congregation was never large,
though he was abundant in labours. Some years before his death he became
very nervous and slightly paralytic, and it was thought that this unstrung
state was traceable to the preparing of three discourses a week for so many
years. With Mr Black's full concurrence steps were now taken to secure a
colleague, the old minister to receive ,£25 a year, with the manse he occupied,
and the colleague ^100, with sacramental expenses and, as we understand,
" the old manse," which afterwards brought a rent of ten guineas. On this
footing a moderation was granted, but before the day arrived the whole
situation was changed. On Sabbath, I5th June 1828, the old minister
attended ordinances during the day, and retired at night without any
complaint, but in the morning he was found dead in bed. He was in
the sixty-sixth year of his age and thirty-ninth of his ministry. Mr Black
was a nephew of the Rev. James Scott, first minister of Musselburgh (Bridge
Street), and he was son-in-law to the Rev. John Henderson, first minister of
D unbar.
Ten days after Mr Black's death the congregation met, and the election
went on, when Mr John Young, who was already under call to Balerno,
became their unanimous choice. The signatures were 171 in all, 29 of these
by adherents, and the stipend was now ^120, with the manse possessed by
their late minister. But Mr Young came into demand for London (Albion
Church), which carried, as he himself wished, when the Synod met.
Third Minister. — JOSEPH YOUNG, from Irvine (now Trinity Church).
Had a more numerously signed call from Belford, but the Synod preferred
Haddington, where he was ordained, 2ist October 1829. The services were
conducted in the parish church, with a crowded audience of 2000 people.
The congregation seems to have been less enthusiastic than on the former
PRESBYTERY OF EDINBURGH 519
occasion. They explained to the Presbytery that when they called Mr John
Young a number of the seats were taken by occasional hearers, and they
thought they would be able to pay ,£120, but during the previous six months
there had been little of this, and they could not now promise more than ^i 10.
For a time there was increase under Mr Young, there being 39 accessions
the year after his ordination, but discouragements arose, and in 1838 he
intimated to the session that he was about to resign, and expressed the hope
that his successor would be more successful than he had been. It was
found, however, that this step was prompted by special reasons. He had
signed an obligation nine years before for a larger sum of money than he
was able to pay, and this had been a source of distress to him. Now pay
ment of the balance had to be made not later than gth April. At a meeting
of the congregation much regret was expressed at the thought of losing
their minister. They also assured him that his difficulties would be met,
and unanimously requested him to withdraw his resignation, which he agreed
to in the end. At this time the communicants were returned at 230, the
stipend was ^110 , with the manse and sacramental expenses, and about 270
of the sittings were let. The congregation still took in a wide extent of
territory. One elder's district included Drem and Athelstaneford, another
Morham, another Saltoun and Pencaitland, another Garvald and Gifford,
and another Aberlady. The last of these was about to be lost hold of
through the formation of a congregation there, a movement of which the
session could not see the wisdom or propriety, though Aberlady was five
miles distant. On yth April 1857 the Presbytery accepted Mr Young's
demission of his charge. He assigned as his chief reason for resigning that
six new congregations had been formed round about within recent years and
that supplies had been gradually dried up. Mr Young then proceeded to
America, and became minister at Brantford, Canada, where he died, 9th
August 1863, in the thirty-fourth year of his ministry. The attention of the
Home Synod had been directed in May of that year to the case of the Rev.
Joseph Young, who was in a state of great affliction, and they unanimously
agreed to grant him a donation of ^25, "trusting that the Synod of Canada
and the people of his present charge would make some adequate exertion for
the support of a pastor disabled in the providence of God for the discharge
of his duty." Some years before leaving Haddington Mr Young published
a book on " Demonology," an out-of-the-way subject.
In September 1857 Haddington (East) called Mr Matthew Crawford,
who accepted Sanquhar (South), and in February 1858 they called Mr
William Calvert, afterwards of North Berwick. Twice disappointed by
preachers they now went in for a translation, and the Rev. James A. John
ston of West Linton became their unanimous choice, but with the same
result.
Fourth Minister. — JOHN HINSHELWOOD, from Lanark (Bloomgate).
Called also to Wigtown, but ordained at Haddington, igth November
1858. The muster of names was much beyond what it had been during
former vacancies, there being the signatures of 163 members and 154 ad
herents, and the stipend was to be ^140, with the manse. During his
fourteen years' ministry there Mr Hinshelwood engaged with much zeal in
evangelistic work, and also published a paper on "The Revival of Religion :
the Want of our Times." On ist October 1872 he accepted a call to the
English Presbyterian Church, Worcester. There he also ministered for
nearly fourteen years, but in 1885 he was suspended by the Synod sine die
as a fugitive from discipline. At their meeting next year he wrote craving
to be restored, but they intimated that they saw no reason for interfering
with their former judgment. His address in the beginning of 1900 was
520 HISTORY OF U.P. CONGREGATIONS
Melbourne, but the sentence of suspension remained unlifted. Some time
after Mr Hinshelwood left Haddington the congregation issued a call to Mr
William Duncan, who became colleague to his uncle at Mid-Calder.
Fifth Minister.— JAMES P. WOOD, from Belford. Having declined Auch-
terarder (North) he was ordained at Haddington, 26th August 1873. The
Presbytery accepted Mr Wood's resignation on 2nd November 1875,
forms being dispensed with that he might hasten his escape from the rigour
of a Scottish winter. He went to Australia in quest of health, and in the
hope that he might be restored to ability for ministerial work, but he died at
Sydney, 8th June 1876, aged thirty-three.
Sixth Minister.— MATTHEW M. DICKIE, B.D., son of the Rev. Matthew
Dickie of Bristol. Called also to Peebles (West), but for some reason he
gave Haddington (East) the preference. Ordained, gth November 1876.
The call was signed by 119 members, and a stipend of ,£200, with a manse,
was promised. After struggling with illness for a lengthened period Mr
Dickie tendered his resignation, which was accepted on 6th July 1886, and
he removed to Bristol, his early home. Since then he has been engaged in
literary work, for which he is known to be well fitted by his scholarly ac
quirements.
The congregation at the time this vacancy occurred was in a much
reduced state, the membership having come down through deaths and
removals from 157 to 120 in less than two years, and the money strength in
like proportion. Rejecting the proposal for union with the West church, and
not being in a position to have a fixed ministry at once, a probationer was
appointed to labour among them for six months, an arrangement which
proved fortunate, and led them to apply for a moderation before the term
was out, with the promise of .£180 for stipend.
Seventh Minister.— JAMES NELSON, a native of Ireland (Co. Antrim), but
connected as a student with Partick (East), where he also acted as missionary.
Ordained, after a brief location, 27th September 1887. The call, signed by
112 members and 48 adherents, was said to be hearty and unanimous.
Under Mr Nelson's ministry lost ground was regained and the spirits of
the people revived, but in little more than three years it came abruptly to an
end. On Friday, 2ist November 1890, he was laid down by a severe bilious
attack. About six o'clock in the evening he fainted, and, without regaining
consciousness, died in a quarter of an hour, aged thirty-four.
Eighth Minister.— ROBERT L. WALKER, "M. A., from Leith (St Andrew-
Place). Ordained, loth September 1891. Though the membership at the
close of 1899 was barely 160, the stipend, with the manse besides, was .£180,
all paid from the congregation's own resources. Even when their affairs
were more discouraging than now they kept up the spirit of self-dependence.
HADDINGTON (RELIEF)
TRUSTING, no doubt, to local information Dr M'Kelvie has ascribed the
origin of the Relief cause in Haddington to dissatisfaction with the filling up
of a vacancy in the parish church. He explains that in 1790 Mr, afterwards
Dr, Lorimer was presented to the first charge on the death of Dr Barclay,
and that this gave offence to the friends of Mr Scott, the second minister.
In this he has been followed by Mr W. T. Turnbull in his carefully-prepared
history of the West U.P. Church. But Dr Barclay died in December 1795,
and Mr Lorimer was admitted on i6th June 1796, whereas the Relief church
had a minister set over it in the early part of 1792. It appears as an
organised congregation on 22nd March 1791, the date of the earliest extant
PRESBYTERY OF EDINBURGH 521
Minute of Edinburgh Relief Presbytery. Their church is stated to have
been built in 1787, but that is too soon by several years, and it seems to
have been debted up to its market value.
First Minister. — DAVID GELLATLY, who had been parish teacher at
Dron. Licensed by the Relief Presbytery of Edinburgh on 2ist June 1791,
his character being attested by the Rev. Robert Hutchison of Dalkeith.
Within a few months unanimous calls in his favour were laid on the table
of that Presbytery on the same day from Waterbeck, Earlston, and Had-
dington. Having retired for an hour to deliberate he declared for Haddington.
The call, by his own account, was subscribed by 135 individuals, "many of
whom never attended his ministry, but were prevailed on to sign to make a
good appearance." In no long time he showed that he was a man out of
the common run. At their second meeting after his ordination the Presby
tery found that, "on account of the disorderly conduct of Mr Gellatly, they
could not proceed with the business," and they had to adjourn. One of the
members had animadverted on a money demand made by a preacher, when
Mr Gellatly spoke up and pronounced it diabolical to attack a man in his
absence. He afterwards admitted in print that he, perhaps, expressed himself
rather warmly, but his brethren affirmed that "he roared like a lion and
raved like a lunatic broken out of his cell." When they dealt with him at a
subsequent meeting he appealed his case to the Synod, but that court
declared him guilty of equivocation, of disorderliness in his conduct, and of
insolence towards his co-presbyters. The decision come to, without a vote,
was "that he be sharply rebuked from the Chair," with certification that
should he offend in the same way again " he will be proceeded against with
the utmost severity."
Before next Synod the majority of his elders and managers petitioned
the Presbytery to inquire into some reports seriously affecting their minister's
moral character. Mr Gellatly being refused a copy of the document he
entered a case before the sheriff against the Moderator, the clerk, and one
of the leading members, asking to have them imprisoned till the paper was
given up. Defences were to be lodged, but at that point our sources of
information fail. A precognition of witnesses followed in the church, but
before the Presbytery met Mr Gellatly mounted the pulpit and preached
from the text : " All things whatsoever ye would that men should do unto
you, do ye even so to them," but none of his brethren attended to get the
benefit. Some of the charges were vileness itself, but the party accused had
effrontery for anything. When his case came before the Synod in 1793 the
Presbytery got instructions to proceed by libel, and, should he prosecute
them, they were to declare him out of communion. The Supreme Court at
that meeting also adopted an overture bearing on the fact that " the Synod
has suffered, and is likely to suffer more, from taking young men on trials of
whom they have little previous acquaintance." In the Relief Church, owing
largely to the want of a Divinity Hall, there was clanger of men like Gellatly
coming forward for licence and getting into the possession of pulpits. They
were now learning that greater watchfulness was needed at the 'entrance
gate.
In October 1793 the Presbytery was occupied four days in examining
witnesses, and Mr Gellatly's conduct was "insolent and disorderly through
out." Then he demanded delay, as he had other exculpatory evidence to
bring forward, and this being negatived he appealed to the Synod and left
the court. They summoned him to remain, and sent the officer to call him
back, but all to no purpose. A verdict of proven was carried on each
of the three counts and sentence of deposition pronounced in absence. The
last of the charges was not denied, that he had attempted to alienate his
522 HISTORY OF U.P. CONGREGATIONS
chapel from the Relief to the Establishment. The second bore on repeated
acts of deception and falsehood. The first and the most serious involved
acts of flagrant immorality. His brethren appointed the sentence of de
position to be intimated at Haddington on the following Sabbath by one of
their number, whom Mr Gellatly on that account designated " the hangman
of the Presbytery." The Synod in May 1794 confirmed the Presbytery's
sentence, and next Sabbath, by his own account, he preached to his usual
congregation in a park behind the Relief meeting-house. After that a certain
vintner allowed him " a large gallery " above a stable for the performing of
divine service, and also the use of a field, in which a decent tent was erected
For fourteen months he preached in either of these as the weather dictated,
and was never more in his element, he said, than when proclaiming the
gospel, with the horses feeding below. The elders and managers had
evidently succeeded in ousting him and his adherents from the meeting
house. These were about 50 strong, but we may believe that numbers would
be drawn from curiosity to the tent or the stable loft, as the case might be.
Meanwhile the other party had applied for, and obtained, sermon in the
church from the Presbytery.
Before long the Rev. David Gellatly became the standard-bearer of a
little denomination which he called the " First Constituted Presbytery of
Relief." Cowan of Colinsburgh, who broke away from the Synod in 1773,
had been standing nearly alone for twenty years, but on 7th October 1794
he and other two ministers and two ruling elders met at Pathhead to receive
a petition from the Relief minister of Haddington to be admitted into com
munion with them. Mr Gellatly read ample certificates of moral character.
He also assured them that the principal witnesses against him were " in
famous, perjured liars," and that the whole process sprung from " slander,
perfidy, enmity, and cruelty." Of course the prayer of the petition was
cordially granted, "and having received the right hand of fellowship he
took his seat as a member of Presbytery." The Moderator was the Rev.
Robert Cowan, who had come all the way from Newcastle to grace the
occasion. In the following year Mr Gellatly published the History and
Principles of the Presbytery, of which he was now the accredited leader.
It differed from the Relief Synod in repudiating the tenet of free com
munion, and he professed to trace its origin back to Gillespie, Cruden, and
Cowan, twenty-two years before.
Thus things went on in Haddington for other seven years, and then
Mr Gellatly's gifts of speech secured him the pastorate of Castlegarth
Chapel, Newcastle, which had been for a long period connected with the
Church of Scotland. He removed thither in the summer of 1801, and to
improve his income conducted a school, as he had probably done in his
former charge. In keeping with his character as an adventurer he sought
notoriety in 1808 by a general announcement that on a particular Sabbath
he was to deliver "a poetic sermon" for the benefit of a certain institution.
Next year he came out with another versified discourse on "The Lilies of
the Field." Expedients of this kind may have kept him afloat a little longer,
but in 1811 he had to leave Castlegarth. He next appeared in Aberdeen,
where the last chapter of his history comes in under Shiprow Relief Church.
The Relief cause in Haddington was now disgraced beyond recovery.
The party who kept by the Synod made, indeed, a bold move in January
1796 and called the Rev. John Pitcairn of Kelso, a pulpit orator comparable
to Struthers of College Street. They promised him a stipend of .£120, but
he remained in Kelso. Had he taken Haddington the ecclesiastical land
marks there might have been different from what they became.
Second Minister. — WILLIAM REID, from Clackmannan. Ordained, 7th
PRESBYTERY OF EDINBURGH 523
June 1796. The task was hopeless, and on ist July 1800 Mr Reid reported
to the Presbytery that the managers had sold the church, and as they could
not give him a decent subsistence, he felt compelled to resign. On the
1 6th of that month he was loosed from his charge. The Presbytery
were so much dissatisfied with the action of the leading men in this matter
that on 2nd September they declared Haddington congregation excluded
from connection with the Relief, but Haddington congregation was already
out of connection with organised existence. The building passed into the
possession of the Haldanes, and was used fora short time as an Independent
chapel. It then became the property of what is now the West U.P. Church.
Mr Reid was inducted to Colinsburgh in 1803.
HADDINGTON, WEST (ANTIBURGHER)
THE history of this congregation dates from 28th July 1807, the day that
Mr Chalmers' connection with the Antiburgher Presbytery of Edinburgh
was brought to an end. Though of the fourteen elders all except two
adhered to the Synod the party they headed numbered not more than 40
male members. As an interim measure the law courts decreed that Mr
Chalmers should have the meeting-house in the forenoon and the New
Lights in the afternoon and evening. This led Mr Culbertson of Leith, on
preaching the church vacant, to recommend those who had withdrawn from
Mr Chalmers' ministry to take the forenoon instead of the evening for
catechising and the like, " that the Sabbath may be spent in the same
profitable manner as on former occasions." But in June next year they
bought the former Relief church for ^500, of which ^300 was subscribed
and paid within six months. They were now in a fit state for enjoying the
advantage of a settled ministry.
First Minister. — WILLIAM HOGG, from Ayr (now the Original Secession).
The call was signed by 43 male members, and he was ordained, 3ist August
1809. The stipend was to be ^100, with a house, but the Presbytery wished
them to pay besides for a horse or provide their minister with stage-coach
tickets for meetings of Presbytery or Synod. In the first year the income-
amounted to ,£170, and a collection for the Bible Society brought ,£20.
By-and-by the old church and manse were declared to be theirs, the case
being ruled apparently by the decision of the Court of Session, which
assigned Potterrow Church, Edinburgh, to the New Light party. An entry
in the treasurer's books shows that the original property was sold to their
former brethren in November 1812 for ^610. In 1817 a manse was built for
Mr Hogg. In 1838 the communicants were 250 and the stipend was ^120,
with house and garden, and an allowance of between .£12 and ^15 for com
munion and travelling expenses. Of the families, 24 came from beyond four
miles, and there were three services each Sabbath. There was a debt of
^300 on the property, which is to be accounted for by the heightening of the
church walls in 1830 and the putting on of a slate roof, and other improve
ments at an earlier time.
In 1816 Air Hogg got it marked in the Presbytery Minutes that he had
taken no active part in the licensing of a student who had not joined in the
Bond. Covenanting was a matter that weighed much with him, as it did
with Dr Stevenson of Ayr, the minister of his early days. When the Union
was consummated in 1820 he required to have it distinctly recorded in the
Minutes of Synod that he held by his right to teach, preach, and maintain
the doctrines to which he considered himself bound by his ordination vows.
It was the ground occupied by Mr M'Ewen of How'gate and a few others
524 HISTORY OF U.P. CONGREGATIONS
who, though unfavourable to the terms of agreement, did not make common
cause with the Protestors. Mr Hogg also managed to carry in the Anti-
burgher Synod that though Covenanting was to be an open question in the
United Church "every scriptural facility shall be afforded to those who have
clearness to proceed in it." The point involved very little, but it helped to
conciliate. Mr Hogg died, i6th June 1849, m the sixty-eighth year of his
age and fortieth of his ministry. He left two sons in the ministry — David,
formerly of Rattray, and Andrew, missionary in Jamaica (see under Tain).
The congregation now called, first the Rev. John Brown Johnston, and then
Mr James Stevenson, but, from among several calls, the former preferred
Kirkcaldy (Bethelfield) and the latter Dennyloanhead.
Second Minister. — JOHN STEVENSON, from Kilmarnock (Princes Street),
a cousin of Mr James Stevenson, the object of their former choice. Called
also to Lilliesleaf, but accepted Haddington, and was ordained, i8th March
1851*. The call was signed by 164 members, and the stipend was to be
,£150, with the manse. Finding himself unable for the strain involved Mr
Stevenson resigned in August 1854, and the resignation was accepted on
5th September. After a time his name appeared on the probationer list,
and, believing himself restored to vigorous health, he was admitted to
Wigtown in 1856.
Third Minister. — ALEXANDER THOMSON, from Aberdeen (Charlotte
Street). Had been previously called to three churches in Northumberland
— Swalwell, Hexham, and Newcastle (Zion Chapel). Ordained, 26th Sep
tember 1855. In 1864 Mr Thomson was called to Glasgow (Regent Place),
but the position had its difficulties, and he remained in Haddington. That
year the stipend was raised from .£150 to ,£180, and in 1875 to ,£200. In
the latter part of 1866 the congregation memorialised the Presbytery to
appoint a committee to visit Haddington with a vie\v to union with the East
Church. There had been a movement in that direction two years before,
Mr Thomson being specially favourable, and though his was the larger and
abler congregation he spoke of the two ministers sharing alike. Now the
East Church was vacant, so that there were fewer difficulties to be overcome.
The Presbytery's committee found that the membership of both congrega
tions had been declining for years, that in the case of the East Church it was
down now to 120, while the West had about double that number, and as the
population of the town and neighbourhood was stationary decided increase
was not to be looked for. But the position taken up by the East congrega
tion barred further procedure, and all the more so that they meant to
continue self-supporting. Perhaps the very earnestness of the stronger con
gregation to secure union helped to defeat its own ends. After lengthened
conference with both parties the committee recommended the Presbytery to
take no further action in the matter.
On the day that this affair ended the congregation resolved either to
have the present church completely remodelled or to arrange for the building
of another. The former alternative was adopted, and the outlay of nearly
^i 100 was met — ,£400 by subscriptions and .£700 by a bazaar. In the early
part of 1890 Mr Thomson's health gave way, and he died suddenly on gth
July, in the sixty-second year of his age and thirty-fifth of his ministry.
Fourth Minister. — WILLIAM B. TOUGH, M.A., from Montrose (John
Street). The call was signed by exactly the same number as Mr Thomson's
had been — 153 members and 30 adherents. The ordination took place, 27th
January 1891. The membership at the close of 1899 was somewhat over
200, and the stipend was ,£200, with a manse. Times are changed since the
close of Mr Hogg's ministry, when the members were drawn from twelve
parishes.
PRESBYTERY OF EDINBURGH 525
DUN BAR (ANTIBURGHER)
IN 1740 and 1741 we find traces of sermon at Dunbar, as included in "the
correspondence of East Lothian," but it was at Eastbarns, a small village in
the parish of Innerwick, between two and three miles farther east, that the
first Secession church in the district was erected. This was in 1763, but
the records of the Antiburgher session of Hacldington show that on I7th
September 1758 some members in the eastern part of that congregation
applied to the Presbytery for sermon, and after a time occasional supply
was allowed them. This led to a petition in 1760 from Eastbarns and the
country around for a disjunction. The petition was granted and a con
gregation formed. Next comes an extract from the Minutes of Earlston
Presbytery disjoining the people about Old Cambus and Oldhamstocks
from Duns that they might be annexed to the new formation, but it \vas
stipulated that the place of worship should be brought no nearer the mother
church than Eastbarns, about twelve miles off.
First Minister. — ROBERT CUNNINGHAM, born at Comrie, Culross parish.
While Mr Cunningham was but a student he was married at Culfargie " to
Miss Agnes Moncrieff, second daughter of Mr Alexander Moncrieff, minister
of Abernethy," a relationship which bespeaks a young man of gentle blood.
He heired his father before this, and he had much more in prospect. His
mother was Hannah Erskine, who in her widowhood was married to the
Rev. Adam Gib. Her brother, John Erskine, advocate, owned the estate
of Balgonie, in the parish of Culross, and to his possessions his sister's son
was the heir-apparent. On 28th April 1762 Mr Cunningham was ordained
minister of Eastbarns. At this time he had three elders, and in a few
months it was arranged to have four in addition — one within the bounds
of Cockburnspath and Old Cambus on the south, one in Oldhamstocks,
one in Dunbar, and one in the parish of Spott. The entire membership
cannot be ascertained, but towards the end of the century there were 80 in
Innerwick parish alone. In the earlier Minutes of session we find, as usual,
proofs of strict watchfulness over the deportment of the people. On one
occasion two men were dealt with for an encroachment on the sacredness of
of the Lord's Day. Their father was buried on Sabbath, and they called the
undertaker out of Spott Church to settle accounts with him. As this was a
work neither of necessity nor mercy they were rebuked and admonished
before the session.
Mr Cunningham was served heir to his uncle in June 1767, and before
the close of that year the relation between him and the Antiburgher Synod
got strained to the point of severance. He had been in friendly intercourse
with three of the Burgher ministers — Messrs Hutton of Dalkeith, Smith of
Dunfermlinc, and Patison of Edinburgh, of whom the first two were under
sentence of excommunication. He had, moreover, heard Mr Hutton return
thanks " at some entertainment," and he had joined with Mr Smith " in
going about worship next day in some private family." Called to account
for his behaviour he expressed scruples about the higher censures inflicted
on " the separating brethren," but the Presbytery agreed that they had no
precedent for allowing members of court to call in question their received
principles. After protracted dealings Mr Cunningham was brought to
write down an acknowledgment that, by holding communion with the fore-
said ministers, he had "trampled underfoot a material branch of the
Testimony among our hands." He was then rebuked and admonished,
with certification. Mr Gib was present at this meeting, and the proceedings
bear the impress of his hand throughout, and the thought that his own stepson
and the son-in-law of Culfargie, the two foremost men in that excommunica-
526 HISTORY OF U.P. CONGREGATIONS
tion work, should have set at nought the highest censures of the Church was
enough to irritate milder tempers than his and provoke severity.
Five years later matters assumed a yet more threatening look. First of
all, the session of Eastbarns petitioned to be disjoined from Edinburgh and
annexed to Earlston. Mr Cunningham had given them to understand that
unless this transference were effected he would not continue their minister
beyond Martinmas. The Presbytery having expressed the suspicion that he
intended to give up with his witnessing profession, or in other words, that
he meant to leave them altogether, he replied that he was of the same
principles as ever, but declined all further explanations. The wish for a
transference to another Presbytery was prompted, we believe, by aversion
to be longer under the sceptre of Mr Gib. There was evidence years before
this that the stepfather and the stepson did not see eye to eye. When the
Presbytery decided to rebuke the three elders with whom Mr Gib was at
chronic warfare Mr Cunningham, who was Moderator, declined to inflict the
sentence, and another took his place, but when Mr Gib's time came to be
admonished he went through the exercise without compunction. There may
not have been much kindly feeling between the two at any time, and there
may have been further divergence after the death of the wife and mother.
But the Presbytery refused the petition from Eastbarns and decided that
Mr Cunningham should remain among them, whereupon he read and laid
upon the table the demission of his charge.
Availing himself of the freedom this gave him Mr Cunningham went
over on a visit of two days to Mr Smith of Dunfermline, and when there
"joined and took employment in family worship." This was going deeper
into defection than ever, and behoved to be dealt with apart from his
demission. The charge was acknowledged before the Presbytery, and after
much reasoning, during which he refused all blame, and expressed general
dissatisfaction with the censures the Synod passed on " the separating
brethren," they suspended him from the exercise of his ministry. In this
measure they were all agreed, except the elder from Whitburn, and cer
tainly in what they did they kept clear of the suspicion that they favoured
the wealthy, or " had men's persons in respect because of advantage." At
next meeting an adjustment was arrived at in a way that could hardly have
been foreseen. The session of Eastbarns had sent in a petition for Mr
Cunningham's restoration to his ministry among them, and they presented
it in the expectation that he would be found ready to give the Presbytery
all needed satisfaction. The reluctance of the people to part with him, taken
along with the influence of the Moncrieff family, and specially of his own
wife, had proved, as we may surmise, too much for his stability of purpose.
He now came forward, confessing his faults in detail, coupled with his
resolve "to guard against all such behaviour in time coming." The question
being put, it carried unanimously to Relax and Restore, and there was not
even a word of admonition subjoined.
From this time forward Mr Cunningham "kept the even tenor of his
way "and gave his co-presbyters no annoyance, though his leanings were
on the side of liberality. Thus when the Synod in 1783 laid old Mr Smyton
of Kilmaurs under suspension for contumacy on the "Lifter" question he
entered his solitary dissent, placing himself once more in direct antagonism
to Mr Gib. In Rowland Hill's Journal of his evangelistic tour through Scot
land in 1798 he records his visit to Dunbar as follows : — "After the service
was most affectionately invited to Mr Cunningham's, near that place. Mrs
Cunningham came to meet us on that occasion, and took us home in her
carriage. Mr Cunningham, though a gentleman of fortune, has dedicated
himself to the work of the ministry, and for many years has laboured in con-
PRESBYTERY OF EDINBURGH 527
nection with the Antiburghers. We found the order of the house to be hos
pitality and friendship to the very utmost." The great evangelist from the
south, we find, remained there two days. It was the second Mrs Cunningham,
it maybe explained, who met him at Dunbar and drove him home in her car
riage, Agnes Moncrieff, Culfargie's daughter, having died in 1775, at the age of
thirty-five. To entertain an itinerant preacher of the Episcopal Church was
scarcely less offensive than holding Christian fellowship with Burgher
ministers who were lying under censure, and, though times had changed
within the last thirty years, it was an outrunning of rigid Antiburgher
sympathies. Mr Cunningham died at Bowerhouses, a property of his own
near Dunbar, on 26th January 1801, in the sixty-third year of his age and
thirty-ninth of his ministry. The only encroachment on the wide bounds of
Eastbarns congregation in his time arose from the formation of an Anti-
burgher church at Coldingham, which removed soon after to Ayton, some
seventeen miles distant. From his successor's call being signed by 85 male
members we may infer that he left a communion roll of between 200 and
300. Members of Mr Cunningham's family are afterwards met with in
better-class circles, but it is enough for denominational purposes to state
that the youngest daughter of his eldest son, the proprietor of Balgonie, was
married to the Rev. James Young, Secession minister of Tillicoultry.
Second Minister. — ANDREW BAYNE, from Kinross (East). Called also
to Lockerbie, but appointed to Eastbarns, and ordained there, 27th May
1801. The original design was to have Mr Bayne for junior minister, Mr
Cunningham having moved for a colleague nearly a year before his death,
and in July 1800 the congregation petitioned the session to ask the Presby
tery for supply, owing, they said, to "the long and heavy affliction with
which our worthy pastor has been trysted." Matters were simplified, as
the senior minister needed no retiring allowance, but death intervened
before the collegiate relation could be formed. Mr Bayne's stipend was to
be ,£70, with a manse. The congregation is said to have been weakened a
few years after by the loss of a few families, who withdrew on " Old Light "
grounds, when the Constitutional Presbytery was formed, though there was
no church nearer for them than Haddington. On 2ist February 1820 a
petition was presented " to the session and other heirs of the property here
requesting their sanction to the removal of the congregation from Eastbarns
to Dunbar." The Union between the two great branches of the Secession
being now in near prospect this transition would be looked on in the
interests of self-preservation. With a Burgher church at Dunbar on the
one side and at Stockbridge on the other supplies were certain to be
arrested from both extremities on the amalgamation taking place, and as
it was from Dunbar that a great part of the membership came it was
reckoned sound policy to remove thither. "The heirs," being much at a
loss what to do, agreed to let the business lie over till after the Union, but
the people were urgent, and on 27th March they petitioned anew for liberty
to sell, and of the seven present all agreed except one to allow the property
to be disposed of in the interests of the congregation. This led to the
erection of the East Church, Dunbar, with 600 sittings, to which the con
gregation removed in November 1820. In June 1827 Mr Bayne was visited
one Sabbath morning with a total loss of memory, and paralysis developed
itself three months after, disqualifying him for ministerial work.
Third Minister.— JOHN SCOTT, from Jedburgh (Castle Street). The call
was signed by 159 members, and Mr Scott was ordained, nth February 1828.
The old minister was to have .£55, with manse and garden, and the colleague
^75, with sacramental expenses. To meet these requirements must have
involved a considerable strain, and evidently they had not increased in
528 HISTORY OF U.P. CONGREGATIONS
numbers since the time when 85 male members signed the call to Mr Bayne.
Eastbarns was only one Antiburgher congregation out of several within the
bounds of Edinburgh Presbytery on which the Union of 1820 acted injuri
ously, and the removal to Dunbar, where there was a much stronger Seces
sion congregation, only lengthened out the process of decline. Mr Bayne
died, 28th May 1832, in the sixty-fifth year of his age, having completed the
thirty-first of his ministry the day before.* Mr Scott now got possession
of the manse, and his stipend was raised to ^100. In 1840 the Debt
Liquidating Board reported that a debt of ^420 was to be reduced to £220
by the people raising ,£150 and receiving a grant of ,£50. The membership
was stated to consist at this time of over 200. But difficulties increased, and
from about 1857 the managers' books reveal ever and again half-yearly
deficiencies of not less than ^20. The vessel was water-logged, and the
wonder is that the cause was not abandoned in despair. In 1859, the debt
having risen anew to ^450, the Board offered ,£150 if the people would
raise the other ^300. At this critical time a tried friend of the congregation,
a Mr Bell of Liverpool, undertook to give them a donation of ^100, and,
thus encouraged, they set about facing the hard conditions, and the shore
was reached. However, the advantage gained was counterbalanced by an
engagement they came under in 1863 to raise the stipend ^20. The old
discrepancy between expenditure and income now reappeared, though by
special efforts and accommodation bills the managers contrived to meet
their liabilities.
In January 1865 a meeting of the congregation was held to deliberate
upon the propriety of a union with the other congregation in Dunbar, when
a member of Presbytery presided. There was a large attendance, and it
might have been expected that the proposal would find favour in their eyes,
as promising an outlet from their straitened state, but instead of this the
bulk of those present voted that it was inexpedient to proceed further with
the consideration of the question. The other motion was that in their
present circumstances union was highly desirable, and when this was
defeated the clerk of the congregation retired from all connection with the
management, as " he considered it utterly impossible to carry out the plans
of the majority." The West Church being also in deep waters the Presby
tery were prepared to recommend amalgamation, but some of them talked
of better prospects through increase of population, and many, knowing the
state of feeling which had long existed in Dunbar, believed that the scheme,
if insisted on, would do harm instead of good. Three weeks after this
Mr Scott expressed a wish for a colleague to take the entire pulpit work,
and with considerable difficulty it was arranged, under the Presbytery's
auspices, that he should have the occupancy of the manse and an allowance
of ^20 a year. A call followed to Mr Robert Scott, and when he saw fit to
prefer Logiealmond blame was imputed to the retiring minister. They next
called Mr Charles Jerdan, each of the calls being subscribed by between
1 20 and 130 members. This entailed a second disappointment, Mr Jerdan
accepting Dennyloanhead.
Fourth Minister.— WILLIAM WHITEFIELD, M.A., from Biggar (now
Gillespie Church). Ordained as colleague to Mr Scott, 2Oth March 1867.
The stipend from the congregation was to be ^120, but in the raising of it
* Mr Bayne's son James finished his theological course in 1836, but did not take
licence in the home Church. He disappears till 1843 or 1844, when he became
colleague to the Rev. John Brown, Londonderry, Nova Scotia, and continued in
that relation till Mr Brown's death in 1848. He afterwards was transferred to
Pictou, had the degree of D. D., and died, gth December 1876, in the sixty-first
year of his age and thirty-third of his ministry.
PRESBYTERY OF EDINBURGH 529
and of Mr Scott's allowance besides there was undue effort required.
When the West congregation fell vacant in 1874 by the removal of
Mr Dunlop to Pollokshaws the question of union was again brought up, but
the. congregation unanimously declared that the proposal could not be
entertained unless Mr Whitefield were to be minister of the united con
gregation. Such, no doubt, would have been the simple course, and it was
commendable in the people to guard against the enforced severance of the
pastoral tie even for the sake of union, but their decision only lengthened
out the struggle for other ten years. Mr Scott, the senior minister, died,
I4th December 1875, m tne seventy-fourth year of his age and forty-eighth
of his ministry. The manse now came into the hands of the congregation,
but instead of being occupied by the minister it was let at ^25 or ,£27
a year, an arrangement which helped the right side of the treasurer's books.
In other respects the tide was going back, and the seat-rents, which brought
some ^50 a year in the early part of Mr Whitefield's ministry, came down
to little more than half that sum. Members would be gradually dropping
away, and the situation of congregational affairs prevented increase. At last
a winding-up was insisted on by the Supplementing Board, and on 7th
April 1885 Mr Whitefield's resignation was accepted. Everything was
already adjusted at Dunbar, the congregation having unanimously agreed
to offer no objections, "while expressing their continued attachment to
Mr Whitefield and their grateful appreciation of his services as their pastor."
With like unanimity it was resolved not to ask for the continuance of gospel
ordinances among them.
Mr Whitefield after a time sailed for America, and is now minister at
Marlette, Michigan, where he is certain to find himself among happier sur
roundings than in Dunbar and with larger scope for his acknowledged gifts of
thought and composition. His people on bidding him farewell handed over
to him a substantial sum of money in testimony of their sympathy and
regard. Having ascertained that the right to dispose of the proceeds arising
from the sale of the property lay entirely with them, they resolved that after
debts were paid and other obligations discharged he should receive the
balance. In the end it was intimated to the Presbytery that the amount
obtained for church and manse was ,£755. From this sum there fell to be
deducted ,£85, which it had been arranged to retain for behoof of aged
members, and ^40 as a gratuity to the precentor, who had conducted the
psalmody for seventeen years. After everything was paid Mr Whitefield
received .£478. On Sabbath, igth April 1885, the congregation was
formally dissolved. The Rev. James Stevenson of Leith preached, and at
the close of the forenoon service there was a looking back over the 125
years of its existence and gratitude expressed for the privileges enjoyed,
first at Eastbarns and then at Dunbar, during that lengthened period. It
was hoped that the three elders would be willing to accept of membership in
the West Church session with the concurrence of that congregation, but this
proposal they did not go in with. The clerk of Presbytery afterwards
reported that he had given disjunction certificates to 52 members.
DUNBAR (BURGHER)
WE find from the session minutes of Haddington (East) that on 8th August
1764 the Burgher families in Dunbar and the adjacent parishes having been
disjoined from the congregation by Edinburgh Presbytery two elders and
one deacon had their names dropped from the session list. That brings us
very near the date of this church's formation. It was not till March of the
2L
530 HISTORY OF U.P. CONGREGATIONS
following year that the vacancy occurred in the parish church which led to
the unacceptable settlement to which Dr M'Kelvie has ascribed the origin of
I) unbar (West). The presentee was the Rev. George Bruce, who had been
twenty-one years minister of Minto. "There was a pretty numerous op
position," we read in Morran's Annals, "but the weakness of Mr Bruce's
voice was the only objection, his opponents expressing their esteem for him
as a man of piety, learning, and experience." Mr Bruce was inducted by
order of the Assembly, 4th July 1766. This intrusion gave the Secession
cause a large accession of strength in and around Dunbar. The first church
was built in 1767, and the expenses were wholly met by subscription. But
before this the congregation called Mr James Moir, for whom other three
calls came up to the Synod in April 1 766, when Cumbernauld was preferred,
Dunbar being struck off by the first vote.
First Minister. — JOHN HENDERSON, from Jedburgh (Blackfriars).
Called also to Musselburgh, but U unbar now got precedence. Ordained,
22nd April 1767. Next day the session met, the members being the two
elders and the deacon who had been disjoined from Haddington. It was
mentioned that in the congregation there were several who had held office
in the Established Church, five in Dunbar and one in Stenton, and it was
agreed to invite them to seats in the session, due intimation to be made to
the congregation. There was an election by-and-by of other nine elders for
the different districts, which should give a session nearly twenty strong.
The stipend at first was ,£70, with a house and garden, and at this figure it
remained till 1807, when it was raised ^20, making it ,£90, besides ^5 for
each communion, the minister to pay for the elements.
In 1793 the bounds of the congregation were encroached on by the
formation of a church at East Linton, six miles to the west, but the session
acted gracefully in the matter, the few who were present granting the dis
junction at once, as the business was urgent, and " knowing it was agreeable
to all the members." This took 41 names from the communion roll. A new
church was erected in 1813, with sittings for 700. The roof of the old build
ing was in a dangerous condition, and after balancing for a time between
extensive repairs and a new construction the congregation decided almost
unanimously for the latter. The cost was nearly £\ 100, besides the price
received for the old church. Mr Henderson died, 5th February 1816, in the
forty-ninth year of his ministry and, as the tombstone bears, in the seventy-
seventh year of his age. He was seized with apoplexy one evening on re
turning from pastoral duty, and only survived a few days. Up till the
Sabbath before his death he had never been prevented discharging his public
functions for a single day by illness. Three sermons of his, entitled " The
Legal Temper Displayed," were published in 1779. Two sons-in-law of
Mr Henderson's were Secession ministers — the Rev. Benoni Black of
Haddington and the Rev. David Watson of Linlithgow. During the
vacancy in Dunbar the congregation called Mr Archibald Baird, whom the
Synod appointed to Auchtermuchty (East). The call was signed by 348
members.
Second Minister. — ALEXANDER JACK, son of the Rev. Dr Jack, Man
chester. Ordained, I7th February 1818. At the time of Mr Jack's ordina
tion the debt on the whole property amounted to ^1700, but under his early
ministry there was a springtide of prosperity, and the managers in the
course of five or six years cleared off ^1000. Even so late as 1848 there
were 334 names on the communion roll, and in 1851 there were 367. But
in the country districts, from which a considerable part of the congregation
was drawn, there was a depopulating process going on, and decline was
accelerated by some irritation in connection with the Temperance movement.
PRESBYTERY OF EDINBURGH 531
In 1860 it was deemed proper that Mr Jack, whose health had suffered a
severe breakdown in 1849, should be provided with a colleague, the arrange
ment ultimately come to being that he should have ^50 a year, with the
manse, and the junior minister ,£120. A call was addressed soon after to
Mr William G. Fraser, preacher, Blairgowrie, subscribed by 130 members,
but he accepted Sutton, Lancashire, where he was ordained, i5th January
1861.* In connection with his declinature of Dunbar the harmony of the
session was disturbed, and three of the elders left and went to the other
church.
Third Minister,— JAMES ANDERSON, from Edinburgh (Lauriston Place).
Ordained with unanimity as colleague to Mr Jack, 1 3th July 1861. Owing
to family circumstances he resigned by advice of the Presbytery on roth
May 1864, and the commissioners from the congregation acquiescing, the
resignation was at once accepted. Mr Anderson's name was then placed on
the preachers' list, and on 26th June 1866 he was admitted to Whitehaven.
In 1876 he gave up his charge, was received into the Episcopal Church, and
ordained as a deacon. In 1877 he was admitted to priests' orders, and ob
tained the benefice of Holy Trinity Church, Whitehaven. In 1889 he was
promoted to be vicar there, an office which he held in 1900. It was valued
at ,£300 a year.
In the end of 1864 Dr Jack, who had received the degree of D.D. from
Monmouth College, Illinois, in 1862, retired from active duty "in consequence
of bodily infirmity and the reduced state of the congregation." He was also
to vacate the manse, and the people agreed to give him ^30 a year, regretting
that they could undertake nothing more. The membership at this time was
only 125, and the other congregation in Dunbar being also in a weak state
a union was proposed, but, as has been seen under the former heading, the
attempt proved abortive. Dr Jack now removed to Musselburgh, where he
died, 5th August 1868, in the seventy-fifth year of his age and fifty-first of
his ministry. A volume of his discourses, with a befitting Memoir by his
son-in-law, the Rev. James Ker of Leicester, was published in the following
year. The Rev. George Barlas of Musselburgh was also son-in-law to Dr
Jack, and one of the Doctor's sons was a minister in the United States.t
Fourth Minister. — JAMES MERCER DUNLOP, from Edinburgh (Rose
Street). Accepted Dunbar in preference to Wolverhampton, and was or
dained as colleague to Dr Jack, 27th June 1865. Loosed, 7th July 1874, on
accepting a call to Pollokshaws. The names on the communion roll were
now 170, and the stipend was ^150, besides the manse. On Mr Dunlop's
removal from Dunbar the Presbytery brought a suggestion for union before
the other congregation, but nothing followed.
Fifth Minister. — JOHN SUTHERLAND, M.A., from Lossiemouth, brother
* Mr Fraser resigned Sutton in April 1872 and emigrated to Australia. He was
inducted to Essendon on 22nd April 1873 in connection with the Presbyterian
Church of Victoria. Resigned, and the pastoral tie dissolved, I5th February 1887.
He then removed to New South Wales, where he held a charge for some years. He
now resides in Sydney.
t Mr Alexander B. Jack entered our Divinity Hall in 1853, and attended two
sessions. He left very abruptly for the United States in 1855. Having taken
divinity classes at Newburgh two winters he was licensed by the Associate Reformed
Presbytery of New York and ordained over the Union Church, Newburgh, 25th June
1857. Having declined to take part in the Union of 1858, by which the U.P.
Church of North America was formed, he afterwards joined the Presbyterian Church.
In this connection he was inducted to Hazleton, Pennsylvania, where he died, 2 1st
May 1886, in the fifty-fifth year of his age and twenty-ninth of his ministry. His son,
the Rev. Robert Jack, is now pastor of what was his father's church.
532 HISTORY OF U.P. CONGREGATIONS
of the Rev. Archibald Sutherland, Perth (York Place). Ordained, 8th June
1875. In 1882 the communion roll reached the number of 226, and in the
following year the stipend was raised to ,£200, so that the congregation
became self-supporting. In 1886 the membership rose from 233 to 291,
owing mainly to accessions from the Free Church, in which differences had
arisen over the choice of a minister. In December 1883 Mr Sutherland
intimated to the Presbytery that Mr Thomas Drysdale of Liverpool, a gentle
man who had been a member of the church in his earlier days, had generously
proposed to build at his own expense a new manse for the congregation.
This was done in the incoming year at a cost of ,£1375. In September 1894
a debt of ^250 was cleared off, and the congregation was now in possession
not only of a new manse but of a renovated church, with hall and session-
house, all unburdened, the cost having been about ^3000. The membership
in December 1899 was 242, and the stipend ^200, with the manse.
MUSSELBURGH (BURGHER)
THE history of this congregation will be fitly introduced by some reference
to the Rev. John Williamson of Inveresk, the parish to which Musselburgh
belongs. Mr Williamson was a son of the Rev. David Williamson of St
Cuthbert's, Edinburgh, a sufferer in the times of the persecution. He him
self was one of the twelve Marrow men, and a pillar of evangelical truth.
But though at one with the Erskines and their brethren in other respects
he set himself against them when they declared their secession from the
Established Church. Hence came his "Seasonable Testimony" in 1738,
and his "Plain Dealing" in 1739. One argument he much relied on was
that men like Joseph of Arimathaea and Nicodemus, bad as the Jewish Church
was in their times, never thought of withdrawing from her connection. But
in the face of Mr Williamson's " Seasonable Testimony" a Praying Society in
Fisherrow acceded to the Associate Presbytery in October 1738. To see
some of his people deserting his ministry stirred in him some bitterness of
spirit, and in his "Plain Dealing" he animadverts on Mr John Hunter,
"pretended preacher," having been employed to preach in his parish on a
recent Sabbath, but he tells that his own congregation " was not very observ
ably thin in the forenoon, and those who were absent went more from
curiosity than other regards." He doubted if those who permanently withdrew
would make up more than 20, and he adds: " I have a high regard for about
three or four of these, but a good many of the rest are partly very weak and
ignorant, and easily imposed on, and others of them blamable and offensive
in their walk." Mr Williamson was not spared to see much more. He died
in February 1740, in the thirty-eighth year of his ministry and at the age
of sixty, leaving an honoured memory behind him.
Other accessions followed, and the Seceders in Dalkeith, Newbattle, and
Inveresk were grouped together, but almost from the first the people about
Musselburgh insisted on " diets of sermon " for themselves. At the Breach
of 1747 most of the Inveresk Seceders took the Burgher side, but it was not
till the end of 1765 that Musselburgh became the seat of a Burgher congre
gation. On 1 9th October of the preceding year, as we find from the Minutes
of Dalkeith session (Buccleuch Street), the people about Musselburgh and
Prestonpans brought forward a paper earnestly desiring a disjunction through
the Presbytery. In September 1765 the Synod decided not to disjoin for the
present, but that Musselburgh should have supply from Mr Hutton four
Sabbaths during the next twelvemonth, and eight more as the Presbytery
might appoint. But before three months had expired the end was gained,
PRESBYTERY OF EDINBURGH 533
probably owing to Dalkeith people choosing to be done with Musselburgh
rather than have part of their minister's services given to that place. Ac
cordingly, on 5th December 1765 four elders had their names dropped from
the roll of session, they, with the people of Inveresk, Prestonpans, and Cock-
pen, having been disjoined by Edinburgh Presbytery. In March 1767 the
congregation called Mr John Henderson, who was appointed to Dunbar.
First Minister. — jAiMES SCOTT, from Jedburgh (Blackfriars). Ordained,
2oth April 1768. The stipend was to be ^70, and the church had been
opened in the preceding year. In 1769 they went on with the building of a
manse, and the minister's lodgings were paid for till it was ready for occu
pancy. The income and expenditure for the two years after Whitsunday
1768 were ^280. From "money rent" paid on borrowed sums we calculate
the debt which remained on the property to have been not more than ^250.
In the Autobiography of Dr Hay, Kinross, we have a glimpse of Mr Scott
in his home life : " The minister himself," he wrote, " was a lively man, and
the promoter of cheerfulness in others. Seldom have I seen innocent mirth
so fully encouraged and so heartily enjoyed as in this domestic circle, and I
felt it to be both an honour and happiness to be permitted so frequently to
enter it." After he had been thirteen years in Musselburgh Mr Scott was
called to Bristo Church, Edinburgh, but the Synod declined to translate.
He died, 22nd March 1786, in the forty-third year of his age and eighteenth
of his ministry. In a brief newspaper notice at the time he was characterised
as " one of the brightest ornaments of the society of which he was a member."
His son James became the first minister of Portsburgh Church, Edinburgh,
but died early, and a daughter was the wife of the Rev. James Laurie, D.D.,
Washington (see Mauchline).
During this vacancy the congregation called Mr John Dick, whom the
Synod, in compliance with his own wishes, sent to Slateford. Musselburgh
people remonstrated against this decision to the Presbytery, and wished the
ordination delayed, but the day was already fixed, and the remonstrance
went for nothing. They then called Mr Thomas Aitchison, afterwards of
Kirkgate, Leith, but owing to opposition and the deficiency of signatures the
call was not sustained.
Second Minister.— ALEXANDER BLACK. Mr Black was a native of
Dunfermline, and connected by birth with both sections of the Secession, his
father attending the Antiburgher church at Cairneyhill and his mother
belonging to the Burgher church in the town. In childhood and early youth
he went with his mother to the nearer church, and thus passed on to the
Burgher Hall. The call from Musselburgh was sustained, but the Presby
tery withheld approval of Mr Black's trial discourses. It was thought he
ascribed too much to man's exertions, but they hoped he \vould throw aside
suspicious phrases and attend to the godly edifying of the Church more
than to ornaments of style. Other subjects being assigned him he satisfied
objections, and his ordination was about to be appointed when it was
brought up against him that since last meeting he had preached his rejected
sermon to an ordinary congregation. Being interrogated he admitted that
he did so, but explained that it was simply because he had that sermon
better at command than any other. He was sorry now for the fault he had
committed, and with this acknowledgment the Presbytery rested satisfied,
and he was ordained at Musselburgh, 27th August 1788. The stipend was
to be ^70 a year, " together with an house and garden." In 1794 the number
in Inveresk parish belonging to the Burgher church, young and old, is given
in the Old Statistical History as 559, and there would be perhaps nearly half
that number from other parishes. The twenty of whom Mr Williamson spoke
must have made mighty increase since then. From the titles of two sermons
534 HISTORY OF U.P. CONGREGATIONS
he published towards the end of the century, " National Blessings con
sidered" and "The Necessity of Public Reformation," Mr Black seems
in his preaching to have brought Christianity to bear upon civil and social
affairs.
The present church, with 600 sittings, was built in 1820 at a cost of
^1200. In the beginning of 1833 the congregation asked regular pulpit
supply with a view to a colleague, the senior minister to have ^120, with the
manse, and the junior ^80, and also a house, or an equivalent. In their
choice of Mr William Thomson they came into collision with Slateford, as
is fully detailed under that heading, and the Synod appointed him to Mussel-
burgh. After several windings the case returned to the Synod in September
1833, when an unhappy element was introduced. Mr Thomson had repre
sented to the commissioners from Musselburgh that he was averse to settle
down there, because he was informed the old minister had spoken to his
disparagement. Mr Black produced a letter from the alleged informer
denying that the charge had a foundation in anything he ever said, and Mr
Thomson confessed himself guilty of imprudence in repeating what was
given him in confidence. Mr Black was held to be exculpated, but after
what had happened the Synod cancelled Mr Thomson's appointment to
Musselburgh and sent him to Slateford.
Third Minister. — GEORGE HILL, M.A., from Queensferry. Mr Hill had
been ordained at Warrington, in Lancashire, igth August 1830, after de
clining a call to succeed Dr Waugh in Wells Street, London. Warrington
congregation was peculiarly organised. It had come over from Lady Hunt
ingdon's connection, and a clause in the trust-deed by which the chapel was
held bound them to have the Church of England service used at public
worship. For a time the reading and responses came first, those of the
congregation who had a favour for them being in attendance. Others
entered when Mr Hill's time arrived to appear in the pulpit. Some wished
the trust-deed altered, but the trustees were hostile ; others suggested to Mi-
Hill that he should read the English service himself, but to this he could
not agree. It ended with his resignation, which was accepted on loth
December 1833. On returning to the preachers' list he speedily received
calls to Bo'ness and Musselburgh, and having preferred the latter he was
inducted as colleague to Mr Black, 2oth May 1834. In the following year
the communicants were returned at 325, of whom 24 were from the parishes
of Prestonpans, Duddingston, and Liberton. The debt on the property
amounted to ,£500. The stipend arrangements were much altered, Mr Hill
having ,£100, with an allowance of ,£15 for house rent, and Mr Black only
^52, with manse, garden, and ^10 for sacramental expenses. About the
end of 1837 Mr Hill had threatenings of consumption, and it is mentioned
that on returning in a canal boat from seeing a near relative who was
seriously ill he went outside to get away from the talk of some blasphemers.
Exposure to the air of a cold winter night aggravated the ailment, and he
died, igth March 1838, in the thirty-fifth year of his age and eighth of his
ministry. His widow, a daughter of the Rev. Dr Stewart of Liverpool, was
left with three young children.
Three months after Mr Hill's death the congregation called Mr William
Marshall, who preferred Kirkgate, Leith, and in the following year Mr
William Glen Moncrieff, son of the Rev. John Moncrieff, formerly of Blacks-
well, Hamilton. On i4th May 1839 Mr Moncrieff's trials were finished, and
his ordination was appointed for the 3Oth, when rumours compromising his
moral character were alleged, and the Presbytery passed behind the curtain
to consider them. An adjournment of a week was decided on, and three or
four preachers were cited to appear as witnesses. A third meeting was held
PRESBYTERY OF EDINBURGH 535
the following week, and Mr Moncrieff having been convicted of intemperance
and reckless speech, was suspended from preaching and from membership
sine die. It was now within two days of the time fixed for the ordina
tion, but the session got official notice that procedure was arrested. As
months passed partisan feeling grew strong in the church, and on the evening
of 28th November the Presbytery met with the congregation, when, according
to the newspaper report, there was bitterness on both sides, and the pro
ceedings were continued to a late hour. At the close the majority resolved
that, in defiance of the sentence of suspension, Mr Moncrieff should preach
to them on Sabbath first. This bold step both on his part and theirs was
taken, and the Assembly Rooms being obtained for services morning and
evening they were crowded to suffocation. Next Tuesday the session
represented to the Presbytery that the greater part of the congregation left
their own place of worship in the forenoon and went after Mr Moncrieff.
To stay the breach they wished the services of an acceptable preacher for
some months, and the Presbytery undertook to meet their wishes. The
large party who broke away built a neat chapel, with 300 sittings, for Mr
Moncrieff in 1843. He strengthened his position by marrying the daughter
of his chief supporter, a magistrate of the burgh, and a former elder in the
old congregation.
Fourth Minister. — JAMES ROBERTSON, from Stirling (Erskine Church).
The congregation in its broken state was advantaged almost beyond
parallel in obtaining the location of Mr Robertson. While thus engaged
he was called in succession to Partick, Alloa (Townhead), and Dunfermline
(Maygate). Musselburgh came in last, and to smooth the way Mr Black
gave in the demission of his charge, wishing "to remove any obstruction
which might exist to Mr Robertson preferring the call." The demission was
accepted, ist September 1840, and Mr Robertson was ordained on 27th
October. Of the session, six followed Mr Moncrieff and only three remained
behind, and while Mr Moncrieffs call was signed by 256 members Mr
Robertson's had only 82. Mr Black was to have ,£45 a year, with the
manse, and the people could not promise Mr Robertson more than .£80, but
the Presbytery undertook to make up the deficiency. But now under Mr
Robertson's preaching, " gospel all through," there was to be steady growth,
and the binding up with kindly hand of what he called " a crippled and
bleeding cause." In July 1842 he was tempted to leave for Lothian Road,
Edinburgh, but he remained other six years at his post in Musselburgh. Mr
Black, the retired minister, died, 3oth January 1846, in the eighty-second
year of his age and fifty-eighth of his ministry : it was " the standing still of
the weary, worn-out springs of life." His youngest son Patrick, who became
a licentiate of the Established Church, died, 3ist January 1847, at Wor
cester, Cape of Good Hope. In 1835 Mr Black published an impressive
discourse, occasioned by the loss of nine fishermen at sea, who had been
particularly endeared to him, he said, by "their use of the Scriptures, their
religious impressions, the uniform tenor of their lives, and their assiduity in
the performance of their duties."
On 8th August 1848 Mr Robertson was loosed from his charge to engage
in the building up of a new cause in Duncan Street, Edinburgh. The con
gregation called Mr John C. Baxter soon after, but he accepted Wishart
Church, Dundee.
Fifth Minister. — HUGH TAIT, B.A., a native of Fala, and brother of the
Rev. William Tait, Ecclefechan. Ordained, igth July 1849, the ca^ being
signed by 153 members and 30 ordinary hearers, the stipend to be ,£162 in
all. Mr Moncrieff was still holding on, but his congregation was in a dwin-
ing state. In 1843 a petition of his for admission was laid before the United
536 HISTORY OF U.P. CONGREGATIONS
Secession Synod, but he wrote for delay on the ground of inability to
appear, and it never came up again. In October 1849 tne Evangelical
Union Conference received a report from a committee which had been
appointed to confer with him about his reception into their communion.
By this time he had got in among some doctrinal vagaries, which blocked
his way. In a pamphlet, entitled " Intolerance Reviewed," the writer reflects
on the action of the Conference at that time, though he adds : "I do not
defend the theory of destructionism taught by Mr Moncrieff." We learn
from oral testimony that towards the close of his stay in Musselburgh
Mr Moncrieff had severe suffering. A diseased bone compelled part of
the foot to be amputated, and, this not sufficing, the operation had to be
repeated above the ankle. His name appears in the Almanac list in 1852
for the last time as minister of the " Independent Secession Church,"
Musselburgh. He then removed to Canada, where he engaged in secular
work, and the chapel became the property of a lady in the neighbourhood,
who devoted it to Home Mission purposes, and at her death in 1880 it
passed into other hands, and was turned into a Roman Catholic church.
Mr Moncrieff died at London, Ontario, on 27th September 1891, in his
seventy-fifth year. Some time after he left Musselburgh Mr Tait resigned
with the view of filling an educational sphere in England, his health having
failed under ministerial work. He was loosed, ist March 1853, and became
the head of an academy in Oldham, Lancashire, where he died, igth July
1867, in his fifty-seventh year. He is buried with his wife's kindred in Hoddam
Churchyard, near Ecclefechan.
Sixth Minister.— JAMES IMRIE, M.A., from Balbeggie. Called also to
Kettle, and very nearly called to Union Church, Kirkcaldy. Ordained over
Union Church, Musselburgh, 22nd March 1854. The stipend was to be
,£150, and no manse. Loosed, 4th May 1875, and translated to Gillespie
Church, Glasgow. The congregation then called Mr John Dickson, Peter-
head, but they were in a divided state, and the call was not sustained.
Seventh Minister. — GEORGE F. DEWAR, from Carluke. Preferring
Musselburgh to Shapinshay, he was ordained, 24th July 1876, and was
loosed on 4th October 1881 on accepting a call to Strathaven (First).
There was a membership now of about 250, and the stipend was ,£200
in all.
Eighth Minister.— ALEXANDER SCOTT, B.D., from Kirkcowan, where
he had been for five years. Inducted, nth July 1882. Their second manse,
was built in 1889, the estimated cost being ^1000, of which ,£100 came
from the Manse Board. At the close of 1899 there was a communion
roll of 300, and the stipend was ^207, with the manse.
MUSSELBURGH, MILLHILL (RELIEF)
THE earliest traces of this congregation belong to 1783. That is the date
which the first set of tokens bears, and we find from the Minutes of Glasgow
Relief Presbytery that a petition for sermon from the forming congregation
of Musselburgh was laid before the court on 27th May 1783. Had the
records of Edinburgh Presbytery been in existence for' that period, they
would have given information with greater fulness. In the Old Statistical
History the parish minister, Dr Carlyle, makes that the year in which the
Relief church was erected. Traditional testimony, carefully sifted in 1844
by the minister, the Rev. W. M. Livingstone, gives the circumstances with
every appearance of exactness. The narrative bears that several families had
previously withdrawn from Carlyle's ministry, and instead of joining the
PRESBYTERY OF EDINBURGH 537
Burgher church in the town they connected themselves with the Relief
congregation at Dalkeith. About the time specified above a fama got
abroad affecting the moral character of the assistant in the parish church,
but Dr Carlyle looked on with entire equanimity. An exodus followed, and
sermon was obtained from the Relief Presbytery of Edinburgh. Ur Carlyle
gave it as his opinion that this was not favourable to the religion and
morals of the people, as it made them liable " to be infected with sectarian
principles." He blamed the want of accommodation in the parish church
and not the want of the evangelical element in his own preaching for the
spread of dissent.
The next notice of Musselburgh is in the minutes of Synod for 1785. The
church was still vacant, and a petition from the congregation was submitted
to the supreme court, the purport of which is to be inferred from the deliver
ance which followed : "The Synod unanimously disapprove of the conduct
of those men who have endeavoured to introduce into that pulpit a young-
man contrary to the laws and rules of the court." A party was bent on
having a certain licentiate of the Church of Scotland for their minister, but at
the moderation Mr Baine of Edinburgh would not allow him to be nominated,
as he did not belong to the Relief body. An attempt was then made to
have the building turned into a Chapel of Ease, but the adherents of the
Relief Synod triumphed in the end.
First Minister. — WILLIAM M'KECHNEY, from Anderston, Glasgow
There had been a moderation prior to this, when a number were in favour of
the Rev. John Baillie, afterwards of Crieff. As his reputation was not un
sullied a combination was alleged to have been formed against him by the
supporters of the other two candidates, and on this ground the call which
came out in favour of the Rev. John Brown of Auchterarder was set aside.
Mr M'Kechney then became their unanimous choice, and he w^as ordained,
25th January 1786. The number of parishioners, young and old, belonging'
to the congregation eight years after this was 516, while in the Secession,
which was of much longer standing, there were only about 40 more. Mr
M'Kechney died, 1st April 1828, in the forty-third year of his ministry and,
according to the tombstone in Inveresk Churchyard, his age was sixty-eight.
As an author he came into ignominious conflict with the Rev. David Gellatly
of Haddington in a pamphlet, entitled "'Clerical Gallantry," in which the
misdeeds of that disreputable character were daringly exposed. Mr
M'Kechney had ample provocation, but he should have reflected that his
antagonist was a man of boundless effrontery with slashing weapons at com
mand. From Gellatly there came payment in kind and in unstinted measure ;
only, the charges are to be treated as sheer fabrications. Had there been a
solid basis for them no man, knowing his own character to be at the mercy
of the person assailed, would have tempted retaliation as Mr M'Kechney did.
In their vacant state the congregation were to hear six candidates, and
after a time Mr James Smith was asked back three Sabbaths to complete the
days required to make him eligible. Then their commissioners had a con
ference with him, which was highly favourable, and a unanimous call followed,
but Mr Smith made choice of Campbeltown, where he was to acquire
notoriety.
Second Minister. — JAMES JEFFREY, from Falkirk (West). Ordained,
24th March 1830. Under their young minister there was rapid increase,
there being 76 accessions at the first communion, and before the end of the
year the stipend was raised from ^130 to .£150. The Relief cause in Mussel-
burgh now attained a position it never approached before, and in a few years
the parishioners belonging to this denomination were set down at 1 100,
young and old, which was nearly double the number connected with the
538 HISTORY OF U.P. CONGREGATIONS
Secession. It is a mistake, however, to speak of the demand for accommo
dation having been such that the sittings were disposed of by auction at the
half-yearly terms. Pews in special request were, indeed, assigned to the
highest bidder, but even in 1834 only 395 sittings out of 800 were let,
"though the church was filled every Sabbath," and the year before Mi-
Jeffrey left the managers complained that a number did not make conscience
of taking their seats, and some took only one seat for a whole family. On 27th
September 1836 Mr Jeffrey accepted a call to Sir Michael Street, Greenock.
The people were very reluctant to part with him, and even arranged to raise
an additional ,£30 of stipend by subscription to induce him to stay.
Third Minister. — MARTIN W. LIVINGSTONE, from Kilsyth. Only two
probationers had preached four Sabbaths— Messrs Livingstone and Blair
(afterwards of Galashiels) — but the call came out in favour of the former, and
he was ordained, 26th April 1837. At the end of the year the membership
was 450, and the stipend ^130. But Mr Livingstone was in a precarious
condition coming after Mr Jeffrey, and the tide of prosperity went rapidly
back. In 1842 it was entered that the funds had declined to an alarming
extent, but the minister, for whom they had previously expressed their esteem
by presenting him with a gold watch, was willing to accept whatever the
income could afford after deducting necessary expenses. In 1845 the debt,
which stood at ,£495 some years previously, was reduced .£120, the Debt
Liquidating Board allowing half that sum. In 1852 the Home Board was
willing to grant assistance for a year or two if the congregation would under
take ^80 of stipend, but the proposal was unanimously rejected. On I2th
April 1853 Mr Livingstone was loosed from his charge with the view of
emigrating to America, and the congregation were to present him with a
parting gift as a memorial of their good feeling towards him. After some
years of preacher life in Canada he was inducted to the pastorate of St
Andrew's Church, Simcoe, Ontario, in connection with the Church of Scot
land. He retired from active service in 1875, and died there, 2ist March
1887, in the seventy-ninth year of his age and fiftieth of his ministry. He is
described as a man of good literary taste.
. Fourth Minister. — ALEXANDER B. SCLANDERS, M.A., who had been six
and a half years in Bathgate (West). Inducted to Millhill, Musselburgh,
2nd November 1853. The call was signed by only 107 members and 39
adherents, and the stipend, without a manse, was ^100, with ^5 for sacra
mental expenses. This accords with the statement that " the crowd which
hung upon Mr Jeffrey's eloquent lips had become a handful when his suc
cessor resigned." Happily, there was now a gradual building up and the
return to better days. The stipend was raised to ^140 at the close of 1854,
the elders were made up to twelve, the church property was greatly improved,
and the debt entirely disappeared. But ill-health came, and Mr Sclanders
spent the winter of 1859-60 at Algiers, the Rev. George Barlas acting as his
locum tenens, an arrangement which sowed the seeds of disunion in the
church. Finding himself unable to undertake full ministerial work on his
return, and strife having arisen, Mr Sclanders tabled his resignation in
November 1860, intending to return to Algiers for another winter. The
congregation having agreed to grant him a retiring allowance of ^30 a year
the resignation was accepted, 5th February 1861. In the beginning of
summer he took up his abode in Glasgow, where he died on ist December
following, in the thirty-ninth year of his age and fifteenth of his ministry.
A volume of much merit, containing nine of his discourses and a series of
lectures on "Social Relations," was published in 1862, with a brief and
interesting Memoir prefixed, from the pen of the Rev. Andrew J. Gunion,
then of Strathaven.
PRESBYTERY OF EDINBURGH 539
Fifth Minister. — GEORGE BARLAS, who had resigned his charge of
Auchtermuchty (East) in 1858 and returned to the preachers' list. After
officiating for about a year in Millhill Church his services were superseded
by the return of Mr Sclanders, who expressed his intention to dispense with
further assistance. A large party in the congregation declared in favour of
having Mr Barlas recalled, a circumstance which matured the resolve of Mr
Sclanders to retire. When the vacancy came to be filled up the call to Mr
Barlas was signed by 1 1 1 members and1! objected to by 99. The objections
were set aside, and Mr Barlas, while crediting the minority with conscien
tious motives, announced his cordial acceptance of the call. That same day
73 members and 15 adherents petitioned the Presbytery for supply of
sermon with the design of forming a new congregation. The application
was referred to the two sessions in Musselburgh for their opinion. On i8th
July 1861 Mr Barlas was inducted as minister of Millhill, and on 3rd Sep
tember his session reported against the erection of a third congregation in
Musselburgh. The two places of worship, they stated, had accommodation
for at least 1600 people, and their combined membership did not amount to
500. The Presbytery almost unanimously refused to grant the petition, and
with the exception of a few units who joined Bridge Street Church the
petitioners went over almost in a body to the Establishment.
Had Mr Barlas seen his way to decline the call it might have restored
peace to the church and been for his own comfort in the end, even though
the alternative had been removal to the Colonial Field. However, all
moved quietly on at Millhill for two dozen years, though the audience com
pared ill with what had been, but restiveness took shape in the latter part
of 1885, and the Presbytery required to intervene. Differences were under
stood to be successfully adjusted, but in a short time all was upset, and on
5th January 1886 Mr Barlas was relieved from the active duties of the
pastorate, the congregation engaging to allow him £20 a year. He after
wards removed to Edinburgh, and for the remaining period of his life was
largely engaged supplying ministers' pulpits, which he did with much
acceptance. He died, ijth July 1896, in the seventy-third year of his age
and forty-third of his ministry. His widow is the youngest daughter of Dr
Jack of D unbar.
Sixth Minister. — DAVID GILCHRIST, from Edinburgh (Viewforth).
Ordained as colleague and successor to Mr Barlas, 8th July 1886. In a
few years the congregation improved considerably both in membership and
finances, and in 1893 they felt inspirited to proceed with what was virtually
a new church. The old fabric, which had done service for no years, was
renovated and refashioned at a cost of about ^2500, with sittings for 450
people. Along with Dr Thomson of Broughton Place Mr Jeffrey of
Pollokshields, the son of their second minister, befittingly conducted the
opening services on the first Sabbath of June 1894, when the collections
amounted to ^240. In the beginning of 1897 it was announced to the
Presbytery that the debt which remained on the building was entirely
cleared off, the people having raised ^300, and ^100 having been got from
the Extension Committee. The membership in 1900 was between 160 and
170, and the stipend from the congregation was ,£190, but as there is no manse
they are scarcely independent of aid from the Surplus Fund.
TRANENT (BURGHER)
IN May 1770 the Burgher Synod had a protest and appeal before them from
Tranent against a deed of Edinburgh Presbytery refusing to grant them
540 HISTORY OF U.P. CONGREGATIONS
" diets of sermon." As usual, there had been the fear of doing harm to
neighbouring churches. The Synod decided to allow trial to be made as
to whether there might be the prospect of a congregation without drawing
from Haddington and Musselburgh. In December 1776 they put their
membership at 71, and had four elders ordained some time after. One
of these was John Wilson, probably the father of the Tranent elder of the
same name, whom Hugh Miller has immortalised in his " Schools and
Schoolmasters." Tranent session was largely favoured in former days with
material of the same stamp — plain, worthy, God-fearing men, with strong
Seceder characteristics.
The Secession cause got a firm hold about Tranent thirty years before
this through the intrusion of Mr Charles Cunninghame into the parish
pulpit on 25th September 1740 by orders of the General Assembly. Of
this settlement the Caledonian Mercury recorded that " contests have not
been known to run higher for or against a presentation than on this occa
sion." There was scarce any concurrence of elders, heritors, or heads of
families. The same newspaper states that "the Seceding Presbytery had
erected a tent in the parish for the summer campaign and rented a house
for winter quarters." In May 1741 some people in the neighbouring parish
of Prestonpans petitioned for frequent visits and that they might be marked
as a "correspondence" distinct from the eastern parts of East Lothian. It
ended with the Seceders in these parishes dividing themselves between
Haddington and Dalkeith according to convenience. The number of
families in the latter section must have been considerable, as at an election
of elders in 1767 there was one needed for Tranent district. But in the fol
lowing year the people there craved "a disjunction because of their distance,
that they may join Musselburgh." The request was granted, the latter
place being nearer by one or two miles. Next came the movement to obtain
stated supply for themselves.
First Minister. — ROBERT SHERIFF, from Dunbar (West). Ordained,
5th January 1779. The church seems to have been erected before a fixed
ministry was obtained. In the Old Statistical History the number of
Burgher adults in the parish is given as no, and a large proportion must
have also come from other parishes, such as Prestonpans. In 1809 Mi-
Sheriff entered in his Diary that he had 212 names on his communion roll.
He died, 27th January 1820, in the forty-second year of his ministry and
in the sixty-fifth year of his age. By his first marriage Mr Sheriff was a
son-in-law of the Rev. William Hutton, Dalkeith, and a daughter of his
by a second marriage was the wife of the Rev. John Pringle of Elgin.
Mr Sheriffs Diary was published after his death, under the editorship of
the Rev. John Brown of Whitburn, who speaks of him in the preface as
having been his intimate companion in early years, and he says elsewhere :
" His religion made him dear to me in the days of our youth, and our attach
ment held to the end."
Second Minister. — WILLIAM PARLANE, M.A., from Buchlyvie. He had
been called two or three years before — first to Sanday, in Orkney, and then
to Carnoustie, but he obstinately refused to be settled in either. Mr Parlane
was the first Antiburgher preacher who was called to a Burgher congrega
tion. Some of the people were not quite hearty in their choice, as it was
feared he would sing no paraphrases and would have none but Antiburghers
to assist him at the communion. He was ordained, 22nd March 1822. In
1826 a new church, with 637 sittings, was built at a cost of nearly ^1500.
The congregation long kept vigorous, and the members were far gathered,
but after the Disruption it declined considerably through the narrowing ir
of its territories. In 1868 a new manse was built at a cost of .£950, of whicl
PRESBYTERY OF EDINBURGH 541
the Board granted ,£350. When Mr Parlane was nearing his jubilee steps
were taken to provide him with a colleague, and Mr J. L. Murray was called,
but he preferred Kilmarnock (Princes Street).
Third Minister. — THOMAS MATHIE, from Kinross (West). Ordained,
nth June 1872. The senior minister was to have ^30 from the congrega
tion, with the occupancy of the new manse, and the junior ,£107, IDS., with
the right to the old manse. On ist June 1875 ^r Mathie sent in the
resignation of his charge, and circumstances necessitated its acceptance.
Differences had previously arisen between him and his colleague, for which
the Presbytery severely blamed Mr Parlane ; but now a worse element had
come in, and on 7th July the connection was dissolved and Mr Mathie laid
under suspension. A few months afterwards he appeared before Edinburgh
Presbytery, submitted to rebuke, and was restored, but before another
meeting the cloud had come down darker than ever. After this he veered
entirely away from what he had been and became his own worst enemy.
On the evening of 7th May 1889, the day on which the Synod met, of which
he was at one time a member, he was conveyed to Edinburgh Infirmary in
a state of insensibility, and died there next morning, in the forty-fourth year
of his age. He was entered in the parish register as a classical teacher,
but that was a harking back on better days.
Fourth Minister. — G. B. CARR, from Berwick (Wallace Green). Mr Carr
was ordained at Silverhill, Hastings, on i8th November 1869, and retired
from that difficult position on 7th October 1875. On i6th January 1877 he
Avas inducted as colleague to Mr Parlane. The people prior to this were
very desirous that the old minister should vacate the manse, for which they
were ready to give him an equivalent in money. They had reason to believe
that it would conduce to the comfort of all parties if he removed to some
other centre, such as Edinburgh. But the manse had been built largely
through his exertions, and the people had decided, at a time when the former
colleague was losing his hold, that Mr Parlane should possess it for life, and
they were now kept to their word. The consequence was that all did not
keep smooth, but Mr Carr, who had declined Elgin (South Street) one and a
half years before, accepted a call to what is now Dalmeny Street, Edinburgh,
on 7th June 1881, and was loosed from Tranent.
Fifth Minister. — ALEXANDER G. BROTHERSTONE, M.A., from Edinburgh
(North Richmond Street). Ordained as Mr Parlane's third colleague, 23rd
May 1882. The relationship ended with the death of the senior minister on
7th February 1884, in the eighty-sixth year of his age and sixty-second of his
ministry. Besides several stray discourses at an earlier time Mr Parlane,
who was an able theologian, published a volume of Lectures on the 8th
chapter of Romans in 1874. Mr Brotherstone was sole pastor for nearly
six years, but he caught a severe cold through exposure at a Sabbath even
ing service some distance off, and after a lingering illness died, 8th February
1894, in the thirty-ninth year of his age and twelfth of his ministry. Mr
Brotherstone was son-in-law to the Rev. Robert Rutherford of Newlands.
Sixth Minister. — JOHN DICK FLEMING, B.D., son of the Rev. James
Fleming, Whithorn. Ordained, 23rd October 1894. The membership at
the close of 1899 was 108, and the stipend from the people ^130, with the
manse.
NORTH BERWICK (BURGHER)
THERE is nothing to warrant the conclusion that this was an offshoot from
Haddington (East). In the old session Minutes of that congregation there
are no traces of any families from North Berwick. The origin of the Seces-
542 HISTORY OF U.P. CONGREGATIONS
sion church in this place was assigned by their minister, Mr George Brown,
to 1769, and the records of Edinburgh Burgher Presbytery show that there
was supply kept up at North Berwick in 1774 at the general rate of two
successive Sabbaths every six or seven weeks. The first church was erected
in 1778. The population of the town was about 700, and its distance from
Haddington being nine miles, and from Dunbar eleven, it was very desirable
to have it made the seat of a Secession congregation. A session was con
stituted by the ordination of four elders on 27th February 1782, one of the
four being from Dirleton. In about a year they issued a call to Mr John
J affray, but after a dead stand of four months another came out from
Dalkeith to the same preacher. In the latter case there was want of
harmony, and for some reason both calls were set aside by the Synod.
The ecclesiastical state of North Berwick parish during the eighteenth
century was remarkable. The living was in the same family for 130 years.
Mr George Murray was minister from 1729 to 1757. His wife was the former
minister's daughter, "by whose interest he got the charge." Carlyle of
Inveresk described him as ua dry, withered stick, cold and repulsive in his
manner." His son Matthew succeeded him in 1758, and it was in his time
that the Secession congregation came into existence. At his death in 1791
there was danger of the succession lapsing, as his son, though studying for
the ministry, had still four years of his course to run, but through the favour
of the patron the interval was tided over by a happy expedient. The young
man's mother was the sister of Principal Hill of St Andrews, and another
uncle, who held the Chair of Greek in that University, agreed to step into
the vacant pulpit at North Berwick till his nephew should be ripe for the
presentation. Of course, he would have to be non-resident at least half the
year, but the duties of the office might be discharged by proxy. The Greek
Professor was inducted to North Berwick in 1/92, and demitted in June 1795.
His nephew, Mr George Murray, the son, grandson, and great-grandson of
the three preceding incumbents, was presented next month to the inheritance
of his fathers and ordained in September following. The last named died
in 1822, and within a few years his son, a second Matthew Murray, broke
away from the traditions of the family and " the lifeless Moderatism which
pervaded the circles in which he had hitherto moved." There had been
a renewing in the spirit of the mind, and, impelled by zeal for a pure gospel
and a covenanted reformation, he identified himself with the contendings of
a former day. He is remembered now as the Rev. Matthew Murray, D.D.,
minister of Main Street Church, Glasgow, and Professor of Divinity to the
Original Secession Synod. This was a grand-nephew of Principal Hill,
leader of the Moderates in the General Assembly, and he was also the last
clerical representative of the Murrays of North Berwick Established Church.
From this digression we return to the little Burgher congregation in that
town.
First Minister. — JAMES SCRIMGEOUR, from Bristo Church, Edinburgh.
Ordained, 2ist April 1784. The strain on the resources of the congregation
now became serious. In 1792 the membership was 1 08, and to make up a
stipend of ,£45 they required, in addition to their ordinary contributions, six
or seven special collections annually. The Presbytery on examining into
their circumstances pronounced them entitled to assistance from the Synod
Fund, and this brought them a grant of £7. But, as the seat-rents and
ordinary collections were improving, better days were to be looked for,
when progress was arrested by the illness of the minister. Towards the
end of 1794 Mr Scrimgeour was in a state of deep mental depression, re
fusing to take air or exercise, and in April 1795 it was reported to the
Presbytery that, after seeming to have recovered, he had relapsed into his
PRESBYTERY OF EDINBURGH 543
former state of inability both of body and mind. Dr Scouller's account is
that the malady got foothold through circumstances connected with his
father's death. It was found necessary now to have him boarded at Mussel-
burgh, the Synod to defray the expense, and year after year the congregation
was destitute of a pastor and on limited supply. In September 1799 MV
Scrimgeour petitioned the Synod to have the relation between him and
North Berwick dissolved, which was done on the 6th of that month. Mean
while the Synod was to furnish an annual grant of £20 for his support.
The cloud was gradually uplifted, and Mr Scrimgeour restored to his
former usefulness. "When his health," says Dr Scouller, "was somewhat
recruited he became the superintendent of a theological book store in
Edinburgh, and supplied neighbouring pulpits occasionally." In September
1801 the Synod appointed him to preach six Sabbaths in Miles Lane,
London, a sure sign that the worst was over. In the following April he was
one of several ministers who accompanied Dr Mason of New York to
America, where their services were much needed, and on nth August 1803
he was inducted to the charge of Newburgh, seventy miles above New York.
In the beginning of 1812 he was transferred to the charge of Little Britain,
where he remained until the summer of 1824, when the infirmities of age
compelled him to resign. He died, 4th February 1825, in the sixty-eighth
year of his age and forty-first of his ministry. He was, we are told, six feet
high, of good presence, and possessed a deep, rich voice, which remained
unimpaired to the last. " His sermons were modelled after those of his
theological preceptor (the Rev. John Brown of Haddington), a nice skeleton
filled out almost entirely with scripture quotations."
Second Minister. — JOHN M'QuEEN, from Largs. Ordained, igth
February 1801. Of him little is known beyond this, that having gone to
Largs for the recovery of his health he died there, 5th September 1803, in
the twenty-sixth year of his age and third of his ministry.
A vacancy of three and a half years followed, during which the con
gregation called the Rev. Alexander Easton, a minister of popular gifts, who
had been recently loosed from Miles Lane, London. The stipend offered
was ^70, and the call was signed by 87 members and 22 adherents. The
Synod in April 1804 appointed Mr Easton to Hamilton. In like manner Mi-
David Paterson * was sent to Alnwick in April 1806 and Mr John Ballantyne
to Stonehaven in September following, the claims of North Berwick being
still passed over.
Third Minister. — GEORGE BROWN, son of the Rev. John Brown,
Whitburn. Got licence before he had entered on his twenty-first year.
Called soon after to Leslie, North Berwick, and Coldingham. The Synod,
it is related in Mr Brown's Memoir, intended sending him to Leslie, but
he was opposed to this, because the call was not quite unanimous. Failing
to remove his scruples they appointed him, not to Coldingham which
he would have preferred, but to North Berwick, as a token of their dis-
* Mr Paterson was from Stow, and was ordained at Alnwick (Clayport Street),
2ist August 1806. He published a volume of discourses in 1814 and three Sermons
on a Future State in 1819, but according to a History of Alnwick he never produced
anything to maintain his early reputation. Dr Henderson of Galashiels alludes to
him as a man of guileless spirit, with "naive remarks on men and things." A few
years before his death he was subject to spasms of the heart, and, having over-exerted
himself in attending the funeral of an elder a week before, bad symptoms intervened,
and he died, 22nd November 1843, in the sixty-eighth year of his age and thirty -
eighth of his ministry. Soon after retiring to rest that evening he began to breathe
heavily, and then after a few gentle heavings breathed his last. Dr John Ker was
his successor in Alnwick.
544 HISTORY OF U.P. CONGREGATIONS
pleasure. It turned out well for the interests of a congregation which had
passed through a succession of trying fortunes. He was ordained, I4th
April 1807. The people would be prepared to welcome him all the more
as a grandson of Mr Brown of Haddington, who had done much for the
cause at North Berwick in its early stages. Besides affording them Sabbath
services ever and again during a long course of years he is said to have
given ^5 out of his small stipend towards the building of their church, and
it was quite in keeping with the self-denying spirit of the man. There was
gradual increase now, and when in 1813 Mr Brown was invited to remove to
Gorebridge he expressed himself as decidedly in favour of remaining where
he was, and the Presbytery pronounced accordingly. At the time of
Mr Brown's ordination there was no manse, but in the following year
one was built at a cost of ,£370, and in 1832 the old place of worship was
supplanted by another, with sittings for nearly 400, which cost ^630. In
1838 there were almost 200 communicants ; about one-fourth of these from
Dirleton. There were also a few from Whitekirk and Athelstaneford, and
thirteen families were between four and five miles from the place of worship.
The stipend at this time was ,£105, but there was also the manse and three
pieces of garden ground, valued altogether at ^26 a year. The debt on the
property was fully ,£330, but their numbers were on the increase, and the
burden was being lessened year by year. The minister had all along extended
his yearly visitations beyond the members of his own church, and this might
account for the steady building up of the congregation. Mr Brown died,
24th April 1843, m the fifty-eighth year of his age and thirty-seventh of his
ministry. The year after his death a volume of his discourses was published,
with a short biographical sketch prefixed, by his brother, Professor John
Brown of Broughton Place, Edinburgh. " He was a much esteemed
minister in his day, and his name will be long remembered."
Fourth Minister. — JOHN M'GlLCHRisx DYER, from Dalkeith (now
Buccleuch Street). Ordained, 2gth February 1844. On 2nd June 1857
the Presbytery of Edinburgh pronounced on three counts of a libel which
had been framed against Mr Dyer, one of which they found Proven : another
Not Proven ; and on the third the verdict was Not Guilty. But Mr Dyer had
previously tendered the demission of his charge, which was now accepted,
and under suspension sine die he set out for Australia. All we know further
is that he was abruptly lost sight of there, his status not recovered.
Fifth Minister. — WILLIAM CALVERT, B.A., from Gorebridge congrega
tion, but a native of Borthwick parish. Mr Calvert during his brief pro
bationer course was highly popular. The call to North Berwick was
preceded by one from North Shields, and it was followed by another from
Potterrow, Edinburgh, and by a fourth from Haddington (East), but North
Berwick became his choice, and he was ordained there, i8th May 1858. The
stipend was to be .£120, with manse, garden, and a right of pasturage on the
common. On Friday, 24th August 1868, the present church, with sittings
for over 600, was opened by Dr Cairns of Berwick, the cost, inclusive of the
site, being ^3100, and within other ten years a new manse was built at an
outlay of ,£800, of which the people were to raise £600, and the Board gave
£200. On 2/th April 1886 the Presbytery sanctioned arrangements by
which Mr Calvert was to withdraw from the active duties of the pastorate,
the congregation giving him a slump sum of ,£500, and he retaining the
status of senior pastor but giving up the manse. Pain and sorrow, he said,
had rendered him so feeble that he required to be freed from all responsi
bility. For many years he had suffered much from broken health, and
in the early period of his ministry he had to undergo the amputation of one
of his legs. The Presbytery when he retired put on record that " Mr Calvert's
PRESBYTERY OF EDINBURGH 545
ministrations had been much valued in North Berwick by the numerous
summer visitors, as well as by the members of his own congregation," and
"his failing health had been much lamented." He removed to Melrose,
where he died, 8th September 1888, in the fifty-ninth year of his age and
thirty-first of his ministry.
Sixth Minister.— JOHN DUNDAS ROBERTSON, D.Sc., from Wick. Or
dained, 23rd September 1886. The membership at this time was 235, and
the stipend ,£200, with the manse. At the close of 1899 there were 292
names on the communion roll, and the stipend had been advanced ^50.
EAST LINTON (BURGHER)
THIS village is in the parish of Prestonkirk, about midway between Had-
dmgton and Dunbar, which are nearly twelve miles apart. The congrega
tion was composed at first of members drawn from the Burgher churches in
these two places and in North Berwick. The movement began, however, in a
petition presented to the Presbytery of Edinburgh on 6th March 1792 from
21 persons not of our communion for supply of sermon. They wished to
know " the mind of the Lord concerning them, and whether He will succeed
their intentions, desires, and expectations." When a petition from 41 of
their members came before Dunbar session to be disjoined with the view of
becoming connected with the new erection at Linton the request was at
once complied with. Similarly the consent of North Berwick session was
intimated, and Haddington offered no objections. Hence sermon was
granted at once, and by June 1793 there was ripeness for electing a minister,
the stipend promised being .£70, with a house or ,£5 instead. The first they
called was Mr Thomas Leckie, whom the Synod 'appointed to Moffat, but
he was ordained at Peebles.
First Minister.— HUGH JAMIESON, from Kilmarnock (Portland Road).
The call was signed by 69 members and 66 adherents, and the ordination
took place, 22nd April 1795, the services being conducted in the open air,
as the church, with its 400 sittings, was not yet available. In 181 1 the Synod
granted .£40 to East Linton to reduce the debt incurred in repairing their
place of worship. Mr Jamieson conducted a private academy at East
Linton during the greater part of his ministry, and was eminent for scholar
ship and general attainments. He had the degree of D.D. from Marischal
College, Aberdeen, in 1813, an honour seldom bestowed on Dissenting
ministers in those days. The session records show that his ministration*
were waited on by families in Garvald, Stenton, Whittingehame, and other
parishes around, though the greater number would belong to Prestonkirk.
Dr Jamieson died, 2nd December 1827, in the sixty-fifth year of his age and
thirty-third of his ministry. Besides an "Agricultural Survey of East
Lothian" he published a pamphlet in 1819 on the Union between Burghers
and Antiburghers, a movement in which he seems to have been deeply
interested. Before his death he desired his sister to cancel all claims he
might have on the congregation for arrears of stipend, and she, acting in
the same spirit, left to his successors in office a commodious house, which he
had built at his own expense, and also his library.
Second Minister.— GEORGE PATERSON, from Lauder (Burgher). Or
dained, 23rd October 1827, as colleague and successor to Dr Jamieson, who
only survived six weeks. The services were conducted, not in the open an
as on last occasion, but in the parish church. The stipend was to be /go
and the call was signed by 100 members and 28 hearers. Under the youn<>'
minister the congregation flourished, there being an increase of 200 members
2 M
546 HISTORY OF U.P. CONGREGATIONS
within not many years. In his pulpit and pastoral work Mr Paterson, by all
accounts, was eminently conscientious, and by his impressive discourses and
his unassuming ways he kept his people at peace with him and with each
other. In July 1856 he was seized with paralysis, and though, after lying
aside for a year, he resumed work for three months he had finally to lay
the burden down. The congregation after a time arranged to grant him
^20 a year, with the manse, and the colleague was to receive ^100 and
house rent.
Third Minister.— JOHN P. ALEXANDER, from Mount Pleasant, Liver
pool. Ordained, igth October 1858. Mr Paterson died, I7th March 1863,
in the sixty-third year of his age and thirty-sixth of his ministry. A volume
of his sermons was published in 1864. By his marriage he was a brother-
in-law of the Rev. John Young, LL.D., formerly of Albion Chapel, London,
and by him the kindly Memoir prefixed, though anonymous, is known to
have been written. The church kept fairly up for a course of years, and in
1870 the manse underwent considerable repairs, the Board paying half the
expense. Five years after this the membership was 150, and the stipend
from the people ^l 12, ios., which supplement and surplus raised to ,£197, ios.,
besides the manse. Mr Alexander, after six months' illness, partly the result
of an accident, died, jth May 1890, in the fifty-eighth year of his age and
thirty-second of his ministry. His only son James got licence as a preacher
seven months after his father's death, but he sank into ill-health, and died,
1 5th October 1893, in his twenty-eighth year. The congregation entered on
the vacant state with numbers reduced to little over 100, and they could not
undertake more than £,70 of stipend.
Fourth Minister. — ALEXANDER WATT, M.A., formerly of Burghead,
which he resigned in 1882 on account of feeble health, and came to reside
in Edinburgh. In 1887 he made trial of New South Wales by medical
advice, but had to return. Having regained strength he had his name
placed on the preachers' list in 1888, and was inducted to East Linton, 2ist
October 1890. The membership at the close of 1899 was 97, and the stipend
had been increased to ,£85.
PORTOBELLO (SECESSION)
ON 27th April 1824 a number of persons in Portobello applied to the
Secession Presbytery of Edinburgh for sermon. They were about to erect
a place of worship, for which ,£300 was subscribed, and of which 300 sittings
were bespoke, and they wished supply as soon as they had a temporary
meeting-place provided. This was followed on 3rd August by a petition
from 250 persons " not of our communion " to be organised into a congrega
tion, and two members of Presbytery were to meet with them on the i2th for
the purpose specified. On 8th October there was an election of elders, and
in March 1825 a moderation was applied for, with the promise of £180 of
stipend and ,£5 for each communion. The call came out for Mr William
Nicol, and it was signed by 185 members and 323 ordinary hearers, but Mr
Nicol had four calls besides, and in the Synod Jedburgh (Blackfriars) was
preferred, though Portobello came next, having 22 votes against 31.
First Minister. — WILLIAM C. ARNIEL, from Glasgow (Greyfriars). The
call was "harmonious," but the signatures were less than half what they had
been on the former occasion. Ordained, 8th February 1826. Their church
in Regent Street was finished that year at a cost of about ,£1800, of which
,£850 was raised from a bond on the property. By this time the building trade
had gone back with ruinous effects, and the congregation found itself in the
PRESBYTERY OF EDINBURGH 547
midst of money embarrassments, so that after the first year the stipend was
reduced to ,£130. In 1831 the builder of the church raised an action in the
Court of Session against certain parties for payment of what they still owed
him for his work, and along with the managers he took in members and
seatholders. The court found that the obligation for payment was limited
to the civil association formed for the purpose of erecting the chapel and
to those who homologated their proceedings. Even this was formidable,
and progress being arrested, and everything going from bad to worse, Mr
Arniel resigned, 2nd April 1833, and the resignation was at once accepted.
On 7th May he intimated to the Presbytery his withdrawal from the fellow
ship of the United Secession Church. The congregation had now gratuitous
supply from the Presbytery month after month. Then there was talk about
reducing Portobello to a preaching station, but on 3rd June 1834 it carried
in the Presbytery by a great majority to have the congregation dissolved.
The building was thereafter put up for sale, and brought as much as cleared
the bond of ^850. Thus ended the history of the first Secession congrega
tion in Portobello.
Mr Arniel now joined the Establishment, but he never resumed ministerial
work. For a few years he conducted a school or academy in Portobello, but
as it did not succeed he removed to Glasgow, where he became editor of the
Constitutional, a paper strongly conservative in its attitude towards both
Church and State. In 1836 he raised an action before the Court of Session
against certain office-bearers and members of his former congregation for
arrears of stipend. The case was considered of such importance that the
Synod, in September of that year, issued a declaration to the effect " that
those ordained to the pastoral office in the Church bind themselves to submit
in the matter of temporal support to the decision of their spiritual overseers
and disclaim all right to prosecute for stipend in courts of civil law." Mr
Arniel died suddenly of apoplexy at Glasgow on 3rd August 1841, in the
forty-seventh year of his age. At this time the action had not run its full
course, and his widow became the pursuer. At the jury trial which ended
the case the presiding judge in summing up intimated that the legal obliga
tion which the signing of the call involved was conditioned by the constitution
of the Church. The result was a verdict in favour of the defenders.
PORTOBELLO (RELIEF)
ON 2gth July 1834 the Rev. David Crawford, who had been loosed from his
charge at Earlston on the previous day, intimated to the Relief Presbytery
of Edinburgh that he had acquired a chapel in Regent Street, Portobello,
and craved liberty to preach there with the view of establishing a congrega
tion. His request was readily agreed to, and on I7th September a com
mittee reported a communion roll of 72 persons. This was followed in a
few weeks by a petition for a moderation. The managers stated that the
whole revenue of the church, after deducting necessary expenses, would go
for stipend. The chapel was that which had been occupied by the Seces
sion congregation under Mr Arniel. Mr Crawford had bought it from the
bondholders for ,£900. Thus the building passed from the Secession to the
Relief section of what is now the United Presbyterian Church.
First Minister. — DAVID CRAWFORD, who had been ordained over
Earlston (West) in 1815. Inducted at Portobello, 4th November 1834. In
little more than a year the membership rose to 139, and there was an average
attendance of about 350. Thus matters went on till 1843, when Mr Crawford
considered it expedient that he should retire and that the congregation
548 HISTORY OF U.P. CONGREGATIONS
should be dissolved. The Secession cause had been revived at Portobello,
and this cut off the chief source of increase. Then at the Disruption in May
1843 the Free Church people accepted the use of the place of worship, and
during the summer months the two congregations met there, each having its
own hours. When the Free congregation was arranging for a new church
Mr Crawford offered to sell them the building. This measure being ac
quiesced in by all parties the purchase was carried through for 1000
guineas, and the new proprietors took possession in November 1843. On
29th August Mr Crawford had resigned, and on 3ist October commissioners
from the congregation stated to the Presbytery that their circumstances and
prospects did not warrant the continuance of sermon. Mr Waldie of
Dalkeith was now appointed to preach at Portobello on Sabbath, 5th
November, and intimate the dissolution of the congregation. The greater
part of the members, numbering about 140, coalesced with the Free Church
congregation and brought them a great accession of strength. It is testified
that " what was lost in a monetary point of view by separating from the
Establishment was more than compensated for by the earnestness and worth
which they found in their new connection."
Mr Crawford was clerk of the Relief Synod at the Union of 1847 and
joint clerk of the United Presbyterian Synod till his resignation in 1860, an
office which he filled with judicial impartiality and unfailing exactness. He
also held the office of sub-treasurer of the Church. In 1863 he had the
degree of D.D. from the University of New York, and on I4th December
1864, at the celebration of his jubilee, he received a presentation of plate and
a portrait of himself as a token of the respect in which he was held for his
unassuming worth. He died, i8th July 1869, in the seventy-sixth year of
his age and fifty-fourth of his ministry. A volume of his sermons, with an
introductory Memoir by the Rev. William Beckett, Rutherglen, was pub
lished in 1870.
PORTOBELLO, WINDSOR PLACE (SECESSION)
Ox 7th April 1835 certain persons who had belonged to Mr Arniel's con
gregation, and had retained their denominational connection since the
break up, petitioned the Secession Presbytery of Edinburgh for sermon.
They had procured a schoolroom for a year as a place to meet in, the rent
being £7, ios., and they wished supply on and after the first Sabbath of
May. The request was granted, and as the parties could only defray part
of the expenses the Presbytery recommended the case to the liberality of
the Committee on Missions. In October the Synod granted permission to
have a congregation erected, which was carried through by the Presbytery
on 2nd February 1836. The regrettable element in the whole procedure
was the effect this movement was certain to have on the Relief congregation,
which had been recently organised, and, having less outside support, would
be unable to hold its own.
First Minister. — GEORGE DEANS, from Ford. Ordained, 28th June
1836. Had been called to Eday two years before. Mr Deans was in loca
tion at Portobello almost from the first, and now the pastoral bond was
formed, the call being signed by 53 members and 23 adherents. The people
could not promise more in name of stipend than ^85 at first, with no house
or allowances. In 1838 they took possession of a church they had built in
Bath Street at a cost of fully ,£600, but being doubtful of ultimate success
they had it so constructed that it might be transformed into dwelling-houses.
After galleries were put up it had sittings for 450. In 1875 Mr Deans, owing
to infirm health, required to be provided with a colleague, the money
PRESBYTERY OF EDINBURGH 549
arrangement being that he should receive his former stipend of ,£200, with
the manse, and the junior minister ,£200, with ,£30 for house rent. He died,
1st December 1876, in the seventy-sixth year of his age and forty-first of his
ministry. His end was unexpected, verifying the meaning of a couplet con
tained in a brief poem found folded up in his pocket after his death :
" A gentle touch awakened him,
A gentle whisper said :
' Arise, O sleeper, follow me,'
And forth his spirit fled."
One of Mr Deans' sons, the Rev. James Deans, was minister of Junction
Road, Leith, at this time, but resigned soon afterwards owing to bad health.
Second Minister. — WILLIAM PATERSON, B.D., from Glasgow (John
Street). Called also to Keith and Auchterarder (North). Ordained, I2th
October 1875. At the time a second congregation was being formed in
Portobello the Extension Committee recommended Bath Street people
to build a new church on a better site, which led to the erection of the
present stately edifice in Windsor Place at a cost of over ^8000, with sittings
for 760. It was opened on I2th September 1880, and the heavy burden of
debt was entirely cleared off by the end of 1891. The membership for a
number of years has kept slightly under or over 300, and the stipend is ,£300,
but there is no manse now.
PORTOBELLO, REGENT STREET (UNITED PRESBYTERIAN)
ON 8th January 1878 the Presbytery of Edinburgh received a report on
Portobello from their Church Extension Committee. It bore that the use
of a hall, formerly occupied as a Free Church, had been offered to them
gratuitously for six months with the view of forming a new congregation.
Two commissioners were heard in reference to the prospects of the move
ment, and it was agreed to remit the proposal to neighbouring sessions.
At next meeting no objections came from Musselburgh, but Portobello
session intimated that they were resolved to offer the contemplated erection
all the opposition in their power. Their efforts, however, were vain, and
on 2nd April 27 members were congregated, some from the Free Church,
some from Bath Street Church, and a large number who had attended
churches in Edinburgh. The building in which they met had passed to
the Free Church congregation, as formerly mentioned, when the Relief
broke up, and there they worshipped for more than thirty years. But on
the afternoon of Sabbath, 8th November 1874, the minister, the Rev. Robert
Ireland, preached from the words: "Arise, let us go hence," and that
evening the church was burnt. It was then fitted up by the congregation
in a temporary way at a cost of ^300, but they had received .£2000 of
insurance for the damage done, and they vacated it in September 1877 for
a costlier and better building. After that it was bought by a private gentle
man for ,£780, and was offered first to the Free Church, but the offer was
declined, as the acceptance would only produce a cleavage in their own
congregation. Now the proprietor expressed his willingness to make over
the building to the U.P. Church on the same conditions, and for Extension
purposes. The internal renovation afterwards cost over ^2000.
First Minister. — JOHN SELLAR, from Sanquhar (South), where he had
been ordained nearly nine years before. Inducted, i4th January 1879. The
call was signed by 35 out of 37 members, and 25 adherents, and the stipend
was to be ^350. In four years the congregation had a membership of fully
300, and the stipend was ^400. The two congregations in Portobello hold
550 HISTORY OF U.P. CONGREGATIONS
each other in check, or, perhaps, provoke each other to love and to good
works ; but Regent Street got a good beginning, and it has long had the
advantage slightly both in wealth and in numbers. The names on the
communion roll at the close of 1899 were 332, and the stipend continued at
^400.
ABERLADY (UNITED SECESSION)
HERE the Secession cause took shape in a petition on ist July 1840 from
certain inhabitants of Aberlady and neighbourhood to the Presbytery of
Edinburgh for the location of a preacher among them. The Rev. David
Hogg, formerly of Rattray, son of the Rev. David Hogg of Haddington, was
at once appointed. It was stated in the Missionary Report at the time that
neighbouring ministers had occasionally conducted religious services in the
village for a lengthened period. Worship was held at first in a malt barn,
and then another building was fitted up with over 250 sittings, which con
tinued to be the place of meeting till within the last few years. In the
beginning of 1842 the adherents of the station were congregated and a
communion roll of 30 members made up. Mr Hogg carried on the work
till April 1843, ar>d after that preachers were stationed there for longer or
shorter periods, one of them being Mr John Brown Johnston, ultimately
Dr Johnston of Govan. The church, which had been opened in August
1843, was almost entirely freed from debt in the following year, ^100 being
paid by the Liquidation Board and ^60 raised by the people. The village
of Aberlady had at that time a population of about 250, and the nearest
Secession congregations were— Haddington, five miles to the south ; North
Berwick, seven miles to the east ; and Tranent, seven miles to the west.
First Minister.— ROBERT WATT, from Tranent. Mr Watt got licence
from Edinburgh Presbytery on ist April 1834, and on 29th September 1835
he received ordination at Glasgow with the vie\v of dispensing sealing
ordinances at Inveraray, where he was located. Having returned to the
preachers' list he got a unanimous call to Hexham in 1837, which he
declined, and it was nine years before he obtained another. This was to
Aberlady, where he was inducted, 3oth September 1846. Two years after
wards the communicants were 75 in number, and the stipend of ,£90 was
made up, the one half by the people and the other half by the Mission
Board. Mr Watt died, 8th October 1858, in the forty-ninth year of his age
and thirteenth of his ministry at Aberlady.
Second Minister. — DAVID NICOL, from Methven, where he was brought
up under the ministry of the Rev. John Jameson, whom he used to speak
of as the godliest man he ever knew. In the commotions which rent that
congregation in Mr Watson's time he took an active part, and on one
occasion spoke in the Synod as a commissioner from the large party who
adhered to the minister. Having removed to another part of the country
as a teacher his connection with the United Presbyterian Church was not
disturbed when the crisis came, and the survivors in his father's family at
Methven were among the few who returned to the denomination when
Mr Watson's people broke up and went into the Established Church. Mr
Nicol was ordained at Aberlady, 23rd January 1860, being then entered on
his forties. After thirty years' service his health, which had been injured by
a railway accident long before, was now quite unable to bear up under the
strain, and he was relieved from active duty on 4th November 1890. On
retiring he was presented with ^166 by the congregation and other friends
as a mark of regard.
Third Minister.— ALEXANDER C. WEDDERSPOON, from Edinburgh
(Dean Street). Ordained, 2ist April 1891, as colleague to Mr Nicol. The
PRESBYTERY OF EDINBURGH 551
membership at this time was 87, and of stipend the people were to raise
.£70. On Thursday, 2gth June 1893, a new church, with sittings for 250,
and erected along with the manse at a cost of ^2000, was opened by Dr
Thomson of Broughton Place, Edinburgh, with only ^300 of debt remaining.
Mr Nicol died at Methven, 4th June 1894, in the seventy-sixth year of his
age and thirty-fifth of his ministry. At the close of 1899 there were about
1 10 names on the communion roll, and the minister had ^80 a year from
the people, with the manse.
SOUTHERN DIVISION
DALKEITH, BUCCLEUCH STREET (BURGHER)
IT is in the village of Easthouses, in Newbattle parish, and two miles to the
south of Dalkeith, that we have this congregation's first beginnings. On
5th January 1737 a Praying Society in that parish gave in a petition to the
Associate Presbytery urging them to proceed to license young men for the
work of the ministry, and on I4th February 1738 an accession to the
Testimony was given in from Easthouses. On I3th December the corre
sponding societies of Dalkeith, Newbattle, and Inveresk petitioned for a day
of fasting, which meant little else than week-day services, as Sabbath supply
was not to be had. On I7th October 1739 there was a further adherence of
several in Cranstoun, Lasswade, Newbattle, and Temple. The above refer
ences outline the stretch of territory from which the congregation was to
draw its supplies. As yet Easthouses was the place to which preachers
were appointed at such times as sermon was available. In the Caledonian
Merctiry of 2nd March 1739 the following notice appeared: — "Yesterday
Mr Thomas Mair (who had preached in Edinburgh the preceding evening),
with Messrs Thomson, Wilson, and Fisher, preached at Easthouses to a very
frequent audience, and baptised seven children." On i7th February 1741
two elders and upwards of 30 others from Dalkeith acceded to the Presby
tery, and Easthouses passed into the background.
The people had been eager to get early settled, and hence, in 1738, they
twice applied for a hearing of Mr John Hunter, the Presbytery's first
licentiate, but he was otherwise disposed of. It was not till 1744 that their
first call was issued, but of the five congregations which put in claims to
Mr William Mair at the Synod in March 1745 Muckart was preferred.
There was now a pause of two years, and then on 3oth December 1746 they
called Mr John Potts, for whom another call came out from Stitchel on the
same day. The Synod of April 1747, to which the competition was referred,
had other work to engage them, and in the Minutes of the Antiburgher Pres
bytery, at the meeting after the Breach, it was entered that the bulk of
Dalkeith congregation have fallen in with the separating brethren. The
entire number must have been very considerable, at least if the 182 who
signed the call to Mr Potts were male members only. The Burgher Presby
tery, to which the congregation adhered, were in perplexity now about how to
proceed, as Mr Gib had the call in his possession and refused to give it up,
treating it as Antiburgher property. The advice of the Synod being asked
they recommended that an adherence should be subscribed by the congrega
tion and that this should be looked on as making up for the original. It
came to nothing in the end, as Mr Potts, after many doublings and long
delay, was ordained at Stitchel.
First Minister. — WILLIAM HUTTON, M.A., who had been ordained at
Stow in 1740. There must have been an impression abroad that he was
552 HISTORY OF U.P. CONGREGATIONS
transportable, for in 1750 he was called by three congregations — Haddington,
Perth, and Dalkeith. The last of these was preferred, and the induction took
place, 20th June 1750. The congregation was much encroached on to the
north by the disjunction and formation of Musselburgh, four miles distant,
but even after that the bounds were wide, as appears from arrangements
made for an election of elders in 1767. At that time one was needed for
Tranent, one for Ford and Fala, one for Stobhill, one for Temple, one for
Glencorse Water, one for those about Whitehill, wherever that may be, one
for Loanhead, and one for Newbattle. About this time the Tranent section
were disjoined from Dalkeith and annexed to Musselburgh, and in the course
of sixteen years there was a narrowing in on the south-east and south-west
by the formation of churches at Fala and Penicuik, much to the dislike of
Dalkeith congregation. It comes out from a statement of Mr Hutton's in
the session prior to this that nearly two-thirds of the families under his care
belonged to other parishes, but the proportion must in this way have been
considerably reduced. In April 1783 Dalkeith congregation saw meet to set
about providing "an assistant colleague to their aged pastor," who was now
beyond three score and ten. They had their eye on a preacher who had
been for some months under call to North Berwick, and though there was
not harmony among them at first, and a number voted for Mr Patrick Comrie
in preference, they obtained him, little to their advantage in the end. This
brings us to the
Second Minister.— JOHN J AFFRAY, from Stirling (Erskine Church). The
Synod, to whom the two calls were referred, set both of them aside. Dalkeith
remonstrated, and wished the sentence reviewed, but instead of insisting
upon this they gained their end by calling Mr J affray a second time. All
went on smoothly now, and the ordination took place, 7th January 1784.
After some years peculiarities showed themselves in the junior minister, as
the following case, recorded in the minutes of Synod for 1790, indicates.
When the court came to adjudicate upon a translating call to Mr Jaffray
from Dairy, in Ayrshire, he was not present, and he had sent in no excuse
for absence. " He is," they said, " in such a delicate state that a decision
either to transport him or to continue him might so affect him as to prove
prejudicial to his health." They were in darkness how to proceed, and could
only remit the case to Edinburgh Presbytery for decision. His brethren
kept the matter in abeyance for six weeks, and when they met to consider
the call, though Mr Jaffray spoke, his utterance at the end of his speech was
so indistinct that they were at a loss to ascertain his meaning. He then re
tired abruptly, but a committee after conversing with him brought back word
that he wished to remain in Dalkeith. In all this there were the monitions
of mental disease. Removal to another sphere of labour might have arrested
the malady.
Before issuing the case it was deemed advisable to meet as a Presbytery
with the office-bearers and congregation of Dalkeith. Much was brought
out which throws light on the condition and workings of this important
congregation 1 10 years ago. The stipend of the senior minister was what
it had been from the first — 1000 merks Scots, or about .£55. For some time
he had been allowed .£5 a year in addition for house rent, but this was
relinquished when the colleague was ordained. Mr Jaffray received only
^50. It was stated that the two colleagues were not equally beloved by
all the people, "which they suppose is ordinary in the case of two ministers
labouring in the same congregation." But though the inquiries of the
Presbytery embraced a wide field nothing decidedly out of joint came to the
surface, and the communings ended with an exhortation "to bestow equal
esteem on both their pastors." When the Presbytery met a week afterwards
PRESBYTERY OF EDINBURGH 553
Mr Jaffray was present, but he declined to speak, and the Presbytery agreed
unanimously to continue him in Dalkeith. This was in July 1790, and on
7th February 1791 Mr Hutton died, in the eightieth year of his age and
fifty-first of his ministry. The possession of "an assistant colleague" had
not been all comfort to him in life's decline. At the Presbyterial visitation
he complained that some had represented him as " the blamable occasion "
of Mr J affray's illness, and he did not wish to have his usefulness marred by
allowing such a report to go abroad uncontradicted. It may be added, that
of the members of the old Associate Presbytery he was the last survivor and
that one of his daughters was the wife of the Rev. Robert Sheriff, Tranent.
Mr Jaffray continued sole pastor for five years, during which time con
fusion prevailed, and the congregation was brought to the brink of ruin.
Almost at the first it was found needful to have pulpit supply at Dalkeith
from the Presbytery owing to the state of their minister's health. There
was restoration in a way, but in the course of another year a second Presby
terial visitation was needed. Prior to this six papers, most of them pre
ferring grievous complaints against Mr Jaffray, had been tabled. Subsequent
events showed that the root evil was down in the soil of a mind diseased.
The delusion seems to have possessed him that among his office-bearers
there were those " who held the doctrines of the Nicolaitanes," and one
elder after another was refused baptism to his child unless he declared his
abhorrence of these principles and practices. In one case an acknowledgment
of improper behaviour was insisted on, but refused, "because said improper
behaviour was a nonentity." These matters were carefully gone into by the
Presbytery, the characters of the accused vindicated, and Mr Jaffray found
guilty of calumny. The elders present being inquired at one by one they all
gave it as their opinion that their minister was better able for duty now than
he had once been, but most of them thought him confused in his method of
preaching, and rather imprudent. They also stated that the congregation
was sore broken, and would not continue with him in sufficient numbers to
support him. There had been no increase to his stipend since Mr Mutton's
death, and even with the ^50 they were falling into arrears. As for the
people, the majority appeared satisfied, but others said he was still as dark
to them as ever. To the question : Are you willing to wait for Mr Jaffray's
complete recovery? a number made answer in the affirmative. It was
agreed in the end to refer the case of the congregation and the minister to
the approaching meeting of Synod, but this brought nothing more effective
than the advice to give Dalkeith occasional supply of sermon, a favour
which the people, by 107 to 54, declined to accept.
There was a pause now of a few months, and then the old malady took
shape anew. It was the treasurer now, and one of the leading men, who
was suffering from vile aspersions at the minister's hands. Again the
Presbytery pronounced Mr Jaffray a calumniator, but he carried his case by
manifold protests to the Supreme Court, where they were unanimously dis
missed and the appellant rebuked. The prior question might have been
raised whether he was not an object of pity rather than of blame, but it is
hard sometimes to tell where reason ends and insanity begins. In this
uncomfortable state, and amidst chronic dissatisfaction, matters continued
for other two years, and then, in June 1795, tne session applied to the
Presbytery for sermon, "till it shall please God to restore their own pastor to
his wonted usefulness." The congregation at next meeting presented a
similar request, alleging that " Mr Jaffray was altogether unfit for his duty
among them." At the same time parties designating themselves late mem
bers of Dalkeith congregation were asking to be formally disjoined and to
have sermon for themselves. It was next suggested that the minister
554 HISTORY OF U.P. CONGREGATIONS
should give in his demission, on the understanding that he would receive an
adequate retiring allowance, but this he signified he had no intention of
doing, and a section of the congregation were prepared to stand by him. A
committee of Presbytery appointed for the purpose brought back a report
that they had urged demission on his part and acquiescence on the part of
his friends, but "they seemed to make no impression on either." All that
remained now was to refer the case to the Synod, where the winding-up came
in April 1796 — and it was time. The petition for a disjunction was laid before
them, but instead of advancing to a decision they raised the question whether
Mr Jaffray had not discovered symptoms of derangement in his speaking
that evening, and a committee was appointed to take evidence as to his
mental condition. It ended in the clear conviction that he had been in this
unhappy state for some time, and the decision was that he should " exercise
no part of the ministerial office till they are satisfied he is restored to a sound
mind." The Presbytery was also instructed to dissolve the pastoral relation,
as " Dalkeith congregation, though united, is not so numerous as to be able
to support two ministers." Then two leading members of Synod met with
the congregation by appointment, and the agreement come to was that they
were to pay £20 annually for Jaffray's maintenance, and £6 more should the
Presbytery demand it. On this footing Dalkeith was declared vacant, loth
May 1796, and an extract of the Minute was sent to his brother, the Rev.
Robert Jaffray of Kilmarnock, and also to another brother near Stirling,
that "they may look to his safety and accommodation."
P"or Mr Jaffray there was to be no restoration to soundness of mind. In
1799 the congregation asked to be relieved of the annuity and to have the
money paid from the Charitable Fund, but the Synod found that their
circumstances did not entitle them to be thus favoured. In 1808 the
Presbytery of Falkirk and Stirling, by directions of Synod, inquired into
Mr J affray's circumstances, and at their request it was agreed to make an
addition of £10 each half-year to his allowance. He was boarded with a
brother-in-law, and this was " to enable the friends occasionally to provide a
keeper to attend him." The money was granted for the last time in September
1811, from which we infer that before another meeting death had intervened.
Third Minister. — THOMAS BROWN, son of the Rev. John Brown, Had-
dington. As a preacher Mr Brown was in large demand, being called also
to Bannockburn, Paisley (Abbey Close), and Aberdeen (St Nicholas), but
Dalkeith got the preference by an absolute majority. Much as the con
gregation had suffered under their last minister the call was signed by 305
members and 121 adherents. Ordained, 22nd January 1799. In the early
part of the vacancy dissensions went on for a time, but they ended, so far as
the Presbytery minutes go, with a request for a congregational fast. Under
the new minister there was returning harmony and growing strength. In
1812 the old church was replaced by another on the same site at an expendi
ture of nearly ^2500, with sittings for 880. Two months before his death
Mr Brown published a volume of sermons, including several which had ap
peared in print at an earlier period, one of these being on Infant Baptism
and another on Family Worship. The preface is dated 7th April 1828, and
on the 23rd of that month it was announced that Marischal College,
Aberdeen, had conferred on him the degree of D.D. It was an honour he
was not to have much time to wear. Dr Brown died, 2nd June 1828, in
the fifty-third year of his age and thirtieth of his ministry. He had been at
Biggar assisting his niece's husband, the Rev. David Smith, at the com
munion, and took Innerleithen on his way home for the purpose of using the
medicinal waters for a few days. There he took seriously ill on Wednesday,
and died on the following Monday.
PRESBYTERY OF EDINBURGH 555
Fourth Minister.— DAVID KING, son of the Rev. John King, Montrose
(John Street). Licensed by Forfar (not Edinburgh) Presbytery, loth
February 1829, and ordained, I3th January, 1830. It was amidst the con
fusion connected with the hearing of candidates that Lasswade congregation
had its origin, as will be related at the proper time. But at the moderation
there was no other name proposed, and the call was signed on the spot by
272 members. The stipend was to be ^160, with the manse. Dalkeith,
however, was not to be favoured with Mr King's services very long. Grey-
friars, Glasgow, opened to receive him, and on i3th September 1833 the
Synod, without a vote, decided for the translation.
Fifth Minister. — JOSEPH BROWN, from Paisley (Abbey Close). Raving-
preferred Dalkeith to Pollokshaws he was ordained there, 27th August 1834.
The call was signed by 294 members. Four years later the communicants
were given as about 600, of whom three-fourths were in Dalkeith parish.
Newton and Newbattle furnished 70 each, young and old, and Inveresk and
Liberton 40 each, while Lasswade, Cockpen, and Cranstoun gave 80 among
them. The stipend was the same as formerly, and there was a burden at
this time of £i~oo on the property, of which ^500 had come down from
the original meeting-house. All, however, was in a flourishing state, the
seat-rents alone amounting to nearly ^200, and a similar sum being derived
from collections. The debt was gradually reduced to .£1200, and by a
special effort in 1846 other ,£500 were cleared off. In 1838 Mr Brown was
invited to a huge, half-empty church in East Regent Place, Glasgow, but he
very wisely declined. The year before that he had given a volume to the
press, entitled " The Dwellings of Jacob," and this was followed forthwith
by "The Lambs of the Flock; or, Sermons to the Young." In 1850 he
obtained the degree of D.D. from Amherst College, Massachusetts. He
had previously put aside a call from Glasgow, and now Edinburgh and
London came forward in close succession, but they met with a like recep
tion. About Arthur Street in the one case and Albion Chapel in the other
there were drawbacks and serious contingencies which justified a declina-
ture. So for other thirteen years the work went on in Dalkeith as before,
and then in the thirtieth year of his ministry the transition came. On ist
December 1863 Dr Brown accepted Kent Road, Glasgow, and was loosed
from Dalkeith.
Sixth Minister. — FERGUS FERGUSON, from Glasgow (Sydney Place).
Called first to York Place, Perth, and then to Dalkeith, where he was
ordained, 2oth September 1864. A year after this Mr Ferguson gave to the
press a sermon on the Sabbath, in which he warmly upheld man's creation
birthright and the sanctity of the day of rest. This was too much in the
old lines to attract much notice, but it was otherwise when he next came
forward in print. The discourse was headed : " Should Christians com
memorate the Birthday of Robert Burns?" and it had been preached to his
own people on Sabbath, 3ist January 1869. Dr Lindsay Alexander had
delivered a sermon in Queen Street Hall, Edinburgh, at the same season
and with the same bearings ten years before, entitled "The Idolatry of
Genius." The published discourse, though more judicial in tone and less
specific in its application, occupied identical ground with that of Mr
Ferguson, and yet the author escaped with very slender animadversion.
But now (that a younger man had declared himself to the same effect the
newspaper press woke up to extravagances of abusive criticism. Mr
Ferguson made answer : " It is not mere sentiment and far less is it scurrility
that will put down the facts of history or the truth of God." The preacher
was brought into further notice when one of his elders lodged a complaint
against him before Edinburgh Presbytery on ist November 1870, to the
556 HISTORY OF U.P. CONGREGATIONS
regret of the session as they transmitted it. A friendly conference was held
with Mr Ferguson at two successive meetings, and the matter was handed
over to a large committee for fuller inquiry. The report they brought up
bore on its front that, having read certain letters which had passed between
the parties, " they found not only that Mr Ferguson is free from blame in
this matter but that the complainer is censurable for the uncharitable spirit,
injustice, and insolence he had manifested towards his minister," and that
he should be requested to resign his seat in the session. This related to
personal aspersions, but on the deeper question whether Mr Ferguson had
kept within the limits of sound doctrine in expounding the passage on " The
Spirits in Prison," in the 2nd Epistle of Peter, there was not like agreement,
and the case came before the Synod in May 1871. There an adjustment
was arrived at in committee, Mr Ferguson having repudiated the tenet of
" Salvation Hereafter," and among the members generally there was a feeling
of relief that a minister so much esteemed was not to be lost to the United
Presbyterian Church.
In November 1873 ^r Ferguson was called by the congregation of Rose
Street, Edinburgh, which was in course of removing to Palmerston Place,
but, contrary to general expectation, he elected to remain in Dalkeith. The
connection ended, ist February 1876, through his acceptance of a call to
Queen's Park, Glasgow. It should be stated that on the verge of the
Synod's meeting in 1871 Mr Ferguson, to show the Church and the world
the tenor of his preaching, consented to publish a volume of his discourses.
Seventh Minister. — JAMES FRASER, translated from West Calder, and
inducted, loth April 1877. On Friday, 5th December 1879, tne church in
Ikiccleuch Street was opened, with sittings for 850, the total cost being about
,£9000. The service was conducted by their former minister, Dr Joseph
Drown. The old property, including two manses, was sold previously to the
Duke of Buccleuch for ^1770 and a free site in a different part of the town.
Within recent years sums amounting to nearly ^2700 have been expended
on the painting of the church, the putting in of a pipe organ, and the pur
chase of a manse. Notwithstanding this large total expenditure the property
is free of debt. The congregation also possesses valuable mission premises,
which were gifted to them by one of the elders in memory of his son, and
hence designated the Douglas Memorial Hall. The membership at the
close of 1899 was 470. and the stipend ^400, with the manse.
DALKEITH, BACK STREET (ANTIBURGHER)
AT the Breach of 1747 the congregation of Dalkeith took the Burgher side,
with the exception of a small minority, including a single elder. This little
party petitioned the Antiburgher Presbytery at their first meeting to grant
them supply of sermon, the bulk of the members having "fallen in with the
separating brethren." Blank Sabbaths they had experience of for years, but
the distance to Edinburgh, where they could sit at the feet of Adam Gib,
would not be thought formidable. In May 1749 three additional elders were
ordained, and a session constituted. About that time the church whicl
served the congregation to the end was built, with sittings for over 400.
First Minister. — JOHN ROBERTSON, of whose antecedents we only know
that when taken on trials for licence he was described as a student of divinity
at Abernethy. The call was signed by 81 (male) members, a larger number
than was to be looked for. There was a rival call from Leslie, but it was far
from harmonious, and the Synod gave Dalkeith the preference. Mr Robert
son was ordained, 2nd April 1755. About a year after this the congregation
PRESBYTERY OF EDINBURGH 557
was strengthened somewhat by the accession of the families from the
Prestonpans branch of Haddington Antiburgher Church. On applying to
their session for a disjunction they pleaded that Dalkeith was now settled with
a minister, and that place was more convenient for them. On being referred
to the Presbytery the request was granted, Dalkeith being nearer by about a
mile. Mr Robertson died, 2ist April 1774, in the twentieth year of his
ministry.
Second Minister. — GEORGE WHYTOCK, from Perth (North), but born and
brought up in Tibbermuir parish. Mr Whytock's connection with Dalkeith
had not an auspicious beginning. The first call was strongly opposed, and
the Presbytery set it aside, "because the people have only had one hearing
of Mr Whytock, and that since the moderation was granted." To ripen
them for further procedure Mr Whytock was to be brought back to preach
two additional Sabbaths. Then after some delay a call signed by 77 (male)
members and supported by 32 (male) adherents was brought forward and
referred to the Synod. The session was equally divided, four of the members
having subscribed, while the other four disapproved, " particularly owing to
the spirit of the callers." The Synod, however, treated this objection as of
no account, and without a vote sustained the call. The ordination took
place, 1 7th April 1776. During the first years of the century Mr Whytock
formed one of the little group who set themselves against the Synod's action
in framing the New Testimony. The works he left behind him, one of them
a " Defence of Covenanting," published in 1780, and the other, an "Essay on
Church Government," indicate that his sympathies lay in the direction of
former days. But he did not live to take part in the act of separation, which
was not accomplished till 28th August 1806, when his coadjutors formed the
Constitutional Presbytery. Mr Whytock died, 24th October 1805, in the
thirtieth year of his ministry, his age being about fifty-five. Apoplexy, which
had given tokens of its approach a fortnight before, assailed him,' and he
survived the stroke only four hours.
Ten days after Mr Whytock's death the congregation found that they
owed him .£32 for the current year, and they agreed to pay his widow, along
with the arrears, another half-year's stipend, " agreeable to the usual practice
in the Secession." They would also raise a certain sum for her behoof by
subscription, "in consideration of the long services of their pastor and from
an affectionate regard to his memory." There seems, however, to have been
no inclination on their part to cast in their lot with the "Old Light" party,
as there is every reason to believe their minister would have done. One of
the elders, indeed, joined Dr M'Crie's church in Edinburgh, and was ad
mitted to a seat in the session, and a number of the members on whom Mr
Whytock had impressed his views also withdrew, but the people as a whole
kept by the Synod. Two months after Mr Whytock's death they applied
for a moderation, with the promise of ,£90, and a manse, and there being
some demur about the sum named they came up at next meeting to ^io6,
"or ^100 and a house, provided the Presbytery do not accept of the first
offer."
Third Minister.— ROBERT BUCHANAN, from Stirling (now View-field).
He had three calls, and on these the Synod had to decide in May 1806.
There was Peebles, a place where the Antiburgher cause was in perpetual
difficulties. Its claims were first put aside, and then Dalkeith was preferred
to Barry (Carnoustie). Ordained, 6th August 1806. There were great pre
parations for this event. The youny minister was to be provided with a suit
of clothes, a hat, and a pair of shoes. They were also to whitewash the
meeting-house, if as much could be spared from the subscriptions to the
stipend, and, that all might be brought to do their part, the session dealt
558 HISTORY OF U.P. CONGREGATIONS
with such members as were able to pay seat-rents but failed to do so. In
their dealings with their young minister they appear to have been considerate
and open-handed. In the first year there is mention of ^4 being given him
for household expenses at the winter sacrament, and they agreed also to
allow him a sum sufficient to pay his taxes. Though few in number com
pared with the Burgher and Relief congregations they were, as the New
Statistical History said, '"select and respectable."
Through the Union of 1820 the bounds of this congregation came to be
greatly circumscribed. As the only Antiburgher church within a wide
circuit it drew its supplies from far distances. In the early part of Mr
Buchanan's ministry we find that at an election of ciders one was needed for
Musselburgh on the north and another for Stobhill on the south. But as
there were Burgher congregations at Penicuik, Gorebridge, Tranent, Ford, and
Musselburgh these in course of time absorbed the families that used before
the Union to walk in to Back Street, Dalkeith, from miles round. Then the
formation of a United Secession church at Lasswade in 1829 "deprived the
congregation of the last feeder that remained to it in the rural districts, and
hemmed it in to the little town of Dalkeith, otherwise plentifully supplied
with sacred ordinances." On that occasion, when the question of granting
sermon was sent down for their consideration, the session, instead of making
any direct opposition to the "unlooked-for application," agreed to draw up a
plain narrative of the present state of the congregation and what the
ultimate result was likely to be if the Presbytery granted the prayer of the
foresaid petition. In 1838 the minister reported some decrease " in con
sequence of the establishment of another Secession congregation in the
neighbourhood." Still he claimed a membership of some 200, of whom
130 or 140 resided within Dalkeith parish. About other 50 came from the
parishes of Newbattle, Cockpen, Lasswade, and Liberton. The debt on the
property at this time was .£250, and the stipend ^100, with a house. For
income the seat-rents averaged £&o a year, and the collections ,£60.
Mr Buchanan's ministry ended several years before his death. It is
probable that he got dispirited through the cutting down all around and the
feeling that he was engaged in a hopeless struggle with an adverse tide.
He was a man of retiring habits, as his biographer states, and by his own
showing he extended his exertions beyond his congregation only when
assisting at communions or fulfilling appointments of Presbytery. His re
signation is attributed in the Memoir to a mistaken suspicion that his
ministrations had become unacceptable to a number of his people, but there
was more in it than this. On 7th October 1845 Mr Buchanan brought
before the Presbytery the state of matters in his congregation, with a
request for advice, and a committee was appointed to make inquiries and
report. This led the Presbytery to arrange for a meeting with the congrega
tion, when to appearance the ostensible ground of complaint against the
minister was that he had been implicated in an attempt to alienate the pro
perty from the United Secession Church. Certain members of the congrega
tion had got the opinion of counsel years before as to whether this was
practicable, and an impression existed that Mr Buchanan took part in the
getting up of the document. He was now at pains to show by the leading
of evidence that he had no share in the originating of that paper, and the
committee declared him completely exonerated. The people were then
asked what their feelings were with respect to their position and prospects,
and the question elicited the general conviction that it was impossible for
them to go on in their present circumstances. It ended with the Presbytery
by seven to three recommending Mr Buchanan, amidst expressions of
esteem and sympathy, " to take into his serious consideration the propriety
PRESBYTERY OF EDINBURGH 559
of resigning." He thereupon tendered his demission, and also requested
them to provide interim supply, so that it is to be inferred he was never to
enter the pulpit again. On 2nd December he intimated by letter adherence
to his resignation, as he had no reasonable hope of peace or success in his
charge. The commissioners acquiesced in the step taken, and the Presby
tery felt shut up to the necessity of accepting. The congregation had pre
viously adopted two resolutions, which were now confirmed — the one that
they shall adhere to the United Secession Church, the other that they shall
pay Mr Buchanan the ,£82 they owe him for stipend, and also settle with
him as to the bills of ,£250 and ^60 for which he had become responsible.
He then removed to Edinburgh, where he withdrew from the denomination
and connected himself with Dr M'Crie's church. He died, ist September
1850, in the sixty-eighth year of his age and forty-fifth of his ministry. A
slim volume of his discourses and communion addresses was published in
1853, with a Memoir by the Rev. James Young, formerly of Tillicoultry,
in which the writer, who like Mr Buchanan had passed over from the United
Secession to the Original Secession, enters very fully into the reasons they
had for making the change. Mr Buchanan in the latter years of his ministry
stands before us, "a venerable old man, kind, though somewhat irascible.'
Of his little congregation some of the members had a long way to walk, and
they formed " a quaint as well as a historic body." Their minister had no
favour for the union with the Burghers, and he retained a certain aloofness
until his retirement.
During the vacancy which followed Mr Buchanan's retirement the con
gregation called Mr John Scott from Kirkgate, Leith, but he set both
this call and another from Peebles aside, and devoted himself to missionary
work in Jamaica, where he died of yellow fever, 4th December 1848. They
next called Mr Andrew Wield, who declined, and was afterwards ordained
at Thornliebank. While still vacant Back Street, Dalkeith, appeared
antagonistic to the union with the Relief, but silently acquiesced in the end.
Before bringing out their third call they were in a state of discontent, and
asked the Presbytery to say whether they considered there ought to be a
third U.P. congregation in Dalkeith. This brought out the answer that
while Back Street Church continued self-supporting the Presbytery would
cherish them to the best of their ability.
Fourth Minister. — DUNCAN M'lNTOSH, from St James Place, Edin
burgh. Ordained, i8th October 1848, being then in the thirty-ninth year of
his age. None of the three calls issued at this period had the signatures
of more than 51 members. It was a question whether, with two other
churches of the same denomination in the town, it was wise, with numbers so
much reduced, to attempt prolonging their corporate existence. But old
congregations, of the Antiburgher type especially, had a remarkable lease of
vitality. So, with the promise of ^80 and a manse, Mr M'Intosh entered on
his forty-two years of ministerial service. In addition to the work of his own
congregation he gave himself to unremitting visitation among the poorer
classes of the town and evangelistic efforts on their behalf. Thus time
passed, but the congregation, though there was a slight reviving sometimes,
remained much as before. Then in October 1889 the session agreed to
discontinue the afternoon service during the winter months "at the request
of Mr M'Intosh, who complains of failing strength." This was not to be
wondered at, as he was now in his eightieth year. On ist April following he
intimated to the Presbytery the demission of his charge on account of grow
ing infirmities. The congregation had previously received notice of his
intention, and had decided to dispose of the property to meet the claims
of a bondholder. A committee of Presbytery met with them on 22nd April,
560 HISTORY OF U.P. CONGREGATIONS
when they expressed their high esteem for their minister and their apprecia
tion of his long and faithful labours, but they were willing that his demission
should be accepted. It was suggested whether they might not consider the
propriety of uniting with one or other of the two sister congregations in the
place, but they unanimously adhered to a resolution previously adopted to be
simply dissolved. The Presbytery clerk was to occupy the pulpit on the
following Sabbath, and the session agreed to ask him to preach in the
evening, and that supply of ordinances should then cease. For nearly 150
years the light had been kept burning in that humble meeting-house, but
now the candlestick was to be removed out of its place.
Owing to some difficulty in connection with the sale of the property and
the winding-up of money affairs it was not till 6th January 1891 that Mr
M'Intosh's demission was accepted and the congregation formally dissolved.
The sale of the church and rnanse did not quite suffice to meet the require
ments of the bond, but there was another property, which yielded an over
plus, so that in the end the liabilities were fairly met. Mr M'Intosh now
removed to Edinburgh, where he died, 3ist July 1898, in the eighty-ninth
year of his age. The best-known production of his pen is his " Brethrenism,"
which passed into its fourth edition in 1875, and was said to have had a sale
of over 3000.
DALKEITH, KING'S PARK (RELIEF)
THERE was a minister ordained to Dalkeith parish in June 1765, but it is
doubtful whether this led in any way to the origin of the Relief congregation.
That the church was erected in 1768 is certain from the figures which were
engraven on a part of the old wall. We also know from newspaper evidence
that in July of that year an accident happened to five men through the
scaffolding giving way at the building of the Relief chapel, which shows
that the work was well advanced at this time. But the minutes of the
Relief Presbytery make no mention of any accession from Dalkeith in 1768
or of sermon being applied for. The order seems to have been — the place
of worship first, with accommodation for nearly 700, and then stated supply.
First Minister. — ROBERT HUTCHISON, who is understood to have been
a probationer of the Established Church. We are able, from the manuscripts
of the Rev. Thomas Bell of Jedburgh, to give for the first time the precise
date of the ordination. He preached on the occasion, and he has marked
above the text that it was on 25th May 1770. The tokens are of the same
year, and the communion cups the year after. The congregation must have
grown largely under Mr Hutchison's ministry, as the Old Statistical History
twenty-five years after this states that of the three congregations, Burgher,
Antiburgher, and Relief, the last was by far the most numerous. He died,
7th April 1799, in the sixty-first year of his age and twenty-ninth of his
ministry. His character was summed up at the time in these words : "An
affectionate husband and father, a steady friend, and a useful minister."
Second Minister. — ALEXANDER KING, son of the Rev. John King, Relief
minister of Kettle. Called to be colleague to Mr Hutchison, who died before
the ordination took place, which was on I4th May 1799. The stipend was to
be ,£108. There was also a manse built under the same roof with the church,
and furnishing access to the pulpit without going into the open air. The
congregation had been weakened somewhat by a partial disruption the year
before. The Rev. Thomas M'Kean, who had been an Independent minister
in Leeds, had preached occasionally for Mr Hutchison when his health was
failing, and a movement was got up to have him for colleague and successor.
PRESBYTERY OF EDINBURGH 561
But the managers referred to the Presbytery the question whether it was
allowable for one not in connection with the Relief to occupy the pulpit, and
they were told in reply that such a thing was directly opposed to a recent
enactment of Synod, and Mr Hutchison got notice to permit no such
irregularity again. This led to the setting up of a new cause under Mr
M'Kean, who began preaching to his adherents in a schoolhouse. He
appears to have remained in Dalkeith for a year or two, as Mr King com
plained to the Presbytery in September 1799 that the Rev. Neil Douglas,
who was now causing them trouble, had been officiating within his bounds
to another society ; but by-and-by the party broke up and left no trace behind
In April 1803 Mr King's ministerial course came to a sad close. Some
months before this he had asked the Presbytery to send supply to his pulpit,
as he was unfit to preach, though the ailment, whatever it may have been,
was only temporary. But in May of that year, the month his father died,
the elders and managers brought up to the Presbytery an account of their
distressing situation. Their minister was laid aside, and two medical men
had pronounced him in a state of mental derangement. In Kay's Edinburgh
Portraits it is stated that Mr King preached on a communion Sabbath
evening in his father's church at Kettle with thrilling eloquence, and after the
service had to be put under restraint. But it is clear from the Presbytery
records that he was at Dalkeith when the two medical men visited him and
pronounced upon his case, though it also appears that he was removed to
Fife, and probably to Kettle manse, soon after.
Finding that there was no hope of speedy recovery the Presbytery de
clared the congregation vacant, 6th July 1803. It further appears from their
Minutes that in May 1805 Mr King was an inmate of Montrose Lunatic
Asylum, where a brother of his had been confined for a number of years.
The congregation, before he was loosed from his charge, undertook to con
tribute ,£35 annually for his maintenance, an agreement which occasioned
some contention years afterwards, certain parties insisting on payment of
that sum, whether it was all required or not. By this time Mr King had
been transferred to Musselburgh, where the arrangements may have been
conducted on a cheaper scale. He died there on i3th March 1841, in the
sixty-fifth year of his age, and was buried in Inveresk Churchyard, the
minister and session of King's Park being present at the funeral. Thus did
the thirty-eight years of blighted promise come to an end. The year after
this vacancy occurred the congregation called the Rev. William Auld, then
of Burnhead, and afterwards of Greenock, but he put the call aside, without
leaving it to run its course.
Third Minister. — JAMES SCOTT, son of the Rev. James Scott, Jedburgh.
The stipend was to be ^120 and the manse, with £-2 each communion, a
liberal sum to offer considering the allowance guaranteed for their former
minister's support. Mr Scott had been called to the forming congregation of
Dunning shortly before, but Dalkeith was preferable, and he was ordained
there, 24th May 1805. On I3th October 1818 he accepted a call to Cow-
gate, Edinburgh (now Viewforth).*
Fourth Minister. — THOMAS FRASER, from Kilbarchan congregation.
Ordained, i8th May 1819. Having resolved on emigrating to Canada he
was loosed from his charge, gth May 1826. After being settled at Niagara
for about two years he went to the United States, where he connected him
self with the Dutch Reformed Church, but we do not find that he held a
fixed charge in that connection. Having returned to Canada he became
* Mr Scott is understood to have been the prototype of Mr Wiggie in Dr Moir's
" Mansie Waugh," and the general features harmonised. A little more of the clerical
enamel would have been to Mr Scott's advantage from first to last.
tN
562 HISTORY OF U.P. CONGREGATIONS
minister of a congregation in Lanark in connection with the Church of
Scotland, and laboured there from 1844 to 1861, when he retired from active
duty. He then took up his residence in Montreal, where he died, I5th July
1884, in the sixty-sixth year of his ministry. In 1867 Mr Fraser published
a volume of sermons. His farewell discourse on leaving Dalkeith was also
published, and it shows that he and his people parted with mutual esteem
and on the best of terms.
Fifth Minister. — WILLIAM CRAIG, M.A., from Campsie. Ordained,
1 7th July 1827. Soon after this the Presbytery had to investigate into a
matter of scandal, bearing on Mr Craig's character in preacher days. How
the evidence on the main charge was got over is a mystery, but the decision
caused some stir throughout the Relief body. Mr Craig died after a very
short illness, i8th April 1834, in the thirty-first year of his age and seventh
of his ministry. A volume of his sermons, with a brief account of his life,
was published shortly after his death.
Sixth Minister. — CHARLES WALDIE, translated from Dunfermline
(Gillespie Church), where he had been four years, and inducted to Dalkeith,
1 7th December 1834. The communicants in 1838 numbered about 600,
being an increase of fully 50 under Mr Waldie, and nearly one-half of the
congregation, young and old, were from surrounding parishes, of which
Newton took the lead, followed by Newbattle, Cockpen, Lasswade, and two
or three others. Twenty families were from four miles or more, and 127 from
two miles. The stipend was ,£139, with the manse, and the allowance to
Mr King was not now over .£25 a year. The debt on the property was
j£iooo, a legacy handed down, we may believe, from the days of their fathers.
Mr Waldie conducted three services every third Sabbath, but his ministerial
course came abruptly to an end. On a communion Sabbath in November
1847, in the midst of his action sermon, he was struck down by paralysis, like
a stately tree levelled beneath the axe. He was quoting that sublime
passage in Daniel about the Ancient of Days, that " thousand thousands
ministered unto Him, and ten thousand times ten thousand stood before
Him," when there was a sudden backward movement of the head, his speech
became affected, and he attempted to go on, but fell back into the pulpit
seat. One of his assistants had to finish the service, and Mr Waldie's pulpit
work was at an end. A colleague was now needed, on whom the whole
burden should devolve, and this relation continued for fourteen years. Mr
Waldie died, i8th February 1864, in the sixty-third year of his age and the
thirty-fourth after his ordination.
The congregation now called the Rev. Andrew J. Gunion of Hawick,
who, when the day for intimating his decision came, declared with much
hesitancy his acceptance, but having submitted his decision to the judgment
of his brethren they gave it as their opinion that his present charge had the
better claim, and he remained in Hawick.
Seventh Minister. — JAMES RENNIE, from Junction Road, Leith. Or
dained, i6th January 1850. The stipend was to be ^150 and the manse,
Mr Waldie receiving a retiring allowance of ,£50, but ^20 of this he resigned
in 1858 on being admitted an annuitant on the Aged and Infirm Ministers'
Fund. In April 1865 Mr Rennie was called, almost simultaneously, to
Egremont, Liverpool, and to Glasgow (St Vincent Street), to be colleague
to the Rev. G. M. Middleton. On 23rd May he gave the preference to
Glasgow, and was loosed from Dalkeith.
Eighth Minister. — JAMES JEFFREY, M.A., son of the Rev. James Jeffrey
of Greenock (Sir Michael Street). Mr Jeffrey was called first to Silverhill,
Hastings, where he had been located, and had done good work, while a
student. Then came calls to two collegiate charges — Lothian Road, Edin-
PRESBYTERY OF EDINBURGH 563
burgh, and Brunswick Street, Manchester — but Dalkeith followed soon
after, and was preferred. Ordained, 8th November 1865.
King's Park Church was opened by Dr MacEwen of Glasgow on Sabbath,
8th November 1870 ; sittings 700, and the cost ,£3300. The old church and
manse were sold for ,£800. A bazaar brought ^850, and subscriptions and
donations amounted to ,£1200. These sums, with ,£100 collected at the
opening services, left only a slight burden of debt. In November 1872
Mr Jeffrey declined a call to Greenhead, Glasgow, to be colleague to Dr
Edwards, but on 6th May 1873 he accepted Erskine Church. When a
divinity student Mr Jeffrey wrote a graceful Memoir of his fellow-student,
who died young — Mr John Dick Harper, youngest son of Principal Harper.
Ninth Minister. — ANDREW HUNTER, B.D., from the Original Secession
Church, Ayr. Joined the U.P. Church when a university student. Called
to Parkhead, Glasgow, and to Princes Street, Liverpool, but accepted King's
Park, where he was ordained, i6th December 1873. The membership at
the close of 1899 was 256, and the stipend ^250, but no manse.
WEST LINTON (BURGHER)
IN the early days of the Secession this was the mother congregation for a
wide district of country, the bounds extending midway to Edinburgh on the
north, including Penicuik, which is eight miles distant ; whilst all along to the
south, the west, and the north-west the radius was hardly under fifteen miles.
For the circumstances in which this congregation originated we draw upon
\Vodrow in his Analecta. In 1728 he notes down that a Mr Findlater, the
presentee to Cambuslang, is obnoxious to the people, but the patron, the Duke
of Hamilton, has peremptorily told them he will give them no other. In
February 1729 Mr Findlater got a presentation to West Linton, which was
only shifting the scene of conflict, and we have it on the same authority that
when the Presbytery met there to mature matters they were rabbled, and the
case was referred to the Synod. The Presbytery were now ordered to
proceed, and no appeal was taken to the General Assembly. As the
minister appointed for the purpose was not permitted to preach or read the
edict it led to a troop of soldiers being sent out, who apprehended six or
eight of the ringleaders. The Presbytery of Peebles were quite submissive
to command, and the ordination was carried through on I4th January 1731,
without the intervention of a "riding committee." All was peaceable, says
Wodrow, and though the military were quartered in the parish they were
not present at the service. All this leads the narrator to moralise on the
danger of ministers losing the affections of the people through yielding so
much to patrons and striving to please noblemen and gentlemen. He also
states further on that the minister of Penicuik invited Mr Findlater to assist
at his communion, but was told by his elders that they would not serve at
the tables if the intruder were allowed to preach. Similarly, a paper was
given in to the Presbytery of the bounds from a number of people in the
parish of Peebles remonstrating against the late settlement at Linton. The
presentation, they pleaded, was only acquiesced in by a few non-resident, and
two resident, heritors, one of the latter an elder ; while the whole parish were
in opposition, some being imprisoned over the affair, and others having fled
their native land, fearing the wrath of the patron (the Earl of March) for the
part they had acted. Hence they testified " against Mr Thomas Findlater
as a violent and disorderly intruder," and refused to own him as a minister
of Christ. Thus matters were prepared in that locality for large accessions
to the Associate Presbytery shortly after its formation, more especially since
564 HISTORY OF U.P. CONGREGATIONS
the intrusion " was homologated by all the ministers for many miles around,
in that they were either actively guilty, sinfully silent, or neutrally indifferent."
The first notice of West Linton in the minutes of the Associate Presby
tery is on 5th April 1737, when a representation and petition was laid before
them signed by about 60 of the parishioners, containing their secession from
the present judicatories and craving a supply of gospel ordinances. To
this paper about 70 persons in the adjacent parishes adhered. Having
no licentiates as yet the members of Presbytery were straitened to meet
applications for sermon, and they could seldom do more than furnish
occasional week-day services. Accordingly, it was not till Wednesday, 3rd
August, when four months had passed, that Messrs Alexander Moncrieff
and Thomas Mair observed a Fast at West Linton, planted the Secession
standard there, and recognised the petitioners in that parish as a congrega
tion. The 70 from outside the bounds were kept on middle ground for the
time, that they might give satisfactory reasons for withdrawing from their
own ministers. But this difficulty was got over at an early meeting, and the
two sections were formed into one community. Among the acceders in
W7est Linton parish there was no elder, but among those from other parishes
there were five, so that a session could be constituted. Still, the congrega
tion being far gathered it was needful to have the several districts pro
vided for. The various societies being recommended to meet for prayer in
this weighty matter the election was proceeded with on Friday, 24th March
1738, and on the following Sabbath the edict was served, when Messrs
Ralph Erskine and Thomas Mair preached to "a great and grave auditory,
and many, it was said, were much refreshed." This issued in an eldership
of seventeen. Steps were now taken to have a place of worship built, as
appears from a brief notice in an Edinburgh newspaper of 2ist May 1739 :
" The foundation of a new church for the Seceding brethren was laid last
week at Linton," and a stone in the old building gave that year as the date
of the erection.
First Minister. — JAMES MAIR, a native of Monquhitter parish, Banff-
shire. Officiated several years as a preacher in connection with the
Established Church, and was assistant for a lengthened period at Ardrossan.
Acceded to the Associate Presbytery on I7th July 1739, and was soon after
wards called to Kinross (West) and West Linton. The latter place was
preferred by the Synod, and he was ordained, 2gth May 1740. The call was
signed by 118 persons, and it was explained that a great number had not
time to subscribe. As none but male members were allowed to take part in
the proceedings the entire congregation must have been some hundreds
strong. Mr Mair was chosen by a large majority to preside at the Synod in
April 1747, when the Breach took place. That night, when strife was at its
keenest and the crisis drew on, he retired on the plea of indisposition, but
next morning he was at his post, and took part with the Burgher brethren.
The rupture cost him and his congregation the loss of several elders and a
number of members, who went over to the stricter side, and found their head
quarters at Howgate and Peebles. In 1755 there was a narrowing in of the
West Linton bounds to the west by the disjunction of the families from
Biggar district, the places being eleven miles apart. The Presbytery ascer
tained that the congregation of Linton had agreed upon a method for supply
ing the deficiency this would cause to the funds, and on that footing the
petition from Biggar was granted. Mr Mair died, 8th January 1774, in the
seventy-sixth year of his age and thirty-fourth of his ministry, and a tomb
stone in West Linton Churchyard, with a suitable inscription, marks his.
grave. His wife was a daughter of the Rev. Archibald Bowie, parish
minister of Monzie — "a woman of eminent piety and amiable manners."
PRESBYTERY OF EDINBURGH 565
Second Minister. — JAMES M'GiLCHRisx, from Stirling (now Erskine
Church). Like his predecessor he was called to Kinross (West), but that
congregation was in a state of confusion, and after his ordination was decided
on a protest against going forward came before the Synod. The objectors
were rebuked, and a competing call from West Linton having come in very
opportunely it was preferred. A majority had previously given a divided call
to the Rev. James Moir of Cumbernauld, but it was largely opposed, and the
Presbytery dismissed it "on account of the small probability there is of it
being prosecuted in consistency with the comfort of the candidate and the
edification of the congregation." Now harmony was arrived at, and Mr
M'Gilchrist's call was signed by 212 members. He was ordained, 2oth June
1776, the stipend having been brought up to ,£60, with a manse. In 1783
the strength of the congregation was much reduced by the severance of
more than 50 members, who went to form the Burgher congregation of
Penicuik, eight miles to the north-east. In the face of hostility this was
carried in the Presbytery, and West Linton people next year craved to have
their minister's stipend reduced owing to the loss this had caused them. The
answer was that they were numerous enough still to make up the sum
required if they exerted themselves, and we find from the Statistical History
of 1792 that they had 400, young and old, in West Linton parish alone.
But in some of the old Secession congregations the standard of liberality did
not advance with the progress of the times. A more regrettable inroad was
made on the membership in the last year of the century by a number with
drawing from Mr M'Gilchrist's ministry and casting in their lot with the
Original Burghers. They never obtained a minister, however, though after
going on for six years they issued a call which was subscribed by 44 persons.
They soon afterwards ceased to have sermon, and their little place of worship
w~as turned into dwelling-houses. Most of them returned to the church they
had left, a fact which attests that Mr M'Gilchrist was a man of peace, else
the severance would hardly have been got over. In September 1809 his
resignation, which had been given in under growing infirmities, was accepted,
and he removed to Edinburgh, where he died, ist July 1815, in the seventy-
third year of his age and fortieth of his ministry. Though the congrega
tion was not able to allow him more than ,£25 a year in his retirement it has
been stated that through the liberality of many Christian friends he was as
well provided for then as he had ever been in West Linton. It speaks for the
high estimation in which he was held. Mr M'Gilchrist's son, who was enter
ing the Hall when his father died, was the Rev. John M'Gilchrist of Duns,
and if the father's delivery, as his biographer states, was " slow, tedious, and
awkward," the son in his younger days made ample amends by his powers
of commanding oratory. In March 1810 the Rev. William Fraser of Crail
was called to succeed Mr M'Gilchrist, but Alloa (West) opened for him, and
was preferred both by himself and by the Synod.
Third Minister. — ROBERT RENWICK, from Berwick (now Wallace-
Green). Ordained, 3rd December 181 1. Next year the membership was 167 —
75 in the town and 92 in the country. So far as the surrounding districts
were concerned the congregation was the mere skeleton of what it had been
in its better days. In 1813 Mr Renwick was called to Blackburn, Lancashire,
where he had been supplying for six months by appointment of Presbytery,
but when the call came before the Synod he expressed himself in favour of
remaining at West Linton, and was continued without a vote. Blackburn
people, having reason to expect something different, were so fretted at the
result that they went over to the Congregationalists. While Mr Renwick
was highly popular in a way he was not always careful to keep up his good
name at West Linton, though he remained there eighteen years. But on
566 HISTORY OF U.P. CONGREGATIONS
1 7th September 1829 he was loosed by deed of Synod, that he might be
inducted into Dean Street, Edinburgh. In March 1830 the congregation
called Mr Patrick Robertson, son of the Rev. Patrick Robertson of Craig-
dam, but owing to want of harmony the Presbytery set the call aside. A
year afterwards they made choice of Mr William Miller, but Whitburn
followed, and his preferences being known the call was allowed to lapse.
Fourth Minister. — WILLIAM RITCHIE, from Perth (North). Ordained,
28th June 1832, another call from Great Salkeld having been dropped by
the way. The stipend was now ^80, with the manse and garden, and ^5
for sacramental expenses. Mr Ritchie was loosed from his charge, 2nd
September 1845, having decided on emigrating to New South Wales at the
request of the Mission Board. It is certified that he was careful with his
pulpit preparations and exemplary in the discharge of pastoral duties, and
his farewell discourse from Paul's address to the elders at Ephesus stirred
deep feeling among the people, as they reflected that he was to appear in
that pulpit no more. After sojourning for a season in Kinross, his wife's
native place, he passed to the other side of the world, and became minister
of a congregation at Yass, New South Wales. He died, 26th October
1854, in the sixty-third year of his age and twenty-third of his ministry. His
widow, a sister of the Rev. David Robertson, Kilmaurs, died, Mr Kinloch
states, in 1883, having shortly before lost her only son by death. The Rev.
Alexander Ritchie, Dairy, Galloway, was a younger brother of Mr Ritchie's.
In 1840 West Linton was entered under the Debt Liquidation Scheme
as having a membership small and generally poor, with a bond of ,£160
upon the property, for the payment of which diligence was threatened. All
that the Board promised was ,£25, but another grant of ,£50 followed
four years afterwards, and the burden seems to have been entirely uplifted
before Mr Ritchie left. On his removal there was a vacancy of three years,
marked by a succession of disappointments. It is enough to*name the pro
bationers and indicate the congregations over which they were afterwards
ordained : Mr William Cowan (Buckhaven), Mr John Young (Newburgh),
Mr Daniel Douglas (Kennoway), and Mr Andrew Wield (Thornliebank).
These repeated declinatures were enough to make the people wish for a
return to the times when the will of the preacher was controlled by the
judgment of the Church courts. The congregation, though far short of what
it was when Mr M'Gilchrist had 700 names on his examination roll, was
still fair even as regards numbers. The New Statistical History gave 104
communicants in West Linton parish alone, and others came from six
neighbouring parishes. The stipend, moreover, was ^100, with manse and
garden. On applying for their fourth moderation they came up ^30, the
reason being that they had Mr John Scott in their eye, but ascertaining that
he had destined himself for the mission field they stopped procedure, and then
came down to the old level again. Mr Scott's acceptability in the home
vacancies might tempt us to grudge him to Jamaica and an early grave.
Fifth Minister. — ARCHIBALD CROSS, from East Calder, but got licence
as a Relief preacher. Ordained, i7th August 1848, and demitted on account
of ill-health, 3rd February 1852, with the view of seeking a more suitable
climate. Having removed to Canada he became pastor of the united con
gregation of Ingersoll and Woodstock, from which he was translated to
Newton and Newcastle, near Toronto, which he resigned in 1875. He
returned to Scotland in 1882, and settled down in Edinburgh, where, besides
preaching occasionally, he officiated as an elder in Morningside Church.
He died, nth April 1900, in the eightieth year of his age, having survived
by a long course of years his brothers — the' Rev. John Cross, Dundee, and
the Rev. James Cross, formerly of Langholm.
PRESBYTERY OF EDINBURGH 567
Sixth Minister. — JAMES A. JOHNSTONE, from Stockbridge Church, Ber
wickshire, but a native of Coldingham. Called to Stockton-on-Tees, Shiels
(Belhelvie), and Walker, besides West Calder, where the call was not
sustained. Ordained at West Linton, 23rd September 1852. Set aside
an invitation to Haddington (East), but accepted Springburn, Glasgow, on
I4th May 1861.
Seventh Minister. — ROBERT LAURIE, from Howgate. Ordained, i8th
March 1862, and loosed, 24th July 1866, on accepting a call to Dundee
(James' Church).
Eighth Minister. — JAMES M. KINLOCH, from Methven. Mr Kinloch was
ordained at Ballyfrenis, Ireland, on I3th March 1862. Inducted to West
Linton, ijth April 1867. The old church, built in 1784, being renovated at
a cost of ,£500, was reopened on gth November 1869 by Professor Eadie,
who preached his well-known sermon on "What is Man ?" or otherwise,
"How much is a Man better than a Sheep?" The manse was also im
proved soon after, which caused an additional outlay of ,£117, of which ^50
came from the Board. The congregation has revived within recent years,
partly owing to the influx of summer visitors. The membership at the close
of 1899 was 1 14, and the people raise ,£120 of stipend, there being the manse,
and large garden besides. To Mr Kinloch we are indebted for an exhaus
tive History of West Linton Church, published in 1887.
HOWGATE (ANTIBURGHER)
UP till the Breach of 1747 West Linton had been the gathering-point for the
Seceders scattered over a wide stretch of territory on every side. But now
a process of disintegration began through differences as to the swearing of
the Burgess Oath. Mr Mair, the minister, declared in favour of forbearance,
b*ut several of his elders and people took the other side, and on i4th June
1748 petitioned the Antiburgher Presbytery of Edinburgh for supply of
gospel ordinances, and a probationer was appointed to preach to them on an
early Sabbath. From that time sermon was kept up at intervals within the
bounds, which stretched from beyond Peebles on the south-east to beyond
Howgate on the north-east. Each of these places became the seat of an
Antiburgher congregation, and as they were thirteen miles apart they had
ample room to maintain independent existence without injuring each other.
At Howgate a church was built about 1750, with sittings for nearly 400, and
the baptismal roll begins the same year. The place is a mere hamlet, about
one and a half miles south from Penicuik, and it is eight miles from the
parent church at West Linton.
Before obtaining a minister the congregation issued two unsuccessful
calls. The first came out in February 1750 to Mr Alexander Nimmo, who
was also called to Glasgow and Newcastle. The former of these the Synod
laid aside, as it came from ua scrimp majority," and then Linton (or How-
gate) was put out of the competition almost unanimously.* The next call
had even less prospect of succeeding. It was addressed to Mr John Wilson,
son of the Rev. William Wilson of Perth. It came up to the Synod in
October 1753 along with others from Peebles, Leslie, and Methven, and of
these the last named and the most important was preferred. The call from
* Mr Nimmo was ordained at Newcastle (now Blackett Street), 2Qth April I752>
and died, 5th February 1770, in the forty-fifth year of his age and eighteenth of his
ministry. His successor was William Graham, author of a famous work on
Ecclesiastical Establishments.
568 HISTORY OF U.P. CONGREGATIONS
Hovvgate to Mr Wilson was subscribed by 68 male members, from which we
can estimate the numerical strength of the congregation.
First Minister.— ANDREW BUNYAN, born at Newstead, near Melrose, as
appears from the parish register. After receiving licence by directions of
Synod with the view of proceeding to Pennsylvania he drew back from the
proposed mission. His refusal was looked on as a breach of faith, and it led
to his licence being withdrawn. But at next meeting, after submission and
rebuke, he was restored to his place as a preacher. A call to Howgate
followed, but procedure had to be delayed, " as he had not entered into the
bond." An opportunity, however, occurred of joining in covenanting work
at Edinburgh soon after, and the way was cleared. He was accordingly
ordained "over the Associate congregation of Linton at Howgate," 26th
November 1754. On the following day five persons in Carkettle, parish of
Lasswade, were disjoined from Dalkeith (Back Street), four miles off, and
annexed to Howgate, two miles off, in terms of their own petition. This
appears to have been the extent to which accessions came from outside
West Linton limits. Mr Bunyan died suddenly on Sabbath, 22nd February
1795, in the seventy-third year of his age and forty-first of his ministry. He
had gone through the public services as usual, and was struck with apoplexy
while holding a meeting of session at the close. He was dead before his
situation was observed. Mr Bunyan had two sons, James and John, who
passed through the Hall together, and became Antiburgher ministers, the
one in Keith, the other in Whitehill.
Second Minister.— WILLIAM MACEWEN, from the parish of Moneydie and
the congregation of Logiealmond. Ordained, 3 1 st May 1 796. Mr MacEwen
had gone along with Mr Thomas M'Crie in expressing scruples to the Pres
bytery about the power which the Confession of Faith assigns to the civil
magistrate in matters of religion, and to meet their difficulties the case was
laid before the Synod. This caused delay with the ordination, but relief was
obtained, and a movement on the side of relaxation began, which led to the
rupture of 1806, Mr M'Crie being now a leader on the conservative side.
Thirteen years afterwards Mr MacEwen swayed in the same direction, and
it was as if these two brethren, veering away from the liberalism of their
student days, might come together again. When negotiations for union with
the Burgher Synod were going on he was one of the stricter party, influenced
to some extent, it may be, by Mrs MacEwen, a sister of John Henderson of
Park, and a woman with strong Antiburgher sympathies. But though her
husband dissented from certain Articles in the Basis of Union, and even
signed the protest, catholic feelings prevailed with him in the end, and he
carried his antagonism no further. He died, 22nd February 1827, in the
fifty-eighth year of his age and thirty-first of his ministry. Had he lived a
few months longer he would have seen his protesting brethren become one
with the Constitutional Presbytery, the party of which his former coadjutor,
Dr M'Crie, was now the acknowledged head. Mr MacEwen's son Alexander,
who was only in his sixth year at his father's death, became the Rev. Alex
ander MacEwen, D.D., of Claremont Church, Glasgow, and the Rev. William
France of Paisley was Mr MacEwen's son-in-law. His funeral sermon was
preached by the Rev. Alexander Duncan of Mid-Calder, whose son was to
be his successor in Hovvgate. The only discourse he ever published, so far
as I know, was preached at the opening of the Antiburgher Synod in October
1818, and is entitled "Concern of the Faithful Ministers of Christ for the
Credit and Success of their Ministry."
Third Minister. — DAVID DUNCAN, just referred to. The call was signed
by 163 male members, from which we may infer a communion roll of about
400. There was a rival call from Comrie, but when the case came before
PRESBYTERY OF EDINBURGH 569
the Synod Mr Duncan's father, who was Moderator, requested permission
to leave the chair, and it was taken by another. He wished to plead the
claims of Howgate, for his son's sake and for his own sake, and from interest
in the congregation. That side carried, but not by a great majority, and
Mr David Duncan was ordained at Howgate, 3rd January 1828. In him the
congregation obtained a minister of high theological attainments, who took
the lead for ability, though not for popular gifts, among the members of a
remarkable family. In 1838 the communicants numbered 355, of whom fully
the half were from Penicuik parish. Of the others, about one-third belonged
to Lasswade and Roslin, and considerably more than one-half to the parishes
of Eddleston, Temple, and Newlands, with a few families from Carrington
and Glencorse. The minister's* stipend was ^100, and the seat-rents alone
were far in advance of that sum. There was also ,£10 for sacramental ex
penses, with a manse and glebe, the value of the latter being from ,£8 to ^10
a year. Recent improvements had entailed a debt of slightly over ^100.
The old church, which had served for upwards of a century, was replaced by
another with 408 sittings, which was opened, gth November 1856, by the
Rev. Alexander MacEwen, Glasgow, a befitting arrangement. It cost ^750,
and in the beginning of 1865 the debt was cleared away. Mr Duncan died,
26th June 1866, in the sixty-second year of his age and thirty-ninth of his
ministry. He was the author of "An Exposition of the Lord's Prayer," and
also of a better-known work, entitled "The Law of Moses," which is treated
as a rule of conduct, as a national covenant, and as a development of the
plan of salvation. The latter was published in 1851.
Fourth Minister. — DAVID THOMAS, M.A., son of the Rev. David Thomas
of Mauchline. Called shortly before to Stronsay, and ordained at Howgate,
loth February 1867. Those who have read the Life of Thomas Davidson
will remember the hopes he cherished about this vacancy and the light-
hearted way in which he took the disappointment. The congregation at
this time, though declining, still retained the spirit of its better days. But
Mr Thomas, notwithstanding these advantages, had formidable possibilities
to face. In 1838 over 30 of the families were more than four miles from
the church, and 70 were more than two miles. Penicuik was certain to send
out fewer supplies year by year, especially after their church was transferred
from Bridgend to the outskirts of the town, and Howgate had very slender
resources within itself. The consequence has been steady and continuous
decrease, till the membership at the close of 1899 was 122, not more than a
third of what it was in earlier times.
PEEBLES (ANTIBURGHER)
IN Dr M'Kelvie's Annals the origin of the Secession in this locality is
traced to a forced settlement in the parish of Manor, which borders with
Peebles on the south-west. This, however, is a mistake, as the presentation
in that case was not pressed, and the party objected to, whose call was
signed by only 3 parishioners, was never ordained. Indeed, in the minutes
of the Associate Presbytery there is no mention of either " Praying
Societies" or private Christians in that part of the country acceding to the
Act and Testimony. But, as has been indicated under West Linton, the
intrusion into that parish in 1731 sowed the seeds of Secession principles
about Peebles. A remonstrance was drawn up in the house of one of the
bailies and signed by nearly 120 persons, to be presented to the Presbytery
of the bounds by the ex-provost of the burgh. It testified against the
Presbytery concurring with the patron in the case of West Linton "con-
570 HISTORY OF U.P. CONGREGATIONS
trary to the rules of the gospel and the constitution of the Church." It also
made a representation against the employment of military force in the
settlement of kirks. Accordingly, when a congregation was formed at West
Linton it drew a sprinkling of families from Peebles and the parishes around,
though the distance was from eight to sixteen miles. At the rupture of 1747
a number of these drew away from the mother congregation and declared
for the Antiburgher cause. When Howgate became the new centre those
residing about Peebles, along with some members of Midholm and Stow,
applied for occasional sermon on 27th November 1750, assigning as the
reason " that they lie at a great distance from their respective places of
worship." But when the application was renewed three months afterwards
it was peremptorily refused. It meant that the Antiburgher community of
Howgate was too weak to be divided, although for the convenience of those
in the southern district Peebles would sometimes be made the meeting-
place. But the pressure becoming greater it was agreed on I4th January
1752, with the consent of both parties, to disjoin Peebles from Howgate,
and certain places in Eddleston parish were to be the boundary between the
two communities. A number of people were at the same time disjoined
from the west end of Stow congregation and annexed to Peebles, which
needed all the strengthening possible.
Before obtaining a fixed ministry Peebles congregation, like their
brethren in Howgate, called Mr John Wilson, who was appointed to
Methven. Then they fixed on the Rev. Matthew Moncrieff, colleague to his
father at Abernethy. The impression might be that the young man was
more needed at Peebles than at home, and there might be the hope that
the Synod would give effect to this contention, but it carried by a great
majority not to transport.
First Minister. — RICHARD JERMENT, from Leith, but his father was one
of Mr Gib's elders. Ordained, loth September 1755. The congregation
was weak, and, notwithstanding Mr Jerment's acceptability as a preacher,
there was little progress made during his ministry of thirteen years. There
seems, indeed, to have been a feeling throughout the churches that Peebles
was not the place for a man like him, and hence he was called to Lockerbie
in 1761, but this call the Synod unanimously set aside. Next year Edin
burgh Presbytery reported heart-burnings in Peebles congregation, and
they were instructed to tell the people that if they did not study peace and
harmony Mr Jerment would be declared transportable. Thus encouraged,
Haddington congregation brought up a call to him in April 1763, but though
differences still subsisted in Peebles congregation the Synod vetoed the
tranference. Still, the impression prevailed " that he could not be got
supported at Peebles," and accordingly calls came up to Mr Jerment in
April 1765 from Haddington, Bo'ness, Mid-Calder, and Hawick, but it
carried to continue him in his present charge. What the feelings of the
party chiefly concerned were would enter but a little way into the calcula
tions of his superiors. The resolve seems to have been to give Peebles full
justice, but this process was not to go on interminably. In September 1768
the Synod was called to say whether Mr Jerment should be transferred to
Burntisland, but Delay carried over Transport by the Moderator's casting
vote. At next meeting, in April 1769, the barriers gave way, and he was
loosed, " with only two contradictory voices."
Second Minister. — MICHAEL ARTHUR, previously of Dumbarrow. In
ducted, 27th March 1771. Having got into trouble in his former charge, as is
related under the proper heading, he had been loosed on 2nd October of the
former year, and now Peebles may have been welcome ; but Mr Arthur
was only exchanging one scene of struggle for another. During his first
PRESBYTERY OF EDINBURGH 571;
two or three years at Peebles the people fell one-fourth behind with the
stipend. This arose chiefly, he explained, from the undutifulness of a
number who had all along been backward to contribute anything for the
support of the gospel. Then it was suggested to him that these defaulters
might, perhaps, pay their quota of stipend if he would become the collector,
and willing, as he said, " to do everything in his power for the encourage
ment and support of the congregation," he agreed. This function he dis
charged for five years, but he lived to regret it, as it hurt him, and did not in
the end benefit them. In 1781 it was found on inquiry that the people did
not appear able to give more than ^35 of stipend, which was rightly con
sidered inadequate. The congregation meanwhile wished the Presbytery,
" before doing anything against them, to give them time to try whether they
could make matters any better." Next came an injunction to pay up arrears
by a certain time, else the Presbytery would consider whether to declare Mi-
Arthur transportable. At the same time, to show sympathy with them in
their weakness, they recommended the congregations under their inspection
to make a collection on their behalf. Among the people there was now the
appearance of a more Christian spirit towards their minister, and Mr Arthur
could not think of the Presbytery taking any measures that might be
oppressive, especially as he knew that a number did not share the burden.
But it happened that a call to Aberdeen, where he had been sent to preach,
was already on its way, and at next meeting, when it was brought up, a
letter from Peebles was read, stating that they had been concerting a scheme
for more punctual payments, and begging the Presbytery not to dissolve the
relation. It was decided to refer the whole matter to the Synod, and on ist
May 1782 Mr Arthur was transferred to Aberdeen without one contradictory
vote, owing to " the improbability of a decent support for him at Peebles."
But already he was involved in a bitter feud with Adam Gib, which at last
led him to renounce connection with the Antiburgher Synod. It arose from
a sermon preached by Mr Arthur at the opening of the Synod in April 1779,
but his own impression \vas that the part he took in a movement towards
union with the Burgher branch of the Secession had previously made him
distasteful to the great Antiburgher champion. Further particulars belong
to the history of Belmont Street, Aberdeen.
Third Minister. — WILLIAM BREINGAN, from Muckart congregation and
Dollar parish. Ordained, 3rd January 1787, after a vacancy of nearly five
years. The weak state of the congregation may be gathered from the fact
that the call was signed by only 36 (male) members. There seems, indeed,,
to have been doubts whether sermon should be continued after Mr Arthur's
removal, but the congregation pleaded that they had paid up all arrears
of stipend, and reckoned that they were able to defray supply for half the
year. Then after a time they called Mr John M'Vitae, and felt so much
aggrieved when the Presbytery appointed him to Greenlaw that they appealed
to the Synod, but without obtaining redress. Mr Breingan remained at
Peebles thirteen years, and from the character he subsequently developed
we have reason to fear there was little good done and little progress made.
Besides, the Burgher congregation under Mr Leckie was now acquiring
strength and overshadowing the older and the weaker. In February 1800
Mr Breingan offered his demission to the Presbytery, and at next meeting
commissioners appeared, with instructions not to insist on his continuance,
and the Synod loosed him from his charge on 24th April, "on the ground of
general expediency." After itinerating as a preacher for one and a half
years he became minister of Tillicoultry, much to the detriment of that
congregation.
Peebles congregation had now to toil its way through a vacancy of seven
572 HISTORY OF U.P. CONGREGATIONS
and a half years, during which they called Mr Robert Buchanan, who was
appointed by the Synod to Dalkeith (Back Street), and Mr Matthew Fraser,
who firmly and persistently refused to accept, and was afterwards ordained
at Dundee (Bell Street).*
Fourth Minister. — DUNCAN STALKER, a native of Comrie, but entered
the Antiburgher Hall from Kinkell. The call was signed by 27 (male)
members and 18 hearers, and the ordination took place in Mr Leckie's
meeting-house on igth November 1807. The stipend was to be ^65 in
money, with a manse, coals driven, and a horse kept for him as part of
stipend, and the people were depending on ^15 from the Synod Fund in
addition. After going on for eleven years Mr Stalker offered his demission,
but the Synod held that he ought to remain in his present charge, and
enjoined the Presbytery to see that he was paid the minimum stipend. This
induced him to continue, but after facing the discouragements of the situation
for other twelve years he finally tabled his resignation on ist June 1830.
When the Presbytery met at Peebles on the Qth the congregation expressed
regret that the stipend was so small, but, small as it was, they were afraid it
would not be in their power to continue it at the same figure. They were
sorry to think of losing their minister, but though they had done all they
could to make him forego his resolution it was to no purpose. As he
intended emigrating to America they would grant him a sum of money to
aid in paying his passage. Without further delay the resignation was
accepted, and Mr Stalker sailed for the United States. In November 1831
he became pastor at North Argyle, Washington County, New York, where
he died of paralysis, 5th December 1853, in the seventy-second year of his
age and forty-seventh of his ministry.
Fifth Minister. — WILLIAM TAYLOR, from Longridge. Ordained, I4th
March 1831. There was less room for increase now, as a Relief congrega
tion had got a large hold of Peebles within the last few years. But a
stipend of ^85, with manse and communion expenses, was engaged for,
and members to the number of 105 signed the call. Whatever Mr Taylor's
hopes of success may have been they did not long sustain him, and on
2nd April 1833 his resignation was given in and accepted. As with Mr
Stalker, the congregation had done their utmost to dissuade him from
his purpose, and they now refrained from offering objections. Disheartened
by this renewed failure to better their position the elders were now prepared
to resign, and the congregation wished to dissolve, but the Presbytery were
unwilling to see the light go out which had withstood the blast so long.
They were to recommend aid from the Synod Fund, and they would
countenance them in other ways. So in a few months there was the gird
ing up for a final attempt to keep the cause in existence.
For Mr Taylor a sphere of labour with ample elbow-room opened up at
once in Montreal, and he was settled there before the end of the year.
There were initial difficulties, but these were gradually overcome. The
congregation, small at first, met in a schoolroom, but a substantial church
was opened in 1835. The self-supporting state was reached, and growth
went on in numbers and in resources. Mr Taylor got the degree of D.D.
* Dr George Brown has introduced Peter Gordon as fourth minister of this
church, a mistake which has found its way into Dr M'Kelvie's Annals. Mr Gordon
was from City Road, Brechin, and emigrated as a probationer to Nova Scotia. He
was ordained at St Peter's, Prince Edward Island, in the latter part of 1807 — a
ministerial charge of wide extent, in which he laboured with great devotedness, but
consumption supervened, and he died, 2nd April 1809. His widow, a niece of
Professor Bruce of Whitburn, became the second wife of Dr M'Gregor of Pictou in
the beginning of 1812.
PRESBYTERY OF EDINBURGH
573.
in 1851, and at the first meeting of the United Synod in 1861 he was
appointed Moderator. He died after a brief illness, senior pastor of Erskine
Church, Montreal, on 4th September 1876, in the forty-sixth year of his
ministry.
Sixth Minister. — ROHERT CREASE, from Portsburgh (now Lauriston
Place), Edinburgh. The call was signed by 90 members, considerably fewer
than last time, and the stipend promised was £,20 less. He was ordained,
26th April 1834, and a further trial of three years brought the winding-up.
A twelvemonth before this the congregation found themselves unable to
meet their engagements, and Mr Crease had thoughts of resigning, which
they anxiously deprecated. The Presbytery having intervened and warmly
enforced a petition to the Board for aid he agreed to remain, but this only
put back the evil day a little longer. Money embarrassments continuing
the managers felt that dissolution was the only alternative. Mr Crease now
tendered his demission, which was accepted, 4th April 1837. The con
gregation in intimating their concurrence wished it to be understood that
the result was in no way to be attributed to their esteemed pastor. " Whether
we consider him," they said, " in his public or private capacity, he is equally
the minister of Christ." Mr Crease returned to preacher life, and within
nine months was admitted to Leith-Lumsden.
The property was now bought by the minister and some members of the
other Secession church to be used as a schoolhouse, and on 22nd May the
congregation met, under the presidency of the Rev. David Duncan of
Howgate, to dispose of the proceeds. Everything was done conscientiously
and honourably. The sum received was .£322, but the debt amounted to
^250, so that after deducting legal expenses and interest only ,£57 remained.
Of this ^30 was divided between the Mission Fund and the Synod Fund,
and ^25 was handed over to the Presbytery, "with the earnest desire that
it be given to Mr Crease." This method of conveying the gift to their late
minister was adopted, they explained, because some of the members were
doubtful whether the title-deeds allowed them to give it direct. Mr Crease
was also to have the Bible and Psalm-book, and the communion cups and
flagons were to be offered to the other congregation. The Presbytery
expressed satisfaction with the report, and the long struggle of the old
Antiburgher church, Peebles, for existence came to an end.
PEEBLES (BURGHER)
ON loth November 1789 48 inhabitants of Peebles and the neighbouring
parishes, not in communion with the Secession, petitioned the Burgher
Presbytery of Edinburgh for sermon as often as might be convenient. But
West Linton session, aware of what was coming, had an extract from their
minutes forward praying that that request be not granted till they should
have an opportunity of being heard. The interests of their congregation,
they were afraid, would be imperilled, or at least " their ability to support
the gospel would be greatly diminished, yea, rendered doubtful," if a preach
ing station were opened at Peebles, a place distant twelve or fourteen miles.
However, the Presbytery on ist December granted some supply, but reserved
judgment as to how far the interests of West Linton might be affected by
the petitioners being formed into a distinct congregation. On 26th July
1791 a paper was received from Peebles, with 20 signatures, intimating that
the subscribers could no longer in conscience join with the Established
Church. They were convinced, they said, of the evils of patronage, and
they complained that on Sabbath they were " entertained with legality, and
574 HISTORY OF U.P. CONGREGATIONS
harangues on morality, instead of the plain truths of the gospel." The
Presbytery paused, but it was to be foreseen that resistance to a reasonable
•demand would be vain in the end, and in the face of a protest from West
Linton the erection was carried into effect in November of that year. On
loth July 1792 there was a further development. Members of West Linton
Church to the number of 55, in the parishes of Peebles, Traquair, Manor,
Stobo, and Eddleston, who had petitioned their own session for a disjunc
tion, had their case referred to the Presbytery. There was feeling about
resigning their hold of the southern territory, and they wished the Presbytery
to take the responsibility of the disjunction upon themselves "and be
answerable for the consequences." It carried that the session be instructed
to disjoin such of the congregation as were nearer Peebles than Linton,
should they apply.
On 24th April 1793 a session was constituted by the ordination of three
elders and the admission of two who had previously held office in West
Linton. Next, a moderation was applied for, with the promise of ^65 and
• a house. The call, signed by 80 members and 60 adherents, came out to
Mr Thomas Leckie, who was called ten days after to Moffat. Though the
provision undertaken was the same in the two places Moffat was the less
promising, but in the Presbytery it was preferred by the casting vote of the
Moderator, a decision against which Mr Comrie of Penicuik protested, and
the case came before the Synod. By this time East Linton had come for
ward with a third call to Mr Leckie, and a stipend ,£5 higher than either of
the others. At the Synod Peebles was thrown out by the first vote, and
then Moffat was preferred to East Linton. Mr Leckie had declined to
speak in the Presbytery when the opportunity was given, but in the Synod
he must have expressed aversion to Moffat, for Mr Dick of Slateford dis
sented from the judgment of the majority, saying : " Why should a preacher
be heard if his preferences are to be disregarded?" A year afterwards Mr
Leckie was dealt with for not submitting to be settled at Moffat, when
" Admonish " carried over " Rebuke," or " Rebuke and suspend," but, for
tunately, Moffat congregation were willing to have their call set aside, and
thus the way was cleared for Peebles beginning anew.
First Minister.— THOMAS LECKIE, from Falkirk, East (now Erskine
Church). A second call followed the above, and it was sigried by 200 in
all — 89 members and in adherents. He was ordained, loth July 1794.
Under Mr Leckie's ministry, "active, zealous, and faithful," the congregation
steadily increased, till it was almost, if not altogether, 400 strong. He died
on 27th September 1821, after three months' severe illness, leaving a widow
and thirteen children, the youngest scarcely over a year old. He was laid
in the grave by nine of his sons, the oldest of them little more than a boy.
He was in the sixty-third year of his age and twenty-eighth of his ministry.
His large family, cast thus early on the fatherhood of God, prospered in the
world, and the Leckie Memorial Church, which they built and gifted over to
their father's congregation, stands a lasting monument both to their honour
and to his memory.
Second Minister.— THOMAS ADAM, from Paisley (Abbey Close). Or
dained, igth March 1823. His call was signed by more than 300 members,
and the stipend was ,£120, with manse, garden, and sacramental expenses.
Ten years afterwards he stated that his charge extended over nine parishes,
which explains why the Presbytery recommended the congregation at the
outset to provide him with a horse. Mr Adam was recognised all along as
a man of great but ill-regulated powers, and after ministering at Peebles for
twenty-three years he saw reason to demit his charge. On 7th July 1846 he
brought before the Presbytery certain proceedings of his congregation in
PRESBYTERY OF EDINBURGH 575
reference to stipend, which showed that things were out of joint. A com
mittee having met with minister, session, and congregation the result was
that at next meeting the pastoral relation was dissolved, Mr Adam and the
commissioners from Peebles being at one in their desire to have it so. On
3rd November he was placed under suspension pending some inquiries, which
came to little, and on 2nd March 1847 he was restored to his full status.
These remarks may help to account for certain windings in his after life,
which fall now to be related.
On 2nd May 1848 Mr Adam, whose name had been placed on the pro
bationer list, intimated to Edinburgh Presbytery by letter that he renounced
all connection with the U.P. Church, and the notice was quietly accepted
and put upon record. From this time little was known of Mr Adam till the
Synod of 1857, when a petition was read, in which he prayed to be re
admitted to the membership and ministry of the denomination with which he
was so long connected. He explained that, having found the remuneration
he received as a preacher insufficient to support him, he had accepted the
offer of a quoad sacra church, but that after a time he was precluded by a new
Act of Assembly from continuing in that sphere of labour unless formally
admitted to ministerial standing by the General Assembly. But here a
barrier intervened in the form of a requirement to return as a student to
theological training for an entire session in one of the Halls of the Estab
lished Church. This hardly befitted a man of sixty-four, and he saw in it
the finger of Providence pointing him back to the connection of his better
days. He also stated that he had been an abstainer since 1852 and that
he was now conducting an educational seminary at Dumbarton along with
two of his daughters. He did not contemplate holding a fixed charge again,
but he wished his former status in the U.P. Church to be recognised, that he
might preach occasionally for any of our ministers who chose to employ him.
The modest request was not acceded to till two years had passed, and then
it was carried in the Synod by 122 to 71. Mr Adam in making his acknow
ledgments expressed his trust that the court would never have occasion to
regret the clemency shown him, and this confidence, we believe, was fully
verified in what of his life remained. For some time he was located at
Kinkell, and being as active-minded as ever he had hopes of a closer union.
Then he settled down with his daughters at educational work in Kirriemuir.
He finally removed to the south, and died at Bowden, St Boswells, I4th
February 1877, aged eighty-four. Three years before this Mr Adam pub
lished "Impressive Impressions," which were excerpts from manuscripts of
sermons written at intervals during the preceding fifty years.
Six months after Mr Adam's resignation the congregation called Mr John
Scott, a young man of much devotedness, from Kirkgate, Leith, who had
previously declined calls to Norham, and Back Street, Dalkeith. Peebles
was more tempting than either, but he now intimated that he had dedicated
himself to missionary service in Jamaica. Another call followed to the
collegiate charge of Blackett Street, Newcastle, and West Linton was
moving in the same direction, but stopped short, as they believed it was
unavailing. Mr Scott was ordained on igth October 1847, and was inducted
to Montego Bay on igth September 1848. He died of yellow fever on 3oth
November, Mrs Scott having predeceased him by fifteen days. He was in
his twenty-eighth year, and his wife was in her twenty-first. They left an
infant a few weeks old.
Third Minister. — JOHN W. SEMPLE, from Stranraer (Bellevilla). Or
dained, 2oth April 1848, the stipend to be ^no, with the manse. His
resignation was accepted on 5th April 1853. On tendering his demission
at the meeting in March he spoke of having been much impressed for some
576 HISTORY OF U.P. CONGREGATIONS
months with the strong claims of Australia and that he felt it his duty to
offer himself for some appointment in that colony. The congregation made
no effort to retain him, and no church on the other side ever got the benefit
of his services. We have only ascertained beyond this that he was at one
time sub-editor of the Mount Alexander Mail and that he was buried in
Castlemaine Cemetery on 26th February 1859, in the thirty-ninth year of
his age. He is also named in connection with the Melbourne Argus.
The congregation was now the first of several which invited Mr John
M'Laren to be their minister, but, as Mr Scott decided for mission work in
Jamaica, Mr M'Laren decided for mission work in Cowcaddens, Glasgow.
Peebles needed restoring at this time, but that work devolved upon
another.
Fourth Minister. — ROBERT ANGUS, M.A., son of the Rev. Henry Angus,
Aberdeen. Was called also to City Road, Brechin, but sent as his reply
that he had accepted Peebles. Ordained, 6th September 1854. A Memoir
of his father, prefixed to a volume of posthumous discourses published in
1861, shows Mr Angus to have been a man of fine tastes and general culture.
But his ministry was to be comparatively brief. His health gave way, and
on 6th August 1867 he had reluctantly to tender his resignation. On 3rd
September the congregation intimated their acquiescence, along with an
agreement to pay him ^70 a year during his illness, and the Presbytery
expressed their prayerful hope that Mr Angus' residence in a foreign climate,
where he intended to winter, might be the means of restoring him to health
and active usefulness. But it was otherwise ordained. He died, 26th
November 1868, in the thirty-eighth year of his age and fifteenth of his
ministry.
Fifth Minister. — ROBERT BURGESS, son of the Rev. William Burgess,
Eglinton Street, Glasgow. Ordained, 25th August 1868. The stipend was
^120 and the manse, but at Mr Angus's death it was raised ^50. The new
church, already referred to, was opened on Thursday, 3oth August 1877, by
the Rev. Dr Thomson of Broughton Place Church, Edinburgh, who was
fitly chosen from his connection with the family. It is seated for 500, and
cost in all upwards of ,£7000. The membership at the close of 1879 was
241, and twenty years afterwards it was 277. The stipend was, as it had
been during the intervening period, ,£220, with the manse.
PEEBLES, WEST (RELIEF)
ON nth September 1827 the Relief Presbytery of Edinburgh had a petition
laid before them from a number of persons in Peebles for supply of sermon.
They spoke of having been kindly encouraged in this way already, and it
appears from their own records that at the request of commissioners
appointed at a meeting held in the Town Hall on ist July the Presbytery
had arranged that several of their number should preach at Peebles during
the summer free of charge. The prospects of the movement having been
tested thus far the formal application was favourably entertained, and the
station was opened by Mr Johnston of Roxburgh Place on the following
Sabbath. The church, with 600 sittings, was built at a cost of over ^600, and
opened by Mr Limont of College Street, Edinburgh, on i6th November
1828. The above movement is to be ascribed to the state of matters at that
time in the Established Church. The Rev. John Elliot, the parish minister,
who had been ordained two years before, was of the Moderate school, and
dissatisfaction with his doctrine now found its resource in fellowship with
the Relief Church. His predecessor, the Rev. Robert Buchanan, who held
PRESBYTERY OF EDINBURGH 577
office from 1813 to 1824, though a man of talent, was not credited with much
of the evangelical, and was more at home in the Logic Chair of Glasgow
University than in the pulpit at Peebles.
First Minister.— ALEXANDER THOMSON, M.A., from Paisley (Canal
Street). Ordained, 3oth September 1829, the stipend promised being ^110,
which included everything. When the call was brought up appearances
were far from encouraging, though it was adhered to by more than 200
seatholders. On the moderation day Mr James Watson, afterwards of
Waterbeck, was declared at the first vote to have a majority, but the balance
was afterwards found to lie on the other side. Here now were 147 seat-
holders asking the Presbytery not to concur owing to the divided state of
the congregation. A committee met at Peebles with the parties, and the
proceedings closed by 115 declaring in favour of prosecuting the call, and 78
were for setting aside both Mr Thomson and Mr Watson. The committee
reported to the Presbytery that feeling was keen, and in whatever way the
decision went some respectable members might be lost, but they were of
opinion that the withholding of concurrence would be the more hazardous
course. All came right, however, and very unexpectedly. Commissioners
were forward now to tell that through the judicious bearing of the com
mittee many of the opposing party had fallen in with the majority, and it
was probable that others would do the same. So the call was concurred in,
and cordially accepted by Mr Thomson. It was fortunate for Peebles, and
Mr Thomson never had cause to regret the choice he made. The congrega
tion prospered, and according to the Statistical History of 1834 it had 329
adult parishioners connected with it, or one-fourth more than the Burgher
congregation could claim. In the beginning of 1830, when Mr Thomson
made up the communion roll, the names numbered 360. Much was owing
to the minister's devoted attention to pastoral and pulpit work, and much
also to the prudence and dignity with which he conducted himself in his
daily walk, qualities for which the Peebles ministers at that time were not
alHpre-eminent. On 7th July 1875 Mr Thomson's retirement from the
active duties of the ministry was sanctioned by the Presbytery. He ex
plained on that occasion that he had intimated his willingness to waive any
claim he might have to a retiring allowance, as he wished the congregation
to continue self-sustaining. The people met this proposal in a correspond
ing spirit, and on applying for a moderation they stated that they were to
give Mr Thomson .£40 a year, and the colleague ^180. They then called
Mr Matthew Muir Dickie, who accepted Haddington (East) some time after.
Second Minister. — DAVID Y. CURRIE. Ordained as colleague and suc
cessor to Mr Thomson, i8th April 1876. The building of a manse was
by-and-by resolved on, the first which the congregation possessed. It was
finished in 1878, clear of debt, though it cost considerably over ^1200, and
the Board could only grant ^100. In September 1879 Mr Thomson's
jubilee was celebrated, and the purse containing 264 sovereigns with which
he was presented on that occasion was handed over by him to the Aged and
Infirm Ministers' Fund. It must have been a saddening thought to the
venerable man that one who would have entered heartily into the spirit of
the celebration was not there. His son, the Rev. W. R. Thomson of Bel-
haven Church, Glasgow, died, a year before, in his prime, and after a brief
illness Mr Thomson himself passed away on I3th March 1881, in the eighty-
first year of his age and fifty-second of his ministry. On 3ist March 1893 a
new church was opened by Dr Black of Wellington Church, Glasgow, a
function which became him, not only as Moderator of Synod, but also from
his close intimacy with the son of their late minister. The building, seated
for 640, cost nearly ,£4000, including the site, and on Sabbath week Mr
20
578 HISTORY OF U.P. CONGREGATIONS
Currie was able to intimate that it was clear of debt. The membership at
the Union was within a few units of 400, and the stipend was ^300, with the
manse.
FALA (BURGHER)
ON and August 1779 a number of people about Fala craved supply of sermon
from the Burgher Presbytery of Edinburgh, but as they belonged to the
congregations of Stow, Dalkeith, and Haddington, and had not applied for
the consent of their respective sessions, their petition was returned to them
for the time. At next meeting, on 5th September, they renewed their re
quest, urging the deplorable state of that corner through distance from the
pure and faithful preaching of the gospel. The nearest of the churches
mentioned, that of Dalkeith, was not less than nine miles distant, and the
other two, Haddington and Stow, were at least two miles farther away. The
Presbytery agreed without an opposing vote to grant supply, and appointed
Mr Kidston of Stow to open the station on the fourth Sabbath of that month,
and to supply them as often as other things allowed, a duty which, as we
may infer from subsequent events, he would not have much satisfaction in
performing. But the first stroke of opposition came from the north side.
On 5th April 1780 Dalkeith session petitioned the Presbytery to enjoin Fala
people to fix their place of worship outside the bounds of their congregation,
and their own minutes reveal what led up to the adoption of that measure.
These bear that on igth August 1779 a petition in name of members of the
congregation " living at the foot of the hills on our south border" was laid
before the session for leave to supplicate the Presbytery to grant them the
favour of Sabbath sermon at Fala when convenient. The petition was
agreed to, but only " in the terms in which it is conceived." But by-and-by
some of Dalkeith people took alarm, believing that there was more than
occasional diets of worship involved, and they got up a paper, which was
laid before the session, " representing the disorders that are likely to ensue
through the erecting of a place of worship at Fala." This prompted the
appearance which the session made before the Presbytery. "A number of
people about Pathhead," they complained, "who did not join in the petition
had, contrary to all good order, attended the preaching at Fala, by which
means the congregational meetings at Dalkeith are remarkably thinned and
the collections behind." To remedy this evil they wished the Presbytery to
«njoin Fala people to remove their centre away to the south, that Dalkeith
congregation might be preserved intact. Was it in some measure from the
feeling that, with the likelihood of a junior minister being required shortly,
they might have trying times before them ?
Sermon, however, was kept up as before, the rate being alternate Sab
baths on an average, but it became more sparse later on. Then in March
1783 the Presbytery of Edinburgh referred a petition simpliciter to the
Synod from some people about Fala to be disjoined from Dalkeith. The
case, they explained, stood connected with the disjunction of others from
Stow, a church which was not under their inspection. The session of
Dalkeith, in submitting the application to the judgment of the Presbytery,
informed them that their congregation disliked losing hold of the members
about Fala, and all the more so, no doubt, that they were asked to sustain
a like cutting down through the new erection at Penicuik. Offence had also
been taken that the people in both corners fixed their place of worship with
out consulting any judicatory. The Synod thought the case not ripe for
decision. Delay till the September meeting would give the large contingent
from Stow time to come up and present their claims to be disjoined. But it
PRESBYTERY OF EDINBURGH 579
was not till May 1784 that "Grant" carried over "Delay." It was mainly the
encroachment on Stow, which was to suffer the loss of about 90 members,
that made the Synod hesitate to have Fala fully organised, even though the
places were twelve miles apart.
The original session consisted of three members who were chosen and
ordained in 1786. Their names were James Johnston, George Rough, and
Robert Lees. Of these the second was from Pathhead, near Ford, and the
third had been a prominent man in Stow church. In the early part of 1788
a moderation was applied for, with the promise of ^55 and a house.
First Minister. — JAMES BLYTH, from Kennoway, who had a majority
over Mr Thomas Aitchison, afterwards of Kirkgate, Leith. Mr Blyth had
resolutely refused to be ordained at St Andrews after delivering all his
trials, and rather than have his acceptance further pressed the congregation
consented to withdraw their call. Ordained at Fala, I2th November 1788,
the services being conducted in a tent. This proved an unfortunate begin
ning, and of the congregation in his time the Old Statistical History states :
" It was not very numerous, and chiefly made up from the neighbouring
parishes." There was no church at first, but afterwards an old building,
called " the long stable," was cleared out and turned into a place of worship.
Further progress is indicated by an entry in the session minutes for 1791 :
" The congregation applied to the session for supplies of money from the
daily collections to assist them in building a manse. Agreed to lend them
^10 free of interest." But before the close of 1792 we have evidence that
there was something wrong. On 25th December of that year Mr Blyth
compeared before the Presbytery by special request, and was dealt with
" respecting the appearance he made in the tent at Dalkeith last summer."
He acknowledged that he was not master of himself for some time on that
occasion, but thought his derangement of ideas proceeded rather from bodily
disorder than anything else. Still, he was heartily sorry for what had
occurred, and was to be peculiarly watchful for the time to come. Admoni
tion followed, to which he submitted. It was then moved that the sentence
be read from Fala pulpit, but this motion was overruled, " it being supposed
that said sentence would soon be known to said congregation, and to all
others concerned, without any such intimation." During the next eight
months the only notice we have of Mr Blyth is that he had been prevented
fulfilling an engagement at East Linton by a fall from his horse, but in
August 1793 some of his people complained to the Presbytery that he
neglected his duty and was given to the immoderate use of intoxicating
liquor. The charges were put into the form of a libel, and enough was found
proven to infer rebuke, suspension sine die, and the dissolving of the pastoral
connection. This was on 25th December. He appealed to the Synod, but
did not appear when called, and the sentence was accordingly carried out.
Dr M'Kelvie adds, " emigrated to America," and we know nothing more of
Mr Blyth.
Second- Minister. — JAMES KEITH, from Penicuik, though Mr Hutton of
Dalkeith seems to have been his minister when he entered the Hall. At
the moderation Mr Keith was chosen over Mr David Watson, afterwards
of Linlithgow, and Mr Archibald Harper, afterwards of Bo'ness. The call
from Fala, signed by 199 members and 71 adherents, was preferred by the
Synod to another from Saltcoats, and the ordination took place, 26th August
1795. In !799 the present church was finished, with sittings for nearly 500,
and the accounts were all paid the same year. Under Mr Keith's ministry
peace seems to have prevailed, and the congregation prospered. Of his private
life we have a glimpse in the "History of Fala and Soutra," by the Rev.
James Hunter. While attentive to his own duties he farmed the parish
58o HISTORY OF U.P. CONGREGATIONS
glebe and kept a cow and pony. The end was sudden and unexpected. "He
felt unwell the Saturday before but preached the whole of Sabbath. On
Monday and Tuesday he was able to sit up and read and converse, and
though far from being in his ordinary health he does not appear to have
apprehended any danger. He took breakfast at the usual hour on Wednes
day, and expired without a struggle" about mid-forenoon. This was on.
20th February 1833. He was in the sixty-sixth year of his age and thirty-
eighth of his ministry.
Third Minister.— JOHN COOPER. The family belonged to the Estab
lished Church, Canongate. Was admitted to the Burgher Hall in 1820, and
received licence from Edinburgh Presbytery as a missionary student on
5th June 1822. Ordained for Bombay, 2nd August, in Broughton Place
Church along with two others, and designated in Lady Glenorchy's Chapel,
28th November. Laboured in the mission field ten years, and then returned
home owing to impaired health. On 7th January 1834 Mr Cooper applied
to Edinburgh Presbytery to be recognised as a minister within the bounds,
which was readily agreed to, and at that same meeting Fala obtained the
grant of a moderation with the view of securing him for their minister.
The call was signed by 220 members, and the induction took place on 2nd
April of that year, the stipend being £i 10, with manse and garden. In
1837 Mr Cooper was invited to remove to East Regent Street, Glasgow, but
the congregation was newly formed, and the huge church they had built was
overburdened with debt, and when the day for decision came he declared it
to be his view of duty to remain in his present charge. Under his ministry
the communion roll rose to nearly 400, and on Sabbath days farmers and
hinds, it is recorded, streamed into Fala from the north, the south, the east,
and the west. Owing to failing eyesight and growing unfitness for pastoral
work Mr Cooper, as age was drawing on, retired from the ministry, and his
demission was accepted on 5th January 1864. The congregation voted him
^30 per annum, and he removed to Edinburgh, where he died, 7th August
1878, in his eighty-second year. During his residence there he was in the
membership of Nicolson Street Church, and then of Hope Park.
Fourth Minister.— WILLIAM ERASER, M.A., from New Deer. Ordained,
i6th August 1864. Though the congregation was not over one-half what it
had been at its best the call had 146 signatures, and the stipend the people
were to pay was ;£no during Mr Cooper's lifetime, with the manse, to be
afterwards ^130. But the decline which had been going on during the
latter part of Mr Cooper's ministry still continued, till the average member
ship came to be little over 100. However, the impetus from better days
remained, and the exertion required when the old manse had to be replaced
in 1875 at a cost °f £9°° was firmly faced, the people and their friends
raising nearly ^600 to meet the terms of the Board. Mr Fraser died after
a short illness, I7th February 1891, in the sixtieth year of his age and
twenty-seventh of his ministry. In November of that year the congregation
called Mr D. S. Brown, but they were much divided, and in kindness both
to them and to himself Mr Brown declined to accept. He is now minister
in Burray, Orkney.
Fifth Minister.— JOHN WATT, from Kent Road, Glasgow, a brother of
the Rev. Thomas Watt, Dunning. Ordained, igth April 1892. The stipend
from the people was to be £100, with the manse. Finding the sphere narrow
and the outlook discouraging Mr Watt demitted his charge, 4th April 1899,
and his name was placed by the Synod on the probationer list. He accepted
an appointment soon after from the Colonial Board of the Free Church to
New Zealand, where he was inducted to a charge at Waitaki soon after he
arrived.
PRESBYTERY OF EDINBURGH 581
Sixth Minister. — T. RATCLIFFE BARNETT, from Johnstone (East). Or
dained, 2oth October 1899. The membership at the close of that year was
99, and the stipend from the people ^80, with the manse.
FORD (RELIEF)
THIS church is situated a little to the north of Pathhead village, at the
meeting-point of three parishes — Borthwick, Cranstoun, and Crichton, to the
first of which it belongs. In the absence of Presbytery records it is
impossible to give the date of its origin with exactness. During the
thirty years of its connection with the Relief its history is little else than
a record of struggle and disaster.
First Minister. — WILLIAM WRIGHT, of whose antecedents nothing has
been discovered. He was a member of Synod for the first time in 1782,
which carries the congregation's origin back some years further than
Dr M'Kelvie gives. On I2th April 1791 he resigned. The reasons, he
said, were well known and too delicate for him to express. The Presbytery,
who were quite prepared for such a step being taken, at once dissolved the
pastoral relation. In the Old Statistical History the account, written with no
friendly feeling, runs thus : " Some years ago a Relief meeting-house was
built in the east corner of this parish and a minister appointed with a small
salary, but he and his hearers soon differing he could not realise the trifling
living promised, and was obliged to give up his charge." His ministry at
Ford was not so brief as this would indicate, having lasted for nine years.
After that Mr Wright "was allowed the privilege of being a preacher at
large," and in 1797 he was located for six months at Balfron. The last trace
we have of him is in 1800. He seems to have been a man well advanced in
years, being designated "old Mr Wright" in one of Gellatly's pamphlets.
Second Minister. — THOMAS YOUNG, who passed over from the Anti-
burghers to the Relief when a preacher. He is described at the beginning
of his divinity course as a "student near Abernethy," and in August 1790 he
got licence from the Antiburgher Presbytery of Kirkcaldy. Next June he
was a probationer under the Relief Presbytery of Dysart. Ordained at Ford,
2nd April 1794. Of the state of matters there after Mr Wright left the Old
Statistical History says: "Attempts have since been made to procure a
successor, but either from want of funds or from a difference of opinion in
the choice of a pastor, or from both causes united, such attempts have
hitherto failed, and the few who once were zealous in the support of this
meeting now go occasionally to the different churches from which they had
separated themselves." That they should go to these churches altogether
the writer, who was the minister of Borthwick parish, would look on as a
consummation devoutly to be wished. Mr Young, like his predecessor,
resigned after going on for about ten years, and was loosed from his charge
on 2 ist September 1804. There were arrears of stipend, about which he
wrote the Presbytery in the following year, but they amounted only to ,£25,
and he was willing to take payment of what they had and a bill for the rest.
In the beginning of 1806 we find him settled down as a farmer at Little Mill,
near Montrose. In 1809 he was deposed from office by the Presbytery of
Edinburgh owing to "scandalous and criminal conduct confessed in his
letters." He acknowledged that on a certain day in 1808 "he married his
housekeeper without previous proclamation of banns or any solemnisation
except their own consent ; a false prudence in reference to some particular
friends and relations was the reason." Here the curtain drops, and we see
him no more.
582 HISTORY OF U.P. CONGREGATIONS
The congregation then called Mr John King, but he declined, and was
afterwards settled in Auchterarder (South). Had he accepted the tide of
fortune might have turned, and Ford might have remained in the Relief all
onwards.
Third Minister. — WILLIAM STRANG, who had been loosed from Newton-
Stewart a year and a half before. Inducted to Ford, 3rd March 1807..
Thus a relation was formed which was to crown the congregation's mis
fortunes. Here, as at Newton-Stewart, differences arose between Mr Strang
and his managers in consequence of their not fulfilling the terms of the bond.
They were behind with their payments, and on 2nd November 1814 it was
reported to the Presbytery that he had raised an action in the Court of
Session against Ford congregation. The end was near now, and on
3rd January 1815 the ill-conditioned relationship was dissolved. Before the
end of that month he became minister of a Relief congregation in Dundee,,
where he is alleged to have followed similar tactics.*
FORD (BURGHER)
ON 25th April 1815 the congregation of Ford petitioned the Burgher Presby
tery of Edinburgh to be taken under their inspection and to have sermon.
Apprehensive that congregations at the distance of four or five miles might
suffer if this application were granted the Presbytery ordered intimation of
the petition to be sent to Dalkeith, Fala, and Gorebridge, and they were duly
forward by commissioners at next meeting. There was a barrier here, and
another barrier arose in connection with the property. At their meeting on
4th July a copy of the title-deeds was brought up for examination, according
to instructions, and it was found that they appeared to bind the subjects to>
the Relief or Established Church. To meet this difficulty the Presbytery
recommended the people to get the proprietor, Mr Dewar of Vogrie, to alter
that clause. At the meeting on 1st August there was a letter produced from;
the proprietor in reply. He stated that he would not at present give per
manent authority to have a Burgher congregation there in place of a Kirk of
Relief. Still, he would not challenge preaching in a temporary manner, but
he reserved power to stop it if he found it detrimental in any way. This led
to further delay, and not till 5th September was it agreed to grant sermon to-
" the late Relief congregation at Ford." Here the elder from Fala struck in
with a protest to the Synod, and so did the Rev. Thomas Brown of Dalkeith,.
* In Dr Stmthers' History of the Relief Church, page 439, we read as follows : —
" The Relief never allowed their calls to be written and signed on stamped paper
and to have embodied within them a promise as to the precise sum of stipend to be
paid. This was considered as giving the minister too strong a legal claim over the
people individually. The plan adopted by them took various shapes and forms ;,
sometimes it was a bond : this was not much liked." Here the Doctor was off the
line for once. Had he turned to the minutes of the Relief Synod for 1787 he would
have found it recorded : " Ordain and appoint that in all time coming the respective
Presbyteries shall use every endeavour to obtain a legal bond where that is possible " ;
and in 1810 " the following overture, that no minister or preacher under the inspection
of the Synod shall be ordained to a charge without legal security that his stipend shall
be paid regularly, six months per advance, was adopted and appointed to be added to
the number of their standing rules." The system was turned to bad account by
Mr Strang and one or two others, and a change became imperative. Accordingly,
the Synod in 1820 appointed a committee to consider what security should be given
for payment of ministers' stipends, and in 1821 they decided that it is expedient to lay
aside bonds altogether and have recourse to calls written on paper not stamped,
leaving the arranging to the Presbyter}" and commissioners.
PRESBYTERY OF EDINBURGH 583
along with Dr Hall of Edinburgh, a formidable man to be standing in the
way. They had this argument to urge, that " by erecting Ford into a con
gregation Fala would be deprived of 100 of its members." True, Fala
would still have 270 members, but these, it was thought, would be too few to
afford a competent support to the gospel without being burdened. The
Synod, however, by a majority set these considerations aside, and confirmed
the judgment of the Presbytery. Against this decision reasons of dissent
were entered, in which it was brought up against the people of Ford that
"no less than three ministers have been compelled to leave them for want
of support, the last of whom has a process pending before the civil court
for arrears of stipend," and that there was " every probability of their being
turned out of their present meeting-house." After sermon had been kept
up for over half-a-year the people asked to be recognised as a congregation
in connection with the Presbytery, and the question being submitted to the
Synod their reception was agreed to.
First Minister. — ANDREW ELLIOT, from Coldstream (West). Ordained,
2 ist April 1818. The call was signed by 127 members and 57 ordinary
hearers, and the stipend was to be ,£110, with house, garden, and £6 for
sacramental expenses. Under a ministry which secured respect, and with
material improved by accessions from Fala, Dalkeith, and Gorebridge, the
congregation now turned a new leaf and entered on a course of prosperity.
Interest in the missionary enterprise was developed, Sabbath schools
were conducted in the villages around, and the membership gradually rose
to 260. In view of the ordination Tyne Lodge had been leased for Mr
Elliot by the congregation, but in 1836 this was superseded by the erection
of a manse, which entailed a debt of ^500. In 1851 the present church was
built, with 400 sittings, and in 1861 the entire debt of ^400 resting on the
property was liquidated with the aid of ^60 from the Board. At the Synod
in May 1843 ^r Elliot was raised to the Moderator's Chair. This was in
the earlier part of the Atonement Controversy, and it was the meeting at
which the connection of Messrs Rutherford and Guthrie with the Secession
Church was severed. He had at this time edited the denominational
magazine for ten years, a fact which attests the place he held in the estima
tion of his brethren. Mr Elliot died, 4th December 1855, in the sixty-sixth
year of his age and the thirty-eighth of his ministry. A volume of his
sermons was published in 1857, with a model Memoir by the Rev. John Law,
Innerleithen. They had been long on intimate terms, and Mr Anderson of
Old Calabar mentions in his Autobiography how in his boyhood Mr Law
assisted Mr Elliot regularly at his July communion and how his sermons
left impressions on his young mind which death, he believed, would not
efface.
Second Minister. — JAMES MACEWEN, M.A., from Kirkcudbright. Or
dained, 9th December 1856, the call being signed by 189 members and 41
adherents. Accepted a call to Hawick (East Bank), 2gth April 1862. These
were years of reviving far and wide, and Ford under Mr MacEwen's evan
gelistic activity shared the benefit.
Third Minister.— JOHN YOUNG, from Strathaven (East). Ordained,
3rd December 1862. After being, like Mr MacEwen, five and a half years
in Ford he accepted a call to Alloa (West) on 5th May 1868.
Fourth Minister. — WYVILLE S. THOMSON, son of the Rev. Wyville S.
Thomson, Dumbarton (Bridgend). Ordained, 26th January 1869. Before
Mr Young left the congregation was suffering through the decline of popula
tion in the parishes around, though in 1879 it had a membership of 191. On
2nd March 1886 Mr Thomson, who had suffered an irreparable loss in the
death of his wife, was loosed from his charge, and retired from the ministry.
584 HISTORY OF U.P. CONGREGATIONS
After residing for a time in Portobello he removed with his family to the
neighbourhood of Falkirk, where he became a member of Erskine Church.
Fifth Minister.— ANDREW GEMMELL, B.D., from Glasgow (Dennistoun).
Called also to Stromness. Ordained, Qth December 1886, the stipend from
the people to be ,£150, with the manse. At the close of 1899 the member
ship was 165, and the stipend as before.
PENICUIK (BURGHER)
THIS village is about midway between Dalkeith and West Linton, and from
it and the country around the two Burgher congregations in these places
drew a considerable branch of their membership. But the distance being
at least seven miles in either case it was to be expected that in course of
time the people about Penicuik would wish sermon for themselves. Accord
ingly, on 30th July 1781 a petition from people about Penicuik for supply was
laid before the Burgher Presbytery of Edinburgh. There were difficulties in
the way, however, and the Presbytery met the request by a refusal, because
to grant sermon at Penicuik "would much hurt the congregation of Linton
besides what hurt it would do to the people at Dalkeith." The attitude of
Dalkeith session towards this movement is seen from their own records.
When some members on the west part petitioned for leave to apply for
preaching at Penicuik along with their brethren on the east side of Linton
the session found " that the congregation can ill spare in their present state
any more detachments from their wings," the reference being to the dis
junction of the families on Fala side shortly before. But though the first
attempt to have sermon at Penicuik failed it was renewed with success the
following year. On 2oth March 1782 the Presbytery after hearing com
missioners yielded, and a preacher was appointed to supply there on the
fourth Sabbath of April and the first and second of May. Thus there was
a beginning made, though resistance was not overcome.
It was the session of West Linton that stood most in the way, through
unwillingness to grant the disjunction asked, but the Presbytery recom
mended them "to consider this matter with the utmost sympathy and
disinterestedness." At last, on 5th August 1783,11 carried unanimously to
disjoin from West Linton about 50 members and their families who were
nearer Penicuik. The first church, with sittings for nearly 500, is understood
to have been already built. It was three-quarters of a mile out from the
village, far enough to place it in Lasswade parish, and ultimately in the
quoad sacra parish of Roslin.
First Minister.— PATRICK COMRIE, M.A., from Alloa (West). Ordained,
ist June 1784. When the Old Light Controversy was at its height Mr
Comrie published a pamphlet, "The smooth Stone polished into a Mirror."
It \yas a rejoinder to a pamphlet by the Rev. William Willis of Greenock,
entitled "A smooth Stone from the Brook," disfigured by undue keenness
and fierce personalities. Many of the shafts were met with strokes of wit
and good-humoured raillery, a gift largely possessed by Mr Comrie. Fortun
ately, it was held in check by "sterling sense and piety," and hence, as Dr
William Peddie states in his Memoir of his father, he never indulged his
peculiar vein " so as to transgress the bounds of the strictest propriety, use
lessly to wound another's feelings, or to stain the purity and degrade the
dignity becoming the Christian and the divine." After a ministry of nearly
fifty years a colleague was required at Penicuik.
Second Mim's/er.~TuoMAS GlRDWOOD, from Biggar (now Moat Park).
In his case there were three competing calls— Longridge, Lasswade, and
PRESBYTERY OF EDINBURGH 585
Penicuik. The first he expressed unwillingness to accept, and it was with
drawn. Then the Presbytery preferred Penicuik to Lasswade, and Mr
Girdwood was ordained, 28th June 1831. The old minister's income was to
remain as before, and his colleague was to have ^90 in all. In 1838 the
communicants numbered at least 430, the greater part from Penicuik parish,
but nearly two-fifths from that of Lasswade, and a considerable number
from Glencorse. There was a glebe, for which the congregation paid a
rent of fully ,£8. Mr Comrie died, 22nd September 1840, in the eighty-
ninth year of his age and fifty-seventh of his ministry. He was the grand-
uncle of the Rev. Dr Thomson of Broughton Place, Edinburgh, a sister of
his being the wife of the Rev. Andrew Thomson of Sanquhar, who was a
native of Penicuik. This family belonged to the Antiburgher side of the
Secession, and hence when the Rev. Dr Thomson, Holm of Balfron, visited
at Penicuik manse in his student days, instead of hearing his uncle preach
he walked out to the Antiburgher church at Howgate. Such was the respect
paid to dividing lines in former days. Mr Girdwood died, igth June 1861,
in the fifty-ninth year of his age and thirtieth of his ministry, and was suc
ceeded by his son.
Third Minister. — WILLIAM GIRDWOOD. Ordained, i8th February 1862.
The stipend now was ,£130, with manse and glebe, and £10 for sacramental
expenses. Translated to Perth (York Place), 3rd January 1865.
Fourth Minister. — JOHN M'KERROW, B.A., only son of the Rev. Dr
M'Kerrow, Bridge of Teith. Called to Holm of Balfron, and the call ac
cepted, but Penicuik having intervened the acceptance was withdrawn.
Ordained, igth September 1865. The present church was opened in July
1867, with sittings for 700. It is built not on the old site at Bridgend, which
was some distance from Penicuik, but on the outskirts of the village. The
cost was about ^i6co, and a new manse was built in the following year, the
people raising ^935, and the Board allowing a grant of ^200. At the close
of 1899 the stipend was ,£200, and the membership 286.
GOREBRIDGE (BURGHER)
ON ist March 1810 a petition from 286 persons in and about the village of
Gorebridge was laid before the Presbytery of Edinburgh asking for supply
of sermon. The Presbytery found that, " as said petitioners are contiguous
to Dalkeith, Fala, and Penicuik, it would be necessary to apprise these
sessions " before proceeding further. But the applicants got a kindlier
reception than was usual on such occasions. At next meeting an extract
from the minutes of Dalkeith session bore that they acquiesced. The elder
from Fala made a verbal statement to the same effect, and Mr Comrie wrote
that, though his session had not been formally consulted, there was no
reason to dread opposition from Penicuik. So the petition was granted,
the people having this strong plea in their favour, that the parish church
of Temple, to which they belonged, was distant two miles, and there was no
Secession church nearer than four. But, though an important point was
now gained, there was only occasional sermon for the first twelvemonth,
the Presbytery not being quite satisfied with the situation proposed for the
place of worship. But on 5th March 1811 it was reported that five of their
number had been chosen for elders, one of whom had held office in Dalkeith,
and of the others two were examined and found qualified. These three, it
is to be inferred, formed the first session at Gorebridge. From about this
time there was nearly regular supply, and the church, with accommodation
for 500, was opened in the summer of 1812. Before the end of that year
they called the Rev. George Brown of North Berwick, but he preferred to
586 HISTORY OF U.P. CONGREGATIONS
remain where he had been for the preceding five years, and the Presbytery
gave effect to his wishes.
First Minister. — GEORGE SANDIE, from Dunbar (West). Mr Sandie
had been ordained at Leeds, 5th July 1809, where he succeeded the Rev.
Peter Thomson, a brother of Dr Adam Thomson of Coldstream. The
congregation there originated in 1803 with some Scottish families who had
settled down in the place, and for a time it promised success On the death
of their first minister, who was among them less than two years, they called
his brother from Coldstream, and then the Rev. William Wilson from
Greenock twice, but without effect. Mr Sandie was then fixed on, the
stipend to be .£150, and the signatures to the call were 67, with 127 ad
herents. When Adam Thomson visited Leeds in 1810 he was grieved to
find that unhappy divisions had brought the congregation to the verge of
ruin, and on ist May 1811 Mr Sandie wrote the Presbytery demitting his
charge. There had been reference previously to extensive pecuniary em
barrassments, and now their minister's resignation was accepted. At the
same meeting a paper was given in, with 40 signatures, complaining of the
treatment Mr Sandie had received from certain members of the congrega
tion, and declaring they would take no part in inviting any other minister
from Scotland to labour among them. The case was laid before the Synodr
who appointed the Rev. George Brown of North Berwick to supply at Leeds
for the time, and granted £20 to defray expenses. In the end the proprietor
of the chapel invited Richard Winter Hamilton, who had newly finished his
preparatory studies, to occupy the pulpit. It then passed over to the
Independents, and in that connection both minister and congregation were
to acquire a name.
Mr Sandie, smarting, perhaps, under a sense of .wrong, intimated to the
Presbytery that he declined to take appointments from the Synod, and
requested extracts of his licence and ordination. It seemed as if he meant
to withdraw from the Burgher connection altogether, but if such was his
intention it must have been speedily departed from, as he returned to the
preachers' list, and was inducted into Gorebridge, 28th July 1813. The call
was signed by 134 members and 69 adherents, and the stipend was to be
£ i oo, with a free house, and taxes paid. On much the same level minister
and congregation seem to have moved on for the next forty-seven years.
Not long after reaching his jubilee, the celebration of which was accom
panied by befitting marks of respect, Mr Sandie felt that, owing to age and
infirmity, he would require to devolve the work largely upon another.
Arrangements were accordingly made to provide him with a colleague,
who was to receive ^120 in all, while the senior minister was to have £20,
with the occupancy of the manse.
Second Minister.— THOMAS FORSYTH, from College Street, Edinburgh.
Called previously to Springburn. Ordained as colleague and successor to
Mr Sandie, 27th November 1860. The joint pastorate lasted only eleven
months, as Mr Sandie died, 28th October 1861, in the seventy-eighth year
of his age and fifty-third of his ministry. Mr Forsyth now obtained posses
sion of the manse, but the stipend remained as before. The strength of the
congregation at this time may be partially estimated by the 148 signatures
appended to the call. But in 1886, or somewhat earlier, troubles arose,
through which its strength was much impaired. Opposing views were
entertained as to the purpose for which the surplus proceeds of a recent
bazaar behoved to be applied. The minister insisted that, as a matter of
conscience, they ought to be expended on the old building, such being the
object for which the money was professedly raised. Under the sanction of
the Presbytery it was finally resolved to let the ,£400 lie, the interest to go
PRESBYTERY OF EDINBURGH 587
to congregational purposes, and the principal to be expended on further
repairs when required or to aid in the building of a new church. But
bitterness had been imported into the dispute, and earlier grievances were
alleged. It also appeared that the membership, which was returned at 175
in the end of 1885, was reduced to 131 before the close of the following year,
which implied a loss of one-fourth during that brief period. On ist March
1887 Mr Forsyth's demission of his charge was accepted without opposition,
the congregation engaging to make an effort to furnish him with a parting
gift of at least ^100. After being three years on the probationer list he was
located at Scalloway, in Shetland, and was inducted to the charge of the
little congregation there in 1894.
Third Minister.— ALEXANDER B. DYKES, M.A., translated from Gate
house after a ministry of three and a half years and inducted to Gorebridge,
25th October 1887. Loosed, 23rd January 1894, on accepting a call to
Dalmeny Street, Leith.
Fourth Minister.— ROBERT JAMES, M.A., from Westray, Orkney, where he
had been ordained three years before. Inducted, 28th August 1894. The
membership at the close of 1899 was 181, and the stipend from the people
^160, as it has been since the induction of Mr Dykes.
NEWLANDS (RELIEF)
THIS congregation began amidst confusion arising from the translation of
the Rev. Charles Findlater from the neighbouring parish of West Linton.
The call bore a fair appearance, being signed by 12 out of 13 heritors, by
two of the three elders, and by 24 heads of families. The Presbytery had
no difficulty about sustaining the call, but they refused to translate owing to
a large proportion of the parishioners being hostile. The Assembly, how
ever, overruled this consideration and ordered them to go on with the
settlement. Accordingly, Mr Findlater was inducted to Newlands, 24th
June 1790. It was his 'father's intrusion into West Linton that led to the
formation of the Secession congregation there, and now it was his own
transference from that parish to Newlands that led to the formation of the
Relief congregation at Mountaincross. He is credited with having belonged
to the extreme section of the Moderates, who were deeply tinged with
Socinianism. We are on surer ground, however, in stating that he was
very pronounced in his anti-Government opinions and that a sermon he
preached and published about the beginning of the century on Equality and
Fraternity brought him into trouble. Through the kind offices of the Lord
Advocate the affair was hushed up, but he was under hiding for a time.
At what date the party reclaiming against Mr Findlater's settlement
acceded to the Relief cannot be ascertained, but it was probably almost
immediately after the induction. They were at least receiving sermon
earlier than 22nd March 1791, the date to which the extant minutes of
Edinburgh Presbytery go back. In July 1793 the people were instructed
to inform the Presbytery at next meeting what they had done towards
building a church in the neighbourhood, and the answer came that they
intended to have it finished before winter. This gives 107 years as the age
of the church, which, after passing through various changes and improve
ments, still survives, with sittings for 250.
First Minister. — WILLIAM FAMILTON, who was received by the Presby
tery of Edinburgh on igth October 1795 as a licentiate from the Church of
Scotland. Ordained at Newlands, 29th March 1796. He was to receive
£60 a year, with £2, los. at each communion, and a suitable dwelling-house
588 HISTORY OF U.P. CONGREGATIONS
by Martinmas, which the people undertook to keep in proper repair. Three
of their number who had been elders before he was to constitute into a
session. After six years he accepted a call to Newcastle, where the pros
pects were even more dubious, and was loosed from his charge, 22nd July
1802. (See Kettle.)
Second Minister. — ARCHIBALD GUMMING, who, like his predecessor, had
been a licentiate of the Established Church. But there were affinities in his
case with the Relief, his twin-brother, Mr Charles Gumming, afterwards of
Errol, being on trials for licence before Glasgow Presbytery at the time he
himself applied for admission. After a year's delay the Presbytery, being
satisfied with his credentials and with a sermon he delivered before them,
and having the consent of the other Presbyteries, agreed to receive him as
a preacher. This was on I4th April 1797, but it was not till I7th November
1803 that he was ordained at Newlands, the stipend being ^60, as before.
His stay was shorter than that of Mr Familton, as he accepted a call to
Ceres, 2Qth December 1807.
Third Minister. — JAMES JARDINE, who, after being a little more than
two years in Newton-Stewart, removed to Newlands, where he was inducted,
I gth October 1809. There he had the promise of ^100, with ^2 at each
communion, and also manse and garden. In his second charge, as in the
former, success was denied, and on I4th December 1813 his resignation
was acquiesced in by the people, and the connection was dissolved. Mr
Jardine's subsequent course as a minister was chequered and unhappy. On
2gth March 1814 he intimated to Edinburgh Presbytery his withdrawal from
under their inspection, and on loth May he appeared in compliance with
their summons, and admitted that he had been preaching on his own
account to societies about Edinburgh, a line of procedure for which there
was no tolerance in the Relief. On expressing great penitence and promising
not to follow divisive courses again he was continued as a probationer ;
only, he underwent rebuke, and was suspended for four Sabbaths. In
November 1815 a complaint came from Perth Presbytery that Mr Jardine,
disregarding his regular appointments, had been preaching in Dundee
without any appointments at all. Next month he adhered to the wish
already expressed to have his connection with the Relief body brought to an
end, and the Presbytery granted his request. His name next crops up in
May following, when the Presbytery learned that a label had been exhibited
about some meeting-place in the High Street, headed " Relief Church," and
stating that the officiating minister was the Rev. James Jardine ; and to warn
the public against being imposed on it was thought needful to read an
intimation on the subject from each of their Edinlsurgh pulpits. In the
beginning of 1817 he came back, pleading to be readmitted, but the petition
was unanimously refused. A few years later he endeavoured to gather
round him the wreck of a Relief congregation in Dundee, as is related
elsewhere, but the attempt came to nothing. All we have to add further is
what Dr M'Kelvie has given, that Mr Jardine died in Annan, which, there is
reason to think, was his native place, about the year 1840.
Newlands congregation now called an ordained minister of higher name,
the Rev. George Campbell of Roberton, but he preferred to remain where
he was.
Fourth Minister. — ARCHIBALD M'lNTVRE, from Dovehill, Glasgow
(now Kelvingrove). Ordained, iith March 1817. His ministry lasted a
few days over ten years, and the congregation appears to have gathered up
and prospered during that period as it never did before. He died at Edin
burgh, 1 5th March 1827, in the thirty-eighth year of his age, and was buried
at Newlands, the only one of the six ministers before Mr Rutherford who
PRESBYTERY OF EDINBURGH 589-
found his last resting-place there. A younger brother of Mr M'Intyre's was
the first Relief minister of Wishaw, but his course was briefer still.
Fifth Minister. — THOMAS KING, from Hamilton (now Auchingramont)-
Ordained, agth May 1828. His was the briefest ministry of all. He was
one of two candidates over whom the Relief congregation of Cupar divided.
Almost immediately after his settlement at Newlands, and after the separa
tion took place and the new church was built in Provost Wynd, his friends
lost no time in inviting him to be their minister. The call was accepted,
1 2th October 1830.
Sixth Minister. — JOHN CRAIG. Ordained, I2th July 1832. He was
from the Relief congregation of Irvine, the history of which he gave in
several very interesting articles in the Christian Journal for 1842. It was,
perhaps, in keeping with the idiosyncrasies of the writer that, exception
having been taken to some things advanced in these papers or to his way
of advancing them, he wound up by bidding a long farewell to the columns
of that periodical. In 1845 Mr Craig published a book on "Apostolical
Succession," and in 1846 he obtained the degree of D.U. from St Andrews
University. Soon after this he was called to Cupar, Fife, to succeed Mr
King, whom he had succeeded at Newlands fourteen years before. The call
being accepted he was loosed, 9th September 1846, and transferred to his
second charge, where rapid developments were forthcoming.
Seventh Minister. — ROBERT RUTHERFORD, M.A., from Jedburgh (High
Street). Ordained, loth March 1847. At this time the congregation, accord
ing to the New Statistical History, had 20 families in Newlands parish, or
nearly one-third of the whole, and it drew 50 members from West Linton,
besides those from Kirkurd and other neighbouring parishes. Mr Ruther
ford in his student days and all onwards was recognised as a man of wide
culture and marked ability, for whom a more prominent sphere should have
opened had his gifts of utterance been at all equal to his powers of mind.
As it was, he laboured on faithfully for forty-four years in this quiet, secluded
spot and amidst a declining agricultural population, but making his influence
felt for good on the whole community. The pastoral papers with which his
volume of sermons closes bring out the earnestness with which he strove to
have his congregation thoroughly organised for Christian ends and stirred
by the impulses of the higher life. On 2nd June 1891 Mr Rutherford, who
had been requiring sick supply for some time, was relieved from the active
duties of the ministry. He now removed to Edinburgh, where a shading
down of home life awaited him. His younger daughter, his wife — who was
a sister of the late Dr Gunion of Greenock — and his son-in-law, the Rev.
A. G. Brotherston of Tranent, dropped away from around him. He died
nth December 1894, in the seventy-eighth year of his age and forty-eighth
of his ministry. Mr Rutherford's concern for the welfare of the denomina
tion found expression in his thoughtful and earnestly-written brochure,
entitled "Joints in our Armour," which passed through two editions. On
leaving the scene of his labours he published a volume of " Discourses
preached," as he said, " to a country congregation," including several which
had appeared in the U.P. Magazine. The book fitly embalms his memory
and his merits.
Eighth Minister. — THOMAS GOLDIE, M.A., from Kilwinning. Ordained
as colleague to Mr Rutherford, igth November 1891. Aided by a yearly
income of ^61 from bequests the people were to give ^90 of stipend and
the manse, besides ,£20 to the retired minister. The membership at the
close of 1 899 was between 60 and 70.
590 HISTORY OF U.P. CONGREGATIONS
LASSWADE (SECESSION)
SOME irritation in Dalkeith Church (now Buccleuch Street) led to the
erection of a Secession congregation at Lasswade, two miles distant. On
yth July 1829 a moderation was applied for to fill up the vacancy caused by
the death of Dr Thomas Brown. Mr David King was the candidate the
majority had in view, but some were of opinion that undue means had been
used to bring him to the front. Accordingly, 40 male members appealed
against the application, and prayed for a rehearing of Mr Andrew Tod, a
young man from one of their own families, and Mr Walter Duncan. The
Presbytery agreed that, if practicable, Messrs King, Tod, and Duncan should
preach anew in Dalkeith, the petition for a moderation to lie meanwhile on
the table. On 4th August these three probationers were urgently applied
for again, as none of them had come forward. Further efforts were to be
made to secure each of them on an intervening Sabbath. The election was
to take place on the last day of the month. But Mr Tod had now accepted
Balerno, Mr Duncan was not sent through by Glasgow Presbytery, and Mr
King declined to preach. At the moderation the call came out harmoniously
for Mr David King. On 6th October the only member who had protested
was heard, assigning reasons why the call should be set aside, but the
Presbytery dismissed the protest, and recommended the complainant " to
study the things that make for peace."
At that same meeting a petition from no inhabitants of Lasswade and
its neighbourhood was read requesting supply of sermon. Of that number
25 were discounted, because being members of Dalkeith congregation they
could only approach the Presbytery through the medium of their own
session. The other 85 were outsiders, and the paper thus limited was left
over for consideration at next meeting. On 8th November a second petition
from 86 others who were not in connection with the denomination was
brought forward, and along with these largely-signed documents there was
now another to the same effect from 32 members of the First congregation,
Dalkeith, transmitted by the session, who at the same time gave notice of
their determination to appear in opposition to its prayer being granted. On
•the other hand, the session of Gorebridge had no objections to offer, but Mr
Comrie of Penicuik reported that his session decidedly disapproved of the
spirit which prompted the application, though they would not formally stand
in the way. The session of Back Street, Dalkeith, simply narrated the
extent to which their interests were involved and the little margin of ability
they had to bear up against such an encroachment. Their minister, Mr
Buchanan, went further, alleging that the petitions were carried from door
to door, that even children were said to have been allowed to sign, and he
charged the petitioners " with having marked out his congregation for
•destruction." On ist December adherences from 42 persons outside the
Secession were handed in to add force to the petition for sermon, and yet
the motion to grant was carried over the motion to refuse by only the
Moderator's casting vote. Now, however, there was a commencement
made, and Dalkeith congregation was about to settle down prosperously
under the ministry of Mr King.
Sermon having been kept up at Lasswade for three months 67 members
received by certificate from the First congregation Dalkeith, with very
few exceptions, and five after examination, were congregated on 6th April
1830. The 213 outsiders were meanwhile keeping themselves in reserve,
but it was well that the Secession cause at Lasswade had stamina within
itself at the outset. By June four elders were chosen, all of whom had been
in office before, among whom were Messrs William Tod, senior, and Alex-
PRESBYTERY OF EDINBURGH 591
ander Tod, a family name which was long foremost in Lasswade Church.
On 1 8th July 1830 the new church, with 650 sittings, erected at a cost of
^1250, was opened by Dr James Peddie, who as Moderator of Presbytery
had given Lasswade his casting vote, and by the Rev. David King, who had
been friendly to the movement from the very first. This was followed in
December by a call to Mr Thomas Girdwood, signed by 95 members and
75 ordinary hearers, the stipend promised being ,£140, with communion
expenses, but the Presbytery at his own request appointed Mr Girdwood to
Penicuik. They next made choice of a probationer from Wilson Church,
Perth, who was afterwards to be known as Dr Archer of London. At the
moderation 52 voted for Mr Thomas Archer, and 43 for Mr John Robertson,
who obtained Duns, but the call was " unanimous " in this sense that it was
signed by 105 members and had no one opposing. Mr Archer held back
month after month, with excuses for absence, till a call reached him from
Oxendon, London, for which he intimated his preference to one of Lasswade
people by letter. The Presbytery after some demur about underhand com
munications allowed the congregation to withdraw their call and proceed
with another election. A preacher newly licensed had gained their affec
tions. Mr Archer was ordained at Oxendon Chapel on 3rd May 1832, and
with that he entered on thirty-two years of ministerial activity, making his
power felt even in the heart of mighty London. Besides regular Sabbath
work there were his platform appearances, his public lectures on outstanding
subjects, and his courses of lectures year by year to his Young Men's Class,
all involving a large expenditure of mental exertion. In 1844 Mr Archer
obtained the degree of D.D. from Princeton College, New Jersey. He died,
3Oth November 1864, in the fifty-ninth year of his age and thirty-third of his
ministry. The Memoir of his life by Dr John Macfarlane, published in 1867,
forms an interesting volume. Four discourses are appended, one of them,
entitled " The Spirit of God in the Conversion of the World," preached at
the anniversary of the London Missionary Society. It was published at the
time, and is marked by passages of powerful, high-wrought eloquence. Dr
Archer by his pulpit gifts kept Oxendon fully afloat after Albion and Wells
Street Chapels were stranded amidst the retiring tide of population around
them.
First Minister. — JOHN ROBSON, son of the Rev. John Robson, Cupar.
This call was signed by 123 members and 101 adherents, and was accepted
at once. But after three months notice came of another call to Mr Robson
from Oakshaw Street, Paisley, to be colleague to Dr William Ferrier. At
the Synod Lasswade was preferred without a vote, and the ordination took
place, gth October 1832. The flow of prosperity was now steady and rapid.
Within two years the congregation reported to the Presbytery that they had
recently put Mr Robson in possession of a new manse, the cost of which
was ,£750, and had also added ,£20 to his stipend. This was equal, by their
estimate, to an addition of ^65 a year. In July 1833, and again in December
1834, Mr Robson was called to Union Street, Greenock, a recent formation,
but he intimated on both occasions that he felt it his duty to remain in his
present charge. Exactly a year later he was invited to Duke Street, Glas
gow, where there was important work to be done in the building up of an
injured cause. The declinature was less decisive on this occasion, but being
in doubt as to the path of duty "he felt bound to give his present congrega
tion the benefit of the doubt." This may have tempted the renewing of the
call a few months after, but owing to some bitterness of feeling among them
it was not prosecuted. In these proceedings there were premonitions that
the relation between Lasswade congregation and its first minister would not
be permanent and that a larger sphere awaited him.
592 HISTORY OF U.P. CONGREGATIONS
In the beginning of 1838 the condition of Lasswade Church is very
clearly brought out. The communicants from 72 had grown, in little more
than seven years, to 379. There were some 40 or 50 families from the parish
of Cockpen and a few from Liberton, Carrington, and Dalkeith. In the
preceding year the funds raised were upwards of ^400, more than ,£100 of
which was devoted to missionary and benevolent purposes. The only per
contra among the details was the debt on church and manse, which, after an
expenditure of ^700, stood at ,£1250. For other two years all moved on
with comfort, and then came a call to be colleague and successor to Dr John
Mitchell of Wellington Street, Glasgow, which was accepted, and on 7th
April 1840 Mr Robson was loosed from his first charge.
What transpired in the earlier part of this vacancy would willingly be
passed over, but that can scarcely be. On 24th November 1840 the Presby
tery met in the session-house at Lasswade, that being the day appointed for
the ordination of Mr John Edmond as Mr Robson's successor. Instead of
being prepared to go forward Mr Edmond handed in a letter stating that
after deliberation he thought it right to relinquish the call. The congrega
tion was now assembled, and Mr Marshall of Leith proceeded with the
service, but no other member of court appeared, as the Presbytery continued
in deliberation. Towards the close of the sermon they passed into the
church in full force, and an intimation followed that circumstances had
arisen which prevented the ordination from going on. Then Mr Thomson
of Lothian Road, who was to have presided, closed with devotional exercises,
and the meeting broke up. Whether this was altogether unexpected at
Lasswade, or whether something of the kind was looked forward to as
possible, we know not, but either way the sensation it produced must have
been profound and the talk interminable. The object of their choice had
got in among some soft entanglements, which brought a paper of complaint
against him from six of our leading Glasgow ministers. The call, according
to his own request, was forthwith dropped, and he had to lie aside from
preaching for a time, but having evinced deep grief for his impulsiveness,
and consented to make all the reparation that was competent for him, he
resumed his probationer course with large acceptability. Among his fellow-
students Mr Edmond had stood foremost for the gift of captivating speech,
and in the Life of Dr James Morison it is mentioned that an address of his
on revivals Dr Balmer spoke of to his class on the following day, and de
clared it was worth going forty miles to hear.
Before Mr Edmond was again available Lasswade congregation called
Mr Charles Miller, but he lost no time in intimating that he had accepted
Duns (West) in preference. At next meeting they applied for another
moderation, and it eventuated in a second call to Mr Edmond, with 330
names in all ; whereas the former had only 263 and Mr Miller's 255. But
Mr Edmond very soon had Alva, and Church Street, Berwick, in his option,
and these were followed close up by Dennyloanhead, which secured him for
their junior minister. Glasgow and London came in their own time.
Second Minister. — WILLIAM C. BRODiE,from Bristo Church, Edinburgh,
The enthusiasm displayed when Mr Edmond was under call a second time
had now spent itself, and the numbers signing in all were down from 330 to
207. But Mr Brodie, who had been keeping a call from Midmar in abey
ance, accepted, and was ordained, 26th April 1842. The manse which had
been built for Mr Robson was let for the time in order to lessen con
gregational burdens, and the new minister was to receive .£130, with ^20-
for house rent. The next return we have from Lasswade is not till 1879,
when the stipend was ^200, with a commodious manse, and a membership
of 326, almost the same as at present. Mr Brodie was scholarly in his.
PRESBYTERY OF EDINBURGH 593
tastes and careful in his preparation for the pulpit ; his discourses instructive,
with a slight edging sometimes of that wit which was natural to him, and
keeping faithfully by the old lines. In accordance with this last quality,
his only publication was a speech delivered in Edinburgh Presbytery in 1871,
on the side of the prosecution, when the case of the Rev. Fergus Ferguson
of Dalkeith was before that court. Mr Brodie died, loth September 1882,
five days after a call had been sustained for one to be his colleague and
successor. He was in the seventy-first year of his age and forty-first of
his ministry. The Presbytery put on record that his preparations for the
pulpit were laborious and thorough beyond most, his lectures in particular
giving evidence of much originality and expository power.
Third Minister. — JAMES BROWN, from West Kilbride. Ordained, 26th
October 1882, and loosed, 24th August 1884, on accepting a call to Grosvenor
Square, Manchester, where he died, nth November 1896, in the forty-second
year of his age and fifteenth of his ministry. His stipend during the short
time he remained in Lasswade was .£200, with the manse, and the member
ship at the close of the year in which he left was 265.
Fourth Minister. — WILLIAM P. RODGERSON, B.Sc., from Bonnington.
Ordained, 2ist April 1885. The stipend at the close of 1899 was ^230, with
a manse, and though the formation of a church at Loanhead may have
encroached slightly upon the territories of Lasswade the membership was
LOANHEAD (UNITED PRESBYTERIAN)
IN September 1886 the Mission Board agreed that extension operations
should be commenced in the district of Straiton and Pentland as soon as
a suitable agent could be obtained. The wants of these places had been
recently brought under their notice by the Presbytery, the distance from
the nearest churches being more than a mile, but no decided step was taken
for over a year. On ist November 1887 it was intimated to the Presbytery
that the iron church provided by Dr Ker for extension purposes had been
removed from the Braid and opened for public worship at Straiton, friends
in the locality paying the expense. On the evening of loth April 1889
19 persons with disjunction certificates were constituted into a congre
gation, and at the close of the following year the returns gave an income
°f £,79- On 20tn July 1890 three elders were ordained, and about this time
the grant for the support of ordinances was reduced from £6 to £$ a month,
the congregation having agreed to increase their contributions. The
membership now amounted to 74. In July 1892 liberty of moderation was
applied for, ^70 a year being promised for stipend, and it was stated that
during the last six months they had raised ,£55. This proposal remained in
abeyance for the time, and in March 1893 the Presbytery was asked to
sanction the removal of the congregation to Loanhead. It was pleaded that
a site there would be suitable for nearly all the members, and that the iron
church was to be left at Straiton for conducting Sabbath school and mission
work as heretofore. After much delay the clerk was also instructed to write
the Reformed Presbyterian and Free congregations in Loanhead informing-
them of what was proposed. The matter hung in suspense for over a year,
but the people being bent on maintaining a separate existence the Presby
tery in March 1895 sanctioned the removal.
First Minister. — DAVID SUTHERLAND, who, after laying the foundations
of a U.P. congregation at Renton, had resigned his charge in the end of
1893. Inducted, 3rd April 1895, the call being signed by 72 members and
2 P
594 HISTORY OF U.P. CONGREGATIONS
38 adherents. The new church, with 330 sittings, was opened on Sabbath,
25th October 1896, by Professor Orr. The cost was calculated at ^1750, for
which ,£350 had been promised from the Loan Fund. In February 1897 the
name was changed from Straiton and Pentland to Loanhead. The trans
ference, though looked on with some disfavour at the time, was amply justified
before a year had passed. The oil works at Straiton being closed in July
1897 the village was reduced to little else than an array of empty houses,
the number shut up amounting to no fewer than 290. Owing to this the
membership of the congregation, which was 149 at the close of 1896, came
down to little over 100. At the Union of 1900 the debt had been reduced
by a bazaar and money contributions to ,£700. There were no names on
the communion roll, and the stipend from the people was, as at the beginning,
^70. At the same time the Free Church, with prior footing in Loanhead,
had a membership of over 250.
WESTERN DIVISION
MID-CALDER (ANTIBURGHER)
CRAIGMAILEN had been the centre of the Secession for West Lothian, and
beyond it to the east, west, and south, almost from the beginning, and it
continued so for those on the Antiburgher side till the death of the Rev.
Andrew Clarkson, the first minister, in the end of 1760. Then a large branch
to the south-east considered it a fit time for obtaining a disjunction, and
after some disputings as to where the place of worship should be they
decided on Mid-Calder. The paper to this effect was subscribed by 36
persons in their own name, and in the name of others 67, making slightly
over loo. There was given in at the same time a petition from 50 members
of Mr Gib's congregation in Edinburgh, residenters about Hermiston and
Ravelrig, craving to be taken in along with the people in Calder bounds,
that they might form part of the new erection, and stating that they had
readily obtained the consent of their session to this step. It happened, how
ever, that the session most deeply interested, that of Craigmailen, was other
wise minded. When the Presbytery, on ist June 1761, granted a day's
supply for the first time to the people within their bounds on the south-east
they protested and appealed, but the Synod without a vote dismissed the
appeal as groundless. The date just given fixes the time when sermon was
begun, but it was not till the Synod in April 1762 that the congregating
was agreed to. Mid-Calder session consisted originally of three elders,
each of whom, it is to be presumed, had been disjoined either from Craig
mailen or Edinburgh. The first church was not finished till 1765 — the date
given on a stone beneath one of the windows and also 'on the earliest set of
tokens.
The year before that application was made for a moderation, the sub
scribers to the number of 40 binding themselves to pay a stipend of .£40,
" with a glebe over and above," but the Presbytery were not satisfied as to
their ripeness for obtaining a minister, and the petition was laid aside. On
6th March 1765 the congregation met and made choice of the Rev. Richard
Jerment, minister at Peebles, but the Synod decreed that he should remain
where he was.
First Minister. — WILLIAM M'GEORGE, from Urr, where his maternal
grandfather, the Rev. John Hepburn, " the Morning Star of the Secession,"
used to labour. Though the names of two ordained ministers were also
PRESBYTERY OF EDINBURGH 595
given in by the session the call is described as unanimous, the bringing
forward of a leet on such occasions being often a mere matter of form. It
Avas signed by 96 persons (male members) and adhered to by 26 others, from
which we may calculate the communion roll to have had about 250 names.
The ordination took place on nth June 1766, and for at least six years the
stipend remained at ^40. Mr M'George died, 3rd July 1799, in the fifty-
sixth year of his age and thirty-fourth of his ministry. He was buried in
Mid-Calder Churchyard beside his wife and eight of his children. A sermon
of his, preached at the induction of the Rev. Dr Jamieson to Nicolson
Street, Edinburgh, entitled "The Excellence and Importance of a Faithful
Ministry," appeared in the Christian Magazine the year before his death,
and is all that remains to show what he was in the pulpit. The Rev. Adam
Gib was, by his second marriage, a brother-in-law of Mr M'George.
Second Minister. — ALEXANDER DUNCAN, from Nicolson Street, Edin
burgh. The attention of the congregation was turned to Mr Duncan from
hearing him when on trials for licence deliver a discourse before the
Presbytery on a communion Monday at Mid-Calder. This was his first
vacancy, and the result was a unanimous call. He must also have been
thought of for Leslie (West), since Mr Robert Muter, who became that
congregation's choice, mentioned in a letter that he heard they were to call
*' the boy Duncan," an epithet which bespeaks his youthful appearance.
He was ordained at Mid-Calder, 8th April 1800. In the summer of 1816
galleries were put up in the church, increasing the sittings to nearly 400, and
the communicants in 1818 were 220. The stipend that year was ^100, with
manse and glebe, and a gift of ,£10. Mr Duncan became known before his
ministry was far on for his wide reading and theological acquirements. In
the Synod's dealings with the Rev. Robert Imrie of Kinkell he was of much
service, and the papers issued in explanation of their action in that case
were largely shaped by his hand. Thus the way was prepared for his
•elevation to a Professor's Chair some twenty years after.
Prior to this Mr Duncan acted a conspicuous part in fashioning the pro
posal for union between the Burghers and Antiburghers. Since the Old and
New Light Controversy, with its liberalising effects, the two Synods had been
on converging lines, but it was among the members of Mid-Calder and East
Calder congregations that active measures were first taken to have the
movement begun. Through the Christian Magazine, the organ of the Anti-
burgher, and the Repository, that of the Burgher denomination, correspond
ence, was invited on the subject, and this was Mr Duncan's work. The Testi
mony of 1827 in the doctrinal part was also from his pen almost exclusively.
It was to be expected that when two new Chairs were instituted in the
United Secession Hall and three professors were to be chosen Mr Duncan's
qualifications would not be lost sight of. Already in 1825, when Dr
Mitchell of Glasgow was appointed to the Chair of Biblical Literature, Mr
Duncan was behind him by only a single vote, there being 59 for the former
and 58 for the latter. Now, in April 1834, his turn came. First the Chair
of Exegetical Theology was filled up by the election of Dr John Brown,
and though his claims were pre-eminent, Mr Duncan had 30 votes against
73. Next came the Chair of Systematic Theology, when Mr Duncan was
preferred to Mr Balmer of Berwick by 74 votes to 49. The Chair of
Pastoral Theology was then assigned to Mr Balmer by an absolute majority,
but an exchange, agreed on by the parties, was sanctioned by the Synod.
Of his characteristics as a professor George Gilfillan has instanced the
immense quantity of recondite learning he had contrived to amass and his
great, although somewhat paradoxical, ingenuity. Better still in his estima
tion, "he had very considerable sympathy with and knowledge of modern
596 HISTORY OF U.P. CONGREGATIONS
literature," and, "best of all, he had a warm, wide heart." In 1842 Professor
Duncan obtained the degree of U.D. from St Andrews University, and in
May of the following year he retired from the duties of the Chair. In
September previous one of his sons was ordained as his colleague, and after
that he appeared only once in Mid-Calder pulpit, when he preached a short
discourse from the text : " Thou therefore, my son, be strong in the grace
that is in Christ Jesus," and left his mantle to another. He died, loth
November 1844, in the sixty-eighth year of his age and forty-fifth of his
ministry. Of the writings Dr Duncan left behind him the most character
istic is his " Summary View of the Great Plan of Heaven relative to
Providence," published in 1809. A Memoir of his life prepared by his sons
and prefixed to a volume of his discourses appeared in 1846. To Dr Duncan
belonged the unique distinction of leaving five sons behind him, all members
of Synod, and a sixth on the point of receiving licence. These were
(i) Alexander, of Girvan, and afterwards of Glasgow (East Regent Place
and Duke Street) ; (2) David, of Howgate ; (3) Walter, of Glasgow (Duke
Street and Parliamentary Road) ; (4) James, of Alva ; (5) Andrew, of Mid-
Calder ; and (6) Robert Dick, of Dundee (Wishart Church), and Edinburgh
(Bread Street). Their mother was a daughter of the Rev. David Morrison
of Morebattle.
Third Minister. — ANDREW DUNCAN, who had been previously called to
Berwick (Church Street) and to Port-Glasgow. Ordained as colleague and
successor to his father, 29th September 1842, the call being signed by 170
members. The present church, with accommodation for about 300, was
opened on 2gth October 1854, and by the aid of a local bazaar the debt was
liquidated two years afterwards. Mr Duncan's health having become
subject to serious interruptions, he requested the congregation in 1873 to
arrange for a colleague, which was heartily gone about, and with an outcome
eminently satisfactory. The senior minister was to have ^70, with the
manse, and the junior minister ,£150.
Fourth Minister. — WILLIAM DUNCAN, nephew to the senior colleague,
and son of the Rev. James Duncan, formerly of Alva. Had been previously
called to Bolton (St Stephen's Church), to Haddington '(East), and to
Kinross (East). Ordained, I7th March 1874, his uncle giving the charge.
The relation between them lasted upwards of eight years, and then, on 3rd
October 1882, Mr William Duncan, who had declined to remove to Gala-
shiels in 1880, accepted a call to Maryhill, Glasgow.
Fifth Minister. — GEORGE CRAWFORD, M.A., previously junior minister
in Govan. Inducted, I7th April 1883. The stipend arrangements with the
senior minister were as before, while the junior minister was to have ^100,
which with supplement and surplus would give him ,£180, with ^20 for
house rent. The second collegiateship, which Mr Duncan testified had
been comfortable and pleasant in a high degree, terminated on 6th October
1885 with the acceptance of Mr Crawford's resignation. He then emigrated
to Colorado, in the United States, where he engaged for a time in stock
farming. Having returned to this country he had his name placed on the
preachers' list in May 1888, but withdrew before his term of probation was
finished. He afterwards went back to America.
Sixth Minister. — ROBERT L. BROWNING, M.A., from Ibrox, Glasgow.
Ordained, 2oth April 1886. A few years after this Mr Duncan gave up the
manse to his colleague and removed to Edinburgh, where he died on his
seventy-fourth birthday, 23rd January 1894. Besides his very full and
accurate history of Mid-Calder congregation Mr Duncan was the author of
a little book, entitled " Persis and Eunice ; or, Christian Women's Work of
Service," of which 1200 copies were sold, the profits going to aid with certain
PRESBYTERY OF EDINBURGH 597
improvements made on the church in 1856. On 22nd May 1900 Mr
Browning accepted a call to the congregation of Anniesland Cross, Glasgow.
Seventh Minister. — THOMAS W. PATERSON, M.A., brother-in-law to his
predecessor. Translated from Roberton, where he had been for eleven
years. Inducted, 25th October 1900. The membership was then about 180,
and the stipend from the people ^150.
BATH GATE ( BURGHER)
THE ground was prepared at Bathgate for the Secession cause by an enforced
settlement so early as 1717. On Sabbath, I7th November of that year, when
the edict of the unpopular candidate, Mr Thomas Laurie, was to be served,
a troop of dragoons was present to prevent disturbance, who marched
through the town with drums beating and swords drawn to protect the
ministers on their way to the church. The ordination followed on 26th
December. For years the incumbent had only about 50 people attending
his ministry out of some 1200, and the case of Bathgate heads the list of
violent settlements at that early period. Further particulars are found in a
" Letter concerning the Parish of Bathgate," the authorship of which is
ascribed to the Rev. James Kid of Queensferry, one of the twelve Marrow-
men, and a stout upholder of popular rights. He explains that soon after
the parish fell vacant the gentleman who claimed to be patron prevailed on
six of the elders to sign a paper in favour of his protege, Mr Laurie, while
the parishioners generally were bent on obtaining Mr John Squyre, a young
man who had been ordained in 1713 for mission work in South Carolina, but
was prevented going abroad. Mr Squyre, who was one of the evangelical
school, became minister at Forres, and was one of fifteen ministers who
testified against the deposition of the Erskines in 1740. The patron had a
number of heritors, chiefly non-resident, on his side, and the names of six
elders out of eleven, but four of them declared they had been imposed on by
the assurance that a free choice would be allowed when the moderation day
came. The Presbytery were intent on having the patron's claims sustained,
and though Mr Squyre's name was entered along with that of Mr Laurie the
presiding minister contrived, by unfair means as the objectors alleged, to
place him in the minority. It was of little moment that a paper in favour of
the popular candidate was handed in at the moderation bearing 300 names,
or that protestations were laid before the Presbytery against further pro
cedure from a like number of subscribers. There was no redress of their
grievances, and in 1720 they were described as sheep without a shepherd,
" some wandering here and there and some lying at home " when Sabbath
came round.
It was in connection with the baptism of their children that oppression
was most felt, parents having to carry their infants far distances to have the
ordinance administered. Mr Kid of Queensferry tried to aid them on this
point, but for that and other tokens of sympathy "he was not only maltreated
in the Presbytery but actually libelled." At last a petition to be allowed sealing
ordinances in other parishes was referred to the Synod, the Presbytery being
in great straits and wishing advice. When the case came before this court
there was a petition from the heritors " to give steady countenance to their
minister and session, discourage those who dealt in strife and division, and
discharge the brethren of the Presbytery from breaking in upon the labours
of another." The Synod by a great majority declared the opposition to Mr
Laurie unreasonable, and ministers were prohibited from granting relief to
the petitioners in the way proposed. Mr Laurie remained in Bathgate till
598 HISTORY OF U.P. CONGREGATIONS
1731, and as the Associate Presbytery was not then in existence a great
part of the hostile parishioners may have been starved into submission. It
is also possible that after the excitement calmed down they found less to
complain of than was anticipated, their objections being not so much to the
man as to the system under which they deemed themselves defrauded of
their Christian rights.
On loth October 1738 there was an accession to the Associate Presbytery
from fifteen elders and 122 private members residing within the bounds of
Linlithgow Presbytery, but how far Bathgate parish took part does not
appear. It is remarkable, indeed, that till after the Breach that name
nowhere occurs in the Secession records nor even in the minutes of Craig-
mailen congregation. It is to be inferred from this that the influence of the
intrusion in 1717 had very much died away during the twenty years that
intervened. Whatever proportion of Bathgate parishioners seceded at this
time they ranked simply as belonging to the "Correspondents" in West
Lothian. After the Breach of 1747 sermon was kept up intermittently by
the Burghers at divers places within these wide bounds, and this continued
till Torphichen, a village two and a half miles north of Bathgate, became
the one centre. In 1763 this arrangement was modified, so that Mr Archi
bald Hall, the minister of Torphichen, preached at the two places on alternate
Sabbaths. A paper drawn up in connection with a question about the rights
to the property gives the beginnings with great exactness, Ground, it states,
was bought for a meeting-house at Bathgate in the summer of 1763 at a cost
of ^35, and they had the communion dispensed therein by Mr Hall in the .
end of harvest. When the united congregation fell vacant in May 1765 by
Mr Hall's translation to London a separation took place, and Bathgate was
constituted a distinct congregation.
First Minister. — WILLIAM HALL, a licentiate of Edinburgh Presbytery.
Ordained, 26th August 1766. At first there were four elders, but it was
judged highly necessary that their number should be increased, considering
"the present scattered situation of this congregation." Then four others
were admitted, one from the east corner of Whitburn parish, where he had
been an elder before, one from West Calder, and another from Mid-Calder.
That the people came from far distances is indicated by the great fluctuation
in the church-door collections. While in summer these came up generally
to over 8s., in winter they were sometimes only between is. and 2s. At
communion times they rose to ^8 or ^9. On 7th October 1771 it is re
corded : "This was the last session ever the Rev. William Hall sat in."
We are able to add that he only survived ten days, having died, I7th
October, in the sixth year of his ministry. During Mr Hall's pastorate
there was an increase either in numbers or in liberality, there being an
appreciable rise in the ordinary collections. There was difficulty in getting
the vacancy filled up. The first they called was Mr William Richardson,
whom the Synod appointed to Cambusnethan. Then they called Mr
Alexander Pirie, but though the Synod assigned him to Bathgate he refused
to go. The Presbytery finding that there was no hope of forwarding the
settlement to the edification of those concerned referred the matter back to
the Synod, by whom the call was set aside. It was over Linlithgow that
Bathgate had been carried, and there Mr Pirie was ordained on a second
call soon after.
Second Minister. — JOHN JAMIESON, from Thornhill, Dumfriesshire.
Bathgate was now in conflict with Longridge, another congregation in the
neighbourhood, but the Synod decided in their favour, and Mr Jamieson was
ordained, ist February 1776. It was the depth of winter, and the two
ministers who were to officiate, Messrs Lawson of Selkirk and Brown of
PRESBYTERY OF EDINBURGH 599
Haddington were not present, " detained by the depth of the snow." None
of the members who got forward had prepared themselves for the work, and
two preachers were appointed to give a discourse each. Mr Jamieson
resigned, I4th August 1783, with the view of emigrating to America. Of his
further history Dr Scouller relates that he became pastor at Newville,
Pennsylvania, in September 1784, from which he removed in 1792, and was
afterwards pastor for a time of Hannastown in the same State, and that he
was deposed by the Associate Reformed Synod in 1797 for doctrinal errors
in reference to faith and the offer of salvation to the reprobate, and also for
false and injurious abuse of the Synod and some of its members. After that
he resided upon his farm, and died of paralysis, ist July 1821.
Third Alinister. — JAMES FORRESTER, from Stirling (now Erskine
Church). Had been previously called to St Andrews, but was appointed
to Bathgate. Ordained, I2th April 1785. He died, 2oth March 1786, when
he had scarcely completed the first year of his ministry. The ordinary
collections were now about double what they had been in Mr Hall's time.
Mr Forrester had also been called to Kelso when a preacher.
P'ourtJi Minister. — PATRICK CONNEL, from Stirling (now Erskine
Church). Ordained, 23rd August 1787. It was under Mr Connel that
the division occurred which weakened both parties and led on to their final
extinction. It appears from a congregational paper that the minister took
no part on the Old Light side when the question was pending, and expressed
no dissatisfaction either in the Synod or elsewhere with the obnoxious
preamble. He even declared from the pulpit a few Sabbaths before
breaking away that he saw no cause for leaving the Synod as some had
done. But under the influence of his neighbour, the Rev. Ebenezer Hyslop
of Shotts, as was surmised, he turned his back upon himself, and on
1 8th March 1800 took his place in the new Presbytery at Glasgow. It is
probable that the congregation would not have kept entire either way, but
by this step the majority were drawn away from the Synod and brought to
declare their adherence to Mr Connel. On the other hand, five elders out of
nine, and 36 members, petitioned their own Presbytery on nth March to
appoint a committee to deal with minister, session, and congregation. This
was done, but access to the meeting-house was denied, and Mr Connel
refused to confer with them either publicly or privately. His declinature
had been already given in, and when the report came up he was declared
no longer a member of their court. The party adhering to the Synod were
recommended, meanwhile, to cultivate a spirit of meekness and gentleness
towards Mr Connel and their former brethren, and they were to have sealing
ordinances from neighbouring ministers as they required. During a long
course of years, though they had only sermon occasionally, they continued
to be recognised as a regular congregation, but Mr Connel and those who
kept by him retained possession of the church and went on as before. He
died, 23rd January 1820, in the fifty-fifth year of his age and thirty-third of
his ministry.
This was the year that the famous case of Wilson Church, Perth, was
decided in favour of the New Lights, a decision which ruled that of Bathgate.
The minority now made good their right to the place of worship, and the
other party had to vacate the building and provide themselves with another.
This was effected in 1828 at a cost of ,£500. During the intervening eight
years the congregation had been vacant, and for stipend they could pro
pose no more than ^75, with .£8 for communion expenses, and no manse.
About this time the New Light congregation was dissolved, and the old place
of worship, which had come into their possession, was sold and turned to
secular purposes. Being one now with the Antiburghers there was no need of
600 HISTORY OF U.P. CONGREGATIONS
a second Secession congregation in the place. The Original Burgher Church
had a chequered history, which requires to be outlined. They had a minister,
Mr Clement Moscrip, ordained on 2nd July 1829, a son of the Rev. George
Moscrip, Greenock. In 1838 the membership was returned at 245, the debt
on the property at ,£260, and the stipend at ^83 in all. Of the families
in connection 41 were more than two miles from the place of worship, most
of them apparently from the parishes of Torphichen and Livingstone. In
1836 the minister had been in a broken-down state, and the session wished a
meeting of the congregation to consider whether they should go on or give
up. On igth April of that year his demission was accepted, and all that re
mains to be added is that after being two years under suspension he was
inducted to Pollokshaws, on a call a great way from harmonious, and that he
died, 20th September 1848, in the forty-fourth year of his age and twentieth
of his ministry.
Sixth Minister. — JOHN REID, of whom more will be given in the Ap
pendix. Began his ministry in the United Secession Church, Dairy,
Galloway, and afterwards was pastor of a congregation in Heriot Bridge,
Edinburgh. Mr Reid and his people were received into connection with the
Original Burgher Synod on 23rd January 1838, and in February 1839 he was
inducted to Bathgate, where his pulpit gifts got fuller scope, and advanced
the prosperity of the congregation. At the communion in July following
there were 21 accessions. When the Union of the Original Burgher Synod
with the Established Church was drawing on the Moderator stated at a
meeting of session that, though he was prepared to enter the communion of
the Church of Scotland immediately, he was willing to forego his own opinion,
inasmuch as the elders were opposed to immediate union, and the congrega
tion were almost unanimously on the same side. However, minister and
people soon after went in a body with the great majority of their brethren
into the Establishment. This new change of Church relationship opened a
wider door of usefulness for Mr Reid, who was elected minister of the quoad
sacra church, Johnstone, and inducted there, 22nd April 1841. But Bathgate
congregation was no sooner in a vacant state than they cut connection with
the Establishment, and the minister appointed by Linlithgow Presbytery to
preach the church vacant was refused admittance by the managers, and the
General Assembly, to which the matter was referred, acknowledged that the
case was beyond their control. The people now resolved to return to the de
nomination with which they had been connected forty-one years before, and
on 2nd March 1841 they applied to be taken under the inspection of the
United Associate Presbytery of Stirling and Falkirk. On 4th May they
were formally received, and this is what the split at Bathgate in March 1800,
with the harm it entailed to the contending parties, ended in. Secession
proclivities asserted themselves anew, and the long-ruptured connection was
renewed. The congregation now called the Rev. Andrew Johnston, who
had been ordained, 22nd August 1839, under an engagement to preach for
three years to a company of English miners in Brazil, but was now on the
preachers' list. The call was signed by 93 members, and the stipend pro
mised was ,£80. Mr Johnston after declining the call joined the Established
Church, and became minister of Kinglassie parish, Fifeshire.* Livery Street,
Bathgate, then fixed on Mr James Fleming, who accepted Whithorn instead.
* Mr Johnston was from Stranraer (Bellevilla). His stay in Brazil must have
been very brief, for his name appeared on the roll of probationers in the beginning
of 1840. At a meeting of the Secession Students' Voluntary Association in 1833
Mr Johnston was the mover of a resolution to the effect that "this meeting, while
disclaiming all feelings of hostility towards members of the Established Church, de-
PRESBYTERY OF EDINBURGH 60 1
Seventh Minister. — ANDREW M'FARLANE, son of the Rev. James
M'Farlane, and grandson of the Rev. Dr Husband, collegiate ministers of
Queen Anne Street Church, Uunfermline. Called previously to an expiring
cause in Pell Street, London. Ordained at Bathgate, ist May 1843, and
loosed on 6th February 1844 on accepting a call to Falkirk (now Erskine
Church). Under the old system, whereby Church courts decided on trans
lating calls, so speedy a transference would scarcely have been thought of.
During the two years' vacancy which followed the congregation called Mr
Hugh Darling, who accepted Stitchel, and Mr David Sim, who accepted
Girvan.
Eighth Minister. — ALEXANDER ClJTHBERT, M.A. Inducted, 22nd May
1845, and remained in Bathgate ten years. When the congregation was
admitted into the fellowship of the United Secession by the Presbytery of
Stirling and Falkirk there was some fear that it might injure Mr Morison's
church, as there was not room for two Secession congregations in the place.
So far as that was concerned Livery Street had the ground to itself now,
the other congregation having become part of the Evangelical Union. Still,
there was no further scope for progress, and it appears from a return made
in 1849 that there were only 128 members, and the stipend required ^25
of supplement to make it up to ^100. It happened, moreover, that through
the Union of 1847 there was another congregation of the same communion
in Bathgate, so that the question whether they should still go on acquired
additional point. In the end Mr Cuthbert felt that he ought to resign and
allow the congregation to be dissolved. His demission was accepted, 24th
July 1855, and on the part neither of Presbytery nor people were there
thoughts of a successor. Sermon was kept up in a languid way for some
time, but on 7th October 1856 a committee of Presbytery reported that the
congregation had agreed to sell their property, and after paying debt and
meeting expenses to hand over the surplus to their late minister, whose
stipend, besides being small, had not been fully paid. The name of Livery
Street, Bathgate, was then dropped from the Roll of Churches. Though
there was no approach to formal union the time was favourable for members
who were so inclined acceding to the sister congregation, over which the
Rev. James Scott had been recently ordained. The building is now a
Roman Catholic Chapel.
Mr Cuthbert on leaving Bathgate removed to Glasgow, where he lived
privately, but officiated ever and again as supply for ministers' pulpits. He
was a native of Dundee, and belonged during the early part of his ministry
to the Congregational Union. Was ordained at Montrose in 1830, but after
labouring there for a few years his health broke down, and he was compelled
to resign. On regaining strength he became minister of a little Independent
congregation at Stewartfield, from which he removed in June 1837 to take
charge of a newly-formed church at Airdrie. With it his connection ter
minated on 2nd December 1839, in circumstances which acquired large
publicity, besides involving him in keen controversy with the Rev. W. L.
Alexander of Edinburgh. In 1840 he applied to Glasgow Presbytery for
admission to the fellowship of the United Secession Church, and on 8th
September was received as an ordained probationer. Before being inducted
into Bathgate he declined a call to Mainsriddell.
Mr Cuthbert also appeared as an author at the time of the Atonement
Controversy. A sermon he preached in Kilmarnock to the party who had
precate the system they support." But the system he once deprecated acquired attrac
tions for him, and he was received into the Established Church by the General
Assembly in 1844. Inducted to Kinglassie, 1848, where he died, i8th December 1882,
in his seventieth year.
602 HISTORY OF U.P. CONGREGATIONS
withdrawn from Mr Morison's ministry shortly before was published in 1842.
Besides writing strictures on Dr Wardlaw's theory of the Atonement he con
tributed largely to Dalrymple's Secession Magazine, the organ of the
extreme Calvinists, if he was not the editor. In 1846 he published
" Hosannas to the Saviour," touching memorials of the death-bed scenes
of two of his children. This was followed in 1855 by "Asleep in Jesus ; or,
Light on Little Graves." He died, 1.3th August 1887, in the eighty-sixth
year of his age.
BATHGATE (ANTIBURGHER)
THIS was originally a branch of Craigmailen, and continued so till that con
gregation removed its seat to Linlithgow in 1805. That was seven miles
from Bathgate and about twice the distance from the former centre. After
hanging on for a time they made application for sermon on nth November
1806, and on loth February 1807 they were erected into a congregation by
the Antiburgher Presbytery of Edinburgh. On 24th March they were for
mally disjoined from Linlithgow, two of their number being attested as elders
by their old minister, Mr Oliver, and the boundaries were fixed between the
two congregations. In 1807 the church was built, with sittings for 400 —
"cost not known" — but thirty years afterwards it was burdened with a debt
°f -£35a 1° J8o8 they called Mr William Bruce,* a nephew of Professor
Bruce of Whitburn, the call being signed by 46 male members. In Sep
tember of that year he was appointed by the Synod to Bathgate in preference
to Dumfries (Loreburn Street), but he found himself unfit to enter on the
work of a fixed pastorate, and this led to a long delay. In 1809 the case
was before the Synod, and they allowed Mr Bruce to preach in other
Presbyteries meanwhile, but on his health permitting his ordination was
to be proceeded with. In 1810 another call came in from South Shields,,
and it was carried over Bathgate by 24 to 19. Thus the long waiting on
ended in disappointment.
First Minister. — ROBERT MORISON, from Dalreoch, his father being a
farmer near Dunning. He had been called to Huntly in the first instance,
but Bathgate was preferred, though not without considerable hesitation, and
he was ordained, 2nd June 1812. Comparing the two places, Mr Morison
spoke of Bathgate people as more genteel and respectable-looking than those
in the north, "but their ardour for hearing the gospel was far inferior."
Though less unpromising than Huntly, the field of labour at Bathgate had
* Mr Bruce was from Dennyloanhead, and is best known as the father of Dr
William Bruce, Infirmary Street, Edinburgh. He was called, as we have already
seen, to Muckart in 1806, but had to be relieved owing to the state of his health.
Then came Bathgate as above. Edinburgh Presbytery had fixed his ordination at
South Shields for 26th June 1810, but at a meeting held in the interim it was
ascertained that he had openly countenanced the ministrations of a member of the
Constitutional Presbytery. This was pronounced highly reprehensible, and demanded
delay. However, on i8th June he so far satisfied them that they proceeded with his.
ordination on nth July. The minister whose preaching he had waited on we assume
to have been Professor Bruce of Whitburn, his own uncle. The congregation of
South Shields had recently struggled into existence, and towards the end of 1818
Mr Bruce insisted on his resignation being accepted. He assigned as a reason that
he felt he could not remain among the people as their minister and afford to be
faithful. He was loosed on I4th June 1819. He then settled down at Ardoch, in
the parish of Cardross, as the head of an academy, and was of important service
in originating what is now High Street congregation, Dumbarton. He died at
Helensburgh, 2ist September 1843, in the sixty-eighth year of his age.
PRESBYTERY OF EDINBURGH 603,
many and serious drawbacks. For one thing, the town was overchurched,
and dissent was weakened by being divided against itself. The Burgher
congregation split into "Old Light" and "New Light "in 1800, and a few
months before Mr Morison's ordination a Relief church was organised, and
a large place of worship was in course of erection. In these circumstances
the little society of Antiburghers could ill hold its own. Shortly after the
Union of 1820 the pressure was so great that they required a grant of £10
from the Synod Fund, and applied to sister congregations besides for aid.
It appears, however, that by the year 1838 they had to a great extent sur
mounted their difficulties. At that time they reported a membership of 237,
and a stipend of ^100, with a house, garden, and small glebe. Of those
under the minister's care more than one-third were from other parishes,
especially from Linlithgow, Torphichen, and Livingstone, this last including
the village of Blackburn. Of the families, 48 were from farther than two
miles and 12 from farther than four. But a change in Mr Morison's
doctrinal views and in his congregation's denominational connection was
approaching.
Our narrative now links itself with the history of the movement known
from the name of its principal originator, Mr Morison's son, the Rev. James
Morison of Kilmarnock. As was natural, the father identified himself with
the new system of doctrine, and when the Synod confirmed the deed of
Presbytery suspending his son from the ministry he gave in reasons of
dissent in which he avowed similar views. The simple course would have
been to renounce connection with the Secession Synod, but instead of this
a process of inquiry had to be gone through, first in the Presbytery of
Edinburgh and then in the Synod. The result, as must have been foreseen
by all parties, was that on loth May 1842 Mr Morison, having declined
submission to the sentence requiring him to abstain from the exercise of
his office, and having failed to appear before the committee appointed to-
meet with him, was declared by the Synod to be no longer a minister or
member of the Secession Church. His congregation adhered to him, and
he preached on as before, till his death on ist August 1855, in the seventy-
third year of his age and forty-fourth of his ministry. After passing over
to the Evangelical Union Mr Morison published several pamphlets, among
which, according to his son, the ablest was his review of " Statement of
Principles," issued by the Secession Synod, and the most valuable his
brochure, entitled " Difficulties connected with the Doctrine of a limited
Atonement." With regard to his father's work in Bathgate, Dr Morison
wrote : " The congregation grew rapidly at first, but the secret blight took
effect, and there was henceforth struggle all along." What " the secret
blight" consisted in is not made clear, but we rather think he meant the
system of Calvinistic doctrine which had been preached from his father's
pulpit for nearly twenty-eight years. " That long period passed," the worthy
man himself testified, "before I carne to know Christ or find peace to my
soul in His blood." Thus under his son's guidance, or as he would have
put it, under guidance from above, he got upon new lines, and new light
came.
This congregation was included in the Evangelical Union, and was for
twelve years under the ministry of the Rev. A. M. Fairbairn, now Principal
Fairbairn of Mansfield College, Oxford. In common with nearly all the
churches of that denomination it amalgamated with the Congregational Union
in 1897.
<5<H HISTORY OF U.P. CONGREGATIONS
BATHGATE, WEST (RELIEF)
ON 24th December 1811 a large body of people in Bathgate and the
neighbourhood met, and resolved to have a Relief congregation established
in the town. The parish church had recently fallen vacant, and a petition
from elders, heritors, and members of the congregation had been presented
to the patron, the Earl of Hopetoun, asking to be allowed a voice in the
choice of a pastor. This request being disregarded and a presentation
issued in a high-handed way nearly 500 heads of families, without waiting
the result, withdrew from the Established Church and applied to the Relief
Presbytery of Edinburgh for sermon. This was on 24th January 1812, and
on the second Sabbath of February Mr Johnston of Roxburgh Place Church
preached by appointment at Bathgate to a very numerous congregation.
The ordination of Lord Hopetoun's presentee did not take place until
1 7th September, but the grievance did not specially bear on the qualities or
defects of a particular man. It was the system of patronage that was felt
to be oppressive and inconsistent with the rights of the Christian people.
Hence there was the going straight on with the building of a church, with
accommodation for close upon 800 people — the place of worship which served
the congregation till within the last few years.
First Minister. — WILLIAM FYFE, from Pittenweem, where he was or
dained about two years before. Inducted at Bathgate, 22nd July 1813.
The provision was liberal for these times, stipend ^130, £10 for a house,
and ^5 each communion. The services were conducted in the church,
which is understood to have been finished some time before, but the cost
has not been given. There was to have been a moderation much earlier,
but the managers and elders dissuaded the minister who was to preside
from going forward, on the plea that the people had no one they could
fix on. The Presbytery disapproved of this, and held that the assembled
congregation ought to have been consulted and the decision left with them.
In Relief churches more than in the Secession the balance of power was
apt to be disturbed in similar ways. Mr Fyfe died, gth November 1823,
in the forty-second year of his age and thirteenth of his ministry. "He
seems," writes an observer, "to have been a man of popular gifts," and he
deduces this from the fact that the large church was always full in his time.
He was a brother of the Rev. Andrew Fyfe, Dumfries.
Second Minister. — GEORGE TODD, from Falkirk (West). Ordained, 3oth
May 1826, and introduced on the following Sabbath by his minister, the
Rev. William Welsh of Falkirk. There appears to have been a great
shrinking up in resources, if not in numbers, before now, as the stipend
was down from ^130 to ^80. From the circumstances in which the
congregation originated it was to be feared that a considerable number
would find their way back to the Established Church as the excitement
wore off or there was a change of ministry in the parish pulpit. Still, in
1838 the communicants numbered 360, although it is disappointing to find
that only two-fifths of the sittings were let. Of those in attendance only
four-fifths resided in Bathgate parish, and most of the others were from the
parishes of Torphichen and Livingstone, 14 families being from beyond four
miles. Mr Todd died on Thursday, 3rd September 1846, in the fiftieth year
of his age and twenty-first of his ministry. On the previous Monday, after
evening worship, and on laying himself down to sleep, he was seized with
paralysis, from which he never rallied, but remained speechless, and all but
unconscious, till the end came. According to the testimony of the minister
who preached his funeral sermon, he was not what is generally termed a
PRESBYTERY OF EDINBURGH 605
popular preacher, and such being the case he had his discouragements, the
congregation being reduced, it is said, to a mere handful before his death.
Third Minister. — ALEXANDER B. SCLANDERS, M.A., from Glasgow
(Greenhead), but a native of Campsie. Ordained, 6th May 1847, the week
before the Union with the Secession, and the last accession to the ranks of
the Relief ministry. Like his predecessor he was to have ^80, with manse
and garden. During Mr Sclanders' stay of six years in Bathgate there
was a marked building up, but on 4th October 1853 he accepted a call to
Musselburgh (Millhill), and his connection with his first charge was severed.
A vacancy of more than two years now intervened, during which the
congregation first called Mr David Anderson, who declined,* and then Mr
William Scott, who chose Balerno.
Fourth Minister. — JAMES SCOTT, from Morebattle. Ordained, 4th March
1856. The stipend was now ,£100, and the call was signed by 163 members.
There were special prospects of increase at this time, as the congregation in
Livery Street had been dissolved not long before, but this may not have
come to much. On 5th March 1867 Mr Scott was loosed from Bathgate,
having accepted a call to Union Church, Kirkcaldy.
Fifth Minister. — ALEXANDER SHENNAN, from Houghton -le - Spring,
where he had been for a dozen years, having been ordained there, 7th March
1855. Mr Shennan was from St James Place, Edinburgh. Almost simul
taneously with Bathgate a call was given him by Whitby congregation.
Admitted to Bathgate, 25th November 1867. The congregation had in
creased in strength now, partly, perhaps, from there being no rival congrega
tion on the ground, and the stipend had advanced to ^180, with manse and
garden. Mr Shennan was loosed from his charge, 7th December 1886, and
remained in an unstrung state till his death on I3th May 1891, in the sixty-
seventh year of his age and thirty-seventh of his ministry.
Sixth Minister. — JOHN LINDSAY, M.A., from Milnathort, a half-brother
of the Rev. James M. Scott, Junction Road, Leith. Ordained, 6th July
1887. A new church was opened on Thursday, I7th October 1895, with
sittings for 550, and built at a cost of ,£3700. All that remained of debt on
the handsome edifice was cleared off by the collections at the opening and
on the following Sabbath. The membership at the close of 1899 was fully
300, and the stipend ,£220, with the manse.
LONGRIDGE (BURGHER)
THIS congregation's origin links itself with the induction of the Rev. William
Barron of Wamphray to Whitburn, 27th April 1771. A minister of some
mark he must have been, for he was transferred to the Logic Chair in St
Andrews University eight years afterwards. But the people were dissatis
fied, for special reasons, with the exercise of patronage in their case, as will
be shown by-and-by, and this led to a large secession from the parish church.
In the absence of Presbytery records we have only the minutes of the
Burgher Synod to fall back on, but we find there that in May 1772 a petition
from some people about Whitburn for supply of sermon was referred to the
* Mr Anderson was from Pathstruie. The Bathgate call, though pronounced
harmonious, was poorly signed, and, besides, there were tokens of unfriendly feeling,
which prevented acceptance. Mr Anderson withdrew shortly after from the pro
bationer list, and took to farming, an occupation with which he had been familiar
from boyhood. He first resided near Muckart, and then near Dunfermline. After
that he settled down on a farm midway between Balgedie and Leslie, and then
emigrated with his family to Australia or New Zealand.
606 HISTORY OF U.P. CONGREGATIONS
Synod by the Presbytery of Edinburgh. The matter was delayed from the
fear of doing harm to the congregation of Bathgate, but in May 1773 they
decided to grant regular supply to Whitburn. At next Synod, in October,
Bathgate congregation remonstrated against the above decision, pleading
'" their distressful and ruinous circumstances," and a committee was ap
pointed to meet with the representatives from Bathgate, Torphichen, and
Whitburn, but no accommodation of differences was arrived at. In this
unhappy state things continued till May 1774, when the Synod found that
" the deed granting sermon to Whitburn cannot be reversed in consistency
with the edification of that corner." Thus after two years of vacillation the
foundations of Longridge congregation were firmly laid.
Up to this point we have had the "new Seceders" to deal with — those
who had recently withdrawn from the Established Church. In the Old
Statistical History we have the circumstances which led up to this result
fully and clearly given. Whitburn, it is explained, was originally part of
Livingstone parish, but in 1730 it was erected into a parish by itself, and
money was raised all over Scotland for the building of a church and manse
and the maintenance of a minister. The heritors were active in procuring
subscriptions, and the understanding was that the right of election would
belong to the members at large. However, the patron of Livingstone, Sir
William Cunninghame, put in his claim to the patronage of the newly-formed
parish also, and the case was decided in his favour by the House of Lords.
The first minister appointed in this way was the Rev. Alexander Wardrope,
who ranked high among the evangelical clergy of his day, and lived till
1759. But the people were now making acquaintance with patronage on the
shady side, and, believing that they were rightly entitled to exemption from
its yoke, they passed almost in a body into the ranks of dissent. The com
piler of the narrative in the Statistical History testified a generation after
wards that not many of even the most sensible among the parishioners could
talk about patronage with any degree of patience. He also stated that only
about one-third of the inhabitants were connected with the Established
Church, and that of the other two-thirds a great part were Burghers.
The " new Seceders " at Whitburn being recognised as a congregation
the " old Seceders " in and about that locality lost no time in attempting
to make common cause with their brethren. Before the month was ended
they petitioned the Presbytery to be disjoined from Bathgate, which was
vacant at the time, and was six miles distant from Longridge, where the new
place of worship was to be. The advice of the Synod was that Bathgate
and Whitburn should have one ordained to preach to them by turns till each
should be able "to maintain a minister for themselves." But the people of
Bathgate got wishful to have the way cleared for a moderation, and in
June 1775 they declared to the Presbytery that they were ready to go
•on without any dependence on the " old Seceders " at Whitburn. They
would even submit to have " said persons" disjoined, provided they paid up
'their arrears of seat-rent. To this condition the "old Seceders" objected,
but matters were now in course of righting themselves. On 24th August
1775 Mr John Jamieson was called to Bathgate, and on the 3ist he was
called to Whitburn. The Presbytery had previously decreed that none of
the "old Seceders " should subscribe the Whitburn call till accounts were
squared with Bathgate congregation, but now commissioners from both
parties intimated to the Presbytery, when the calls were brought up, that
these matters were adjusted, and the Presbytery thereupon granted the
73 "old Seceders" the disjunction asked. What remained between the two
•congregations now was the question which of them should obtain the ser
vices of the preacher they had agreed in calling. The decision was handed
PRESBYTERY OF EDINBURGH 607
over to the Synod, and, willing, perhaps, to give the advantage to the con
gregation which the recent disjunction had weakened, they appointed Mr
Jamieson to Bathgate. But with Whitburn all was by-and-by to come right.
First Minister. — JOHN BROWN, eldest son of the Rev. John Brown of
Haddington. Mr Brown got licence from Edinburgh Presbytery on 2ist
May 1776, and on 28th August he was called to Whitburn. Ordained, 22nd
May 1777, the young minister's father concluding the public work of the day
with a sermon, the third preached on the occasion, in addition to the ordina
tion addresses. Nearly nine months had elaped since the call came out, but
this was owing to Mr Brown having been sent to supply Wells Street, London,
for six months. Old Mr Brown, as a member of Presbytery, had looked with
disfavour on the new erection at Longridge, fearing that it would injure
Bathgate, which had no strength to spare, but he came to see and acknow
ledge that he had been on the wrong side. Whitburn prospered from first
to last under Mr Brown's ministry, and became a centre of gospel light to
all around. Though not distinguished for pulpit oratory like his brother in
Inverkeithing Mr Brown kept fast by the great truths of salvation, and the
power of his preaching was enforced by the saintliness of his daily walk.
Few congregations have been privileged with such a beginning.
The stipend at first was only ,£60, but it rose to ^65, then to ^70, then to
^80, and ultimately to ,£100, besides a manse arid glebe, with taxes paid.
In 1830, when a colleague was required, each minister was to have ^80, and
at Mr Brown's death the surviving pastor was to receive ,£140, with the
other additions just named. The preacher they first called was Mr Thomas
Girdwood, the call being signed by 274 members. But other calls followed
from Penicuik and Lasswade, and at a meeting of Presbytery on 22nd
February 1831 Dr Brown of Broughton Place was authorised by Mr Gird-
wood to say that he preferred either of these calls to that from Whitburn,
and he wished the people there to proceed no further. Acting on this
advice, they craved liberty to withdraw their call, and Mr Girdwood was
appointed to Penicuik.
Second Minister. — WILLIAM MILLER, from Stonehouse. Had calls also
to Gretna and West Linton, but the former was allowed to drop, and no
commissioner appearing from West Linton when the cause came up the
Synod appointed him to Whitburn. Ordained, I5th November 1831.
Within three months Mr Miller became sole pastor through Mr Brown's
death on loth February 1832, in the seventy-eighth year of his age and fifty-
fifth of his ministry. One of Mr Brown's earliest publications, which were
numerous, was " Memoirs of the Life and Character of the late Rev. James
Hervey," author of " Meditations among the Tombs," and also of "Theron
and Aspasio." This was followed by " Memoirs of Nonconformist Ministers
of the Seventeenth Century," and other books bearing closely on evangelical
religion, the best known among them being " Gospel Truth," a valuable
forthsetting of the Marrow doctrine, with biographical notices and particulars
bearing on that important controversy. Mr Brown by his second marriage
was a son-in-law'of the Rev. William Fletcher, Bridge of Teith, and brother-
in-law of the celebrated Dr Alexander Fletcher, Finsbury Chapel, London.
Of his two sons, who became ministers, mention has been already made of
Dr Brown of Broughton Place. The other was the Rev. George Brown of
North Berwick. Of his daughters, one was married to the Rev. Dr Smith,
Biggar, and another to her cousin, the Rev. Dr John Croumbie Brown, while
a third was the mother of Dr John Brown Johnstone and Professor Robert
Johnstone, D.D. A fourth was married to James Waddel, Esq., Crofthead,
a family whose name has been long linked with that of Longridge congrega
tion, and there Mr Brown's widow, Agnes Fletcher, died, 2gth October 1843.
6o8 HISTORY OF U.P. CONGREGATIONS
In 1841 the present church, with 800 sittings, was built at a cost of
^1800. In March 1852 Mr Miller, who had long been in broken health and
unfit for ministerial work, gave in the demission of his charge, which was
accepted on 6th April. After two years he was inducted into Mitchell
Church, Glasgow (now Sandyford). During this vacancy the congregation
called Mr John More, who accepted Alloa (West), and then Mr John
M'Laren, who had devoted himself to mission work in the Cowcaddens,
Glasgow.
Third Minister. — JAMES RONALDSON, from Pathstruie. Ordained, 1 5th
August 1854. The stipend at first was ^150, which was afterwards raised to
^180, besides the manse. Mr Ronaldson's demission of his charge was
accepted, 5th October 1886, on account of failing health, and with the view
of proceeding to New Zealand. In parting with him his co-presbyters ex
pressed their warm appreciation of his devoted labours at Longridge during
thirty-two years. Mr Ronaldson was living at Honorata, Presbytery of
Christchurch, a retired minister, at the time of the Union.
Fourth Minister. — JOHN GIBSON, M.A., son of the Rev. Robert M.
Gibson, Partick (East). Ordained, 27th July 1887. At the close of 1899
there was a membership of 278, and the stipend was .£200, with the manse.
QUEENSFERRY (BURGHER)
ON 1 3th November 1775 "a body of people" about Ualmeny petitioned the
Burgher Presbytery of Edinburgh for some diets of sermon. In the early
records of the congregation it is stated that the applicants were from four
parishes — Kirkliston, Dalmeny, Queensferry, and Abercorn. Mr William
Robertson, afterwards Dr Robertson, had been ordained at Dalmeny on
26th October of that year — a man of literary accomplishments, as is shown
by his "Life of Queen Mary" and other writings — but he belonged to the
Moderate school, and numbered among his special friends Carlyle of
Inveresk and Logan of Leith. Instead of making resistance in the Church
courts to the unacceptable presentee a number of the parishioners, along
with others like-minded, met at Echland, and resolved to seek relief by the
above application to the more liberal section of the Seceders. In response
to this the ministers of Edinburgh and Linlithgow were appointed to con
verse with them on the 23rd of that month. Then a house was taken in
Queensferry for a year, dating from Martinmas 1775, ar>d fitted up for public
worship. Appearing to succeed, the people, at a meeting held on I5th
February 1776, agreed to the building of a church, which was opened on
1 2th September thereafter, at a cost of about ,£190, including fifteen guineas
paid for the ground. On loth June there had been an accession given in
from some 80 persons in and about that village, and such as were found
qualified were to be admitted to sealing ordinances. There was also to be
an election of elders, and it was declared that none connected with other
congregations were to take part unless they had got their disjunctions, a
limitation which implies that there were some old Seceders in the district
who would be sure by-and-by to come in and strengthen the new cause.
This takes us back to the Rev. James Kid of Queensferry, who figured
in the Marrow Controversy, and whom Boston has described as "a man of
singular boldness." On the Sabbath after the Four Brethren were loosed from
their charges Ebenezer and Ralph Erskine assisted at Queensferry com
munion, a circumstance which was sufficient to stir interest in the Secession
movement among the people there from the very first. In the neighbouring
parish of Kirkliston the Burgher Presbytery of Edinburgh began a preaching
PRESBYTERY OF EDINBURGH 609
station in 1749 owing to an intrusion on gth August of that year. Preach
ing was kept up there in an irregular way for about two years, and was then
superseded by regular supply at Torphichen, where a large part of the
parishioners had seceded. It will thus be seen that in and around Queens-
ferry the Secession cause obtained footing a generation before the settlement
of Dr Robertson at Dalmeny. But as the nearest churches were Linlithgow
and Bathgate, neither of them less than eight or nine miles away, the new
opening at Queensferry must have been acceptable to the Burgher families
in the locality.
On Thursday, igth December 1776, the congregation met for the election
of a minister, when Mr John Kyle was chosen, for whom the Presbytery
that same day sustained a call from Wooler. Elders were ordained about
this time — five in number if those elected all came forward — William Story
and James Gillespie being the most prominent among them. The first call
was unsuccessful, the Synod preferring Kinross to either Queensferry or
Wooler. As Mr Kyle was known to be refusing submission to this decision,
on the ground of disaffection towards him in Kinross congregation, Queens-
ferry people felt emboldened to call him again, but the Synod having given
orders anew for his settlement at Kinross the Presbytery set the call aside.
After some delay the congregation of Queensferry now turned their thoughts
to Mr Andrew Dick of Torphichen, who moderated at last election, and had
little to detain him at Torphichen, where he had been labouring for a dozen
years. With him in view they applied, but not with entire harmony, for a
moderation, which after some hesitancy was granted. The call, subscribed
by 122 persons, was referred to the Synod in September 1778, but the
decision was, Continue. Within two months there was the gathering up
for a renewed attempt, and also a gathering up of antagonism, certain parties
craving delay " till the congregation have the opportunity of hearing some
of the young men about to be licensed." The moderation was granted, but
there was first to be a day of fasting and humiliation observed, " to plead
that the Lord would make them see eye to eye in this important matter."
In the face of a remonstrance the second call to Mr Dick was sustained,
but a protest was taken by two members of Presbytery, as well as by one of
the opposition party, and the case was carried to the Synod in May 1779.
The Synod sustained the protest, and recommended the Presbytery "to
check to the utmost that spirit of opposition which has appeared in the con
gregation of Queensferry." These were unfortunate experiences for the
immature cause, and may explain why one of the three managers first
chosen broke away from all connection. In a very few weeks a moderation
was again applied for. When the question was put, Grant or Delay? the
Presbytery was equally divided, and the Moderator declined to give his
casting vote. It was then decided to hold an interim meeting at East Calder
a fortnight after, where it was hoped the members best acquainted with
Queensferry would be present. There it carried to allow procedure to go
on, and when a third call to Mr Dick came up it was handed over to the
Synod. A paper signed by 1 1 opposers had been previously given in, but
no further appearance was made on their behalf. In the Synod it carried
without a contradictory voice to transport.
First Minister. — ANDREW DICK. Inducted, 23rd September 1779. The
stipend was ^60 in all. His ministry at Queensferry was brief, scarcely
exceeding six years. His death was reported to the Presbytery on 8th
November 1785, and the parish register shows that he was buried on the
nth.
Second Minister. — DAVID CARRUTHERS, from Moffat, but as there was
no Secession church there at that time Ecclefechan was his native congrega-
2Q
6io HISTORY OF U.P. CONGREGATIONS
tion. Ordained, 24th August 1786. The provision was to be the same as
before, but it appears from the congregational records that a manse was built
in 1789. After labouring for forty-six years in Queensferry Mr Carruthers
obtained his son for his colleague, much to the satisfaction of all parties. An
attack of fever when he was verging on threescore and ten had shattered his
declining strength and made regular assistance indispensable.
Third Minister. — WILLIAM CARRUTHERS. Called also to Sunderland
(Smyrna Chapel), but as Queensferry showed 148 signatures and the other
only 79, and as father and son were both heard in support of family claims
the wonder is that a show of hands was needed. Ordained, 2jrd October
1832. The stipend was only to be ^70 at first, but there is nothing said as
to any reduction of the father's income, and the home of his youth would
suffice for the young minister. The senior colleague continued after this to
preach almost regularly, but he had to lay down the burden of pastoral work.
He died, 3rd January 1834, in the seventy-fifth year of his age and forty-eighth
of his ministry. The Rev. George Hill of Musselburgh, who was brought up
under his ministry, wrote of Mr Carruthers after his death : " I shall never
forget the heavenly pathos which marked his discourses." Mr William
Carruthers, like his father, had a quiet and useful ministry, but he came far
short of the years of his father. He died, 23rd June 1854, in the fifty-second
year of his age and twenty-second of his ministry. His brother, the Rev.
Peter Carruthers, was ordained at Longtown, Cumberland, 23rd August 1837,
and died, nth June 1894, aged eighty-seven.
Towards the end of 1854 the congregation called Mr Alexander
Hamilton, but Kilmarnock (Portland Road) came in soon after, and was
preferred.
Fourth Minister. — DAVID WILLIAMSON, from Lothian Road, Edinburgh.
Called previously to Johnshaven, Swalwell, and Newcastle (Zion Chapel).
Ordained at Queensferry, 25th September 1855. The callers were 171, and
the stipend was ,£120, with the manse. " Died at sea, between Sierra Leone
and Bathurst, when returning from a visit to Old Calabar in the service of
the Church, 3oth January 1882. His body was committed to the deep."
Such is the simple inscription on the stone erected to his memory in Grange
Cemetery, Edinburgh. He was in the fifty-third year of his age and twenty-
seventh of his ministry. The Presbytery at its first meeting recorded its
sense of the eminent services Mr Williamson had rendered to the cause of
missions, and also its sympathy with Queensferry congregation, and with
Mr Williamson's aged father in the loss of his only son.
Fifth Minister. — SAMUEL HECTOR FERGUSON, originally from the
Western Isles. Ordained, 28th November 1882. The stipend was the
same as it had been for a course of years — ^200, with a manse. There
was a great stir at Queensferry during the erection of the Forth Bridge,
and the membership rose in 1887 to 344, but after quietness • returned it
declined. Believing, perhaps, that the place did not afford full scope
for the gift that was in him Mr Ferguson resolved on emigrating to
Australia, and was loosed from his charge, 3rd September 1889. Some
time after reaching his destination he was inducted to Chalmers Church,
the foremost Presbyterian congregation in Melbourne. However, in 1893
it was vacant again, and next year Mr Ferguson appears as minister of North-
cote, in the same Presbytery. There he remained for a number of years,
but in the Synod records for 1900 his deposition is entered. Inquiry into
the circumstances has brought out that he had contracted affinity with
Swedenborgianism, and when dealt with proved contumacious, with the
above result. Our information bears further that he next started a cause
of his own in the neighbourhood of his former church, and drew a number
PRESBYTERY OF EDINBURGH 611
of his people after him. But the game was soon played out, and he has since
returned to this country.
Sixth Minister. — JOHN E. KEIR, M.A., from Dunbar (West). Ordained,
20th February 1890. The stipend was to be ,£180, and the communion roll
had no\v been brought down to a little over 200. In 1889 the erection of a
new manse was carried through, which explains how the special income for
that year amounted to ^820. On 2oth February 1894 the present church,
seated for 350, was opened by the Rev. Thomas Kennedy, D.D., Moderator
of Synod. It cost ^1800, but through the liberality of the people and their
friends, aided by a legacy from a late member and a sum of ^430 from the
sale of the old property, they had the satisfaction of entering the new-
building free of debt. The membership at the close of 1899 was 187, and
the stipend was ^184, with the manse.
EAST CALDER (BURGHER)
Bv the formation of the Antiburgher church at Mid-Calder in 1761 most of
the Seceders in that countryside would be absorbed. As for the Burgher
families, they had no church of their own for other fourteen years nearer
than West Linton, eleven miles to the south, and Edinburgh eleven miles to
the east. It is a mistake, however, to say that these were the parties who
originated the Burgher church at East Calder, though they came in soon
after to help the movement on, and may have encouraged it from the beginning.
The real beginning must be ascribed to a new exodus from the Establish
ment. The minutes of the Burgher Presbytery of Edinburgh bear that on
i3th November 1775 a body of people about East Calder petitioned for some
diets of sermon "and for a conference in order to their instruction in the
principles and grounds of the Secession." Then the two nearest ministers
were appointed to converse with them on the 3oth, and one of the two was
to preach on the occasion. This we may look on as equivalent to the erecting
of them into a congregation. On 24th December 1776 it was reported that
eight of their number had been chosen for elders, but the Presbytery found
that two of these belonged to West Linton church, and the election in their
case could not be sustained. At the same meeting the session of Linton
referred to the Presbytery a petition from 14 members to be disjoined "in
order to unite with East Calder, which is much more convenient." Two of
the petitioners, who gave evidence that they had honourably cleared all
public burdens, obtained disjunctions at once, and it would be similar with
the others when the same conditions were fulfilled. Their accession would
be a gain to East Calder in stability more than in numbers, and we may
take it for certain that others to the east would be disjoined from Bristo
Church, Edinburgh. On I3th May 1777 a session was constituted by the
ordination of two elders and the induction of one who had held office before.
Arrangements were at the same time made for the election of other six, one
for each district, but of these only four accepted.
First Minister. — JOHN PRIMROSE, from Dunfermline (Queen Anne
Street). According to Mr Whyte of Moyness, who was a nephew of Mr
Primrose, the family came originally from Alloa, but were now residing
about Crossgates. Ordained, 4th June 1778. Mr Primrose had given in
most of his trials for ordination as first minister at Newtown St Boswells, and
when the call from East Calder came out there was hesitancy about sus
taining it, but on the people representing their condition with respect to the
hearing of the gospel the Presbytery yielded, and on the vote being taken
East Calder was preferred. When the first place of worship was built does
not appear, but it was before they had a minister, for at the first ordination
612 HISTORY OF U.P. CONGREGATIONS
it is entered that the Presbytery met in the session-house. This church was
superseded in 1805 by another with 500 sittings. From 1786 till 1811 the
occupant of the parish pulpit at Kirknewton, two miles off, was William
Cameron, a man whose poetic taste and tuneful ear were of extensive service
in revising and improving the old paraphrases. Two of his own "Transla
tions" appear in the collection of 1781 as we have it — "While others crowd
the house of mirth " and " Rulers of Sodom ! hear the voice " — compositions
which have little fitness for the praises of the sanctuary. In the Old
Statistical History of Kirknewton we have Mr Cameron's attitude of mind
towards the Seceders in his parish and neighbourhood. He speaks of "the
heavy burden on poor people supporting superstition and fanaticism," and
declared that these evils were maintained " with a violence and flaming zeal
proportioned to the ignorance of their deluded followers." It was cultured
Moderatism in conflict with the gospel of salvation. But Mr Cameron could
state that the Seceders had not gained seven proselytes from the parish
church during the seven years of his incumbency. None the less, East
Calder congregation prospered under Mr Primrose, and in 1809 the member
ship was close upon 300. The stipend about this time was ,£80, with the
manse, and ^5 for sacramental expenses. There must have been a con
siderable amount of debt on the property, as this sum leaves ^40 of yearly
income not accounted for. In the early part of 1825 Mr Primrose resigned
owing to growing infirmities, and after some delay was loosed from his charge
on 8th June, the congregation agreeing to pay him a retiring allowance of
£70 a year. He died at Mayfield, Edinburgh, on 14th April 1829, in the
eighty-fourth year of his age and fifty-first of his ministry.
Second Minister. — ALEXANDER LOWRIE, from North Leith. Ordained,
20th July 1826. At the moderation Dr John Taylor, afterwards of Auchter-
muchty, had a considerable following, and the call was signed by only 157
members, exactly half the entire number. Defeated at the election several
of the minority from the east side set about the formation of a church at
Balerno, a measure which had warm opposition from Slateford. But East
Calder session took the matter calmly. They were not at one as to the
probable effects, and they left the application for sermon to the judgment of
the Presbytery. Meanwhile, their expenditure was about ,£196 a year, and
the income would require not to be less so long as Mr Primrose lived..
Three years after this the aged minister died, but Mr Lowrie continued to-
receive only the £100 originally promised, with ^12 for sacramental ex
penses, and there was also the house, garden, and land, valued in all at ,£30.
On 4th February 1862 Mr Lowrie was loosed from his charge owing to the
state of his health. A year before this he had tendered his demission under
medical advice, but at a meeting of the congregation a unanimous wish was
expressed that he should remain in East Calder, occupy the manse, enjoy a
small portion of his former salary, and perform any of the ministerial duties
for which he felt himself competent, the burden of the work devolving upon
a young colleague. But, in consequence of some murmurings about the
manse being retained, Mr Lowrie decided to leave altogether and have the
pastoral tie formally dissolved. Though the congregation by a very large
majority adhered to their former arrangement, naming ^20 as the retiring
allowance annually, he felt constrained by regard for his health to renew the
request that his resignation be accepted, which the Presbytery, largely
influenced by medical certificates, reluctantly agreed to. Mr Lowrie now
removed to Edinburgh, where he died, 2oth October 1875, in the seventy-fifth
year of his age. After retiring from the ministry and coming to Edinburgh
he was elected to the eldership in Dean Street Church, which office he
retained till his death.
PRESBYTERY OF EDINBURGH 613
In August 1862 the congregation called Mr R. D. Brownlee, who accepted
Bethelfield, Kirkcaldy. Then in November they called Mr John A. Murray,
but he was soon afterwards invited to Burntisland, which he preferred.
Third Minister. — DAVID MARSHALL, M.A., son of the Rev. David
Marshall, Lochee. Ordained, 22nd July 1863. The stipend was to be ,£120,
with the manse, and it was afterwards raised to ^160, Mr Marshall declining
.all along to draw from the Augmentation Fund. In 1870 the old manse,
which had served its day, was replaced by another at an expense of fully
^1000, of which more than £,700 was raised by the people, and ^300 came
from the central fund. On Sabbath, i6th May 1886, the new church, built
at a cost of ^2200, was opened free of debt ; sittings 350. In 1881 Mr
Marshall, along with the Rev. David Williamson of Queensferry, was sent
as a deputy to Old Calabar by the Mission Board on delicate and difficult
work. Mr Williamson died on the way home, and Mr Marshall returned
with the seeds of an ailment in his system, which gradually developed, and
impaired his energies. Still, he laboured on till April 1898, when he felt
compelled to lay the burden down, and on the 26th of that month he was
enrolled minister-emeritus of East Calder. Like his predecessor he then
removed to Edinburgh, leaving the manse and pastorate to another.
Fourth Minister. — WILLIAM CHERRY, from Paisley (Thread Street).
Ordained, 8th September 1898. The membership at the close of 1899 was
about 150, and the congregation, in addition to Mr Marshall's retiring
allowance of ^30, pay ,£120 of the stipend.
SLATEFORD (BURGHER)
A VIVID account of this congregation's origin was given in to the Secession
Presbytery of Edinburgh in 1826 by Slateford minister and session. They
ascribed the movement partly to an intrusion into the parish church of
Colinton. The minister was Dr Walker, who occupied the Chair of Natural
History in Edinburgh University. For twenty-five years he had in addition
been minister at Moffat, though making Edinburgh his headquarters, and
now, as a matter of convenience for himself, he was presented to Colinton,
and in the face of much hostility he was inducted on I3th February 1783.
About the same time the parish minister of Corstorphine gave offence to
some of his people by thrusting the use of the Paraphrases upon them in
public worship. The result was that on 5th September 1782 the Burgher
Presbytery of Edinburgh received a petition from about Corstorphine for
supply of sermon, but the reason they assigned went deeper than the
grievance just mentioned. What they complained of was "their want of
the due admanistration of the gospel in that quarter." The petition was
granted, and services were opened on the fourth Sabbath of that month.
In January 1783 Colinton takes the place of Corstorphine, and then Slateford,
in the latter parish, becomes the name by which the congregation was to be
known. The village was about two and a half miles south-west of Edin
burgh, and there the church which they still occupy was built, with sittings
for 520.
According to the above report the standard of the Secession was flocked
to by the surrounding population, and it was hoped that the infant congrega
tion would at no distant date become one of the strongest in the connection,
but when a subscription was set on foot to build a church and manse the
audience began to diminish, and it fell off still more when the seats came
to be let and paid for. Still, there was a good nucleus, there having been
about 40 Seceders in the district previously, one part belonging to Bristo
6i4 HISTORY OF U.P. CONGREGATIONS
congregation, and the other to East Calder. In July 1783 a congregation of
94 members was organised, and having among them two elders from Bristo
Church a session was constituted at Slateford by their former minister, the
Rev. James Peddie. Some opposition came from East Calder, eight or nine
miles to the west, harm being apprehended" from the new erection, but this
barrier did not prove formidable.
First Minister.— JOHN DlCK, M.A., son of the Rev. Alexander Dick,
Aberdeen (Nether Kirkgate). Other calls from Scone and Musselburgh
came also before the Synod in 1786, but Slateford carried by a great
majority, Mr Dick's wishes contributing to the result. Ordained, 26th
October 1786. The stipend promised was ,£60, with a house and garden.
The session records bear that though a minister was obtained with whom all
parties were pleased the terms of admission gave offence by their strictness,
and notwithstanding Mr Dick's high endowments and exemplary conduct
the congregation continued small, and the stipend was never more than ;£8o.
It is ascertained, however, from another source that some accessions came
from the Reformed Presbyterian Church at Pentland on the death of their
minister, the Rev. John Thorburn, two years after Mr Dick's ordination.
During the long vacancy which ensued several of his people joined Slateford,
first as hearers, and ultimately as members, finding, we may believe, in Mi-
Dick's discourses, able, doctrinal, and instructive, what was adapted to their
tastes and training. It was fortunate for the young congregation that they
secured one so gifted for their first minister, but after he had been nine years
among them he was invited to Aberdeen (now St Nicholas Church), and the
call was repeated six months later. In both cases the Synod refused to
translate, but a more important position was to be his. In 1801 he was
called to the mother church of the Secession in Glasgow (now Greyfriars),
and on 2O.th April of that year he was loosed by the Synod from Slateford
and appointed to remove to the great city of the west. When in Slate-
ford Mr Dick published his "Essay on Inspiration," a book which may still
be read with profit, though modern theology may consider it antiquated.
He also made a contribution to a vexed question of the day by publishing a
sermon preached at the opening of the Synod in October 1796, and entitled
"Confessions of Faith shown to be necessary." Though the subject is
discussed in a calm and candid spirit strong exception was taken by the
Old Light brethren to some of the author's views and arguments, as appears
from certain fiery pamphlets which followed. Dr William Peddie ranked it
first in point of ability among Dr Dick's minor productions.
Second Minister. — JOHN BELFRAGE, from Milnathort (now Free Church).
Called also to Tarbolton, but the Synod preferred Slateford. Ordained, 2ist
January 1802. The stipend was to be .£80, with manse and garden, and 244
communicants signed the call. In 1812 Mr Belfrage was called to a forming
congregation at Blackburn, Lancashire, but the Synod continued him in
Slateford without a vote. Through his proximity to Edinburgh Mr Belfrage
had opportunity for studying medicine, and in 1815 he took the degree of
M.D. Owing in some measure to his skill as a medical practitioner Dr
Belfrage was drawn into close connection with Robert Pollok, author of
"The Course of Time," and the poet in the early part of his last illness
resided for some time with him in Slateford manse. Dr Belfrage died at
Rothesay, to which he had gone for change, i6th May 1833, in the fifty-
fourth year of his age and thirty-second of his ministry. Dr Cairns in his
Life of Dr John Brown has characterised him as "a man of great but
undeveloped force of character."
Third Minister.— WILLIAM THOMSON, from Paisley. In March 1833
Mr Thomson was called to be colleague to Dr Belfrage, who had been receiv-
PRESBYTERY OF EDINBURGH 615
ing regular assistance for some time, but Musselburgh, which was similarly
situated, came up with a rival call a month later. The Presbytery after
hearing parties preferred Slateford, and against this decision the commis
sioners from Musselburgh appealed to the Synod, which was then sitting.
The tables were now turned, and Mr Thomson was appointed to Mussel-
burgh. With this view his trials were proceeded with, but meanwhile Dr
Belfrage died, and this event altered the whole bearings. Slateford now
applied for a moderation anew, and a call to Mr Thomson was the result,
the signatures of members having risen from 156 to 222, and the stipend
from ^80 in all to ^120, with house and garden. The Presbytery sustained
the call, and referred it to the Synod, Musselburgh people being warned to
appear for their interests. The Synod first decided to waive the considera
tion of the question whether the Presbytery of Edinburgh ought to have
sustained the call in the circumstances. Then, after Mr Thomson had
expressed a decided preference for Slateford, they agreed without a vote to
send him thither. His trials having been already finished for Musselburgh
he was ordained, 3rd October 1833 — that is, in less than three weeks after the
final decision.
Two years after this the communicants amounted to 350, of whom about 200
resided in Colinton parish. The stipend was now ^130, including ^10 for
sacramental expenses, and the seat-rents had risen within that period from
£,99 to ^140. The debt on the property was .£200, and it was explained
that the congregation, though able, had no wish to diminish the amount.
A joint money obligation used to be looked on as a bond of union, but that
feeling was got over, and in 1846 the entire debt, which had grown to .£350,
was cleared off. It was well, for between 1836 and 1850 the membership
declined about 100, and something of this kind was to be looked for. In the
report to the Commissioners on Religious Instruction the ominous statement
occurs that "the largest proportion of the congregation is resident between
two and four miles from the place of worship." In consequence of the Dis
ruption Free churches arose at Corstorphine, Davidson's Mains, and
Juniper Green, and these erections could not but arrest supplies from the
villages on which Slateford congregation was so largely dependent. Still,
at the end of 1858 the membership amounted to 268. That year there was
a large accession, mainly traceable, the minister said, to a steady and
efficacious temperance movement in the district. At this point confusion
came in, and within little more than two years there was a reduction of 38.
Then in May 1861 a case from Slateford which had been troubling the
Presbytery for some time came up to the Synod. Three members of the
congregation had brought an array of charges against the minister, most
of which have a frivolous and vexatious look, at least after the lapse of forty
years. Presbytery and Synod alike condemned the spirit and conduct of
the complainers, and on failing to express contrition for their offence they were
suspended from the fellowship of the Church. However, the prosperity of
former days was to come back no more, and in October 1868 Mr Thomson
requested the Presbytery to relieve him from the pastoral oversight of
Slateford congregation, 'it was fortunate that he was in circumstances
to add that he proposed to resign all claim upon his people for pecuniary
support. On 5th November his request was granted, but he retained " his
relation to the congregation as retired minister and his seat and status as a
member of the Church courts."
Mr Thomson after this resided in Edinburgh. As a member of Presby
tery he was active in the work of Church Extension, and made himself useful
in the general business of the court. He died, i3th October 1875, in the
sixty-sixth year of his age. His musical gifts were also of service to the
616 HISTORY OF U.P. CONGREGATIONS
Church in the revising of the United Presbyterian Hymnal, and in his little
book, entitled " Psalms, Hymns, and Harmonies." His brother, the Rev.
Adam Thomson, devoted himself to mission work in Jamaica, and was
ordained by the Presbytery of Paisley and Greenock, 8th January 1850.
Inducted to Montego Bay, igth June of that year. Was also Theological
Tutor there from 1868 to 1876, when the Hall was removed to Kingston.
Retired, 1892, as minister-emeritus, and died, gth December 1897, in the
seventy-eighth year of his age and forty-eighth of his ministry.
Fourth Minister. — WILLIAM MUNSIE, from Barrack Street, Glasgow
(now Whitevale), where he had been minister for five and a half years.
Inducted, 4th May 1869. The change that had come over Slateford was
betokened by the 69 signatures affixed to the call. This contrasted with the
222 who came forward on a like occasion thirty-six years before. What was
worse, a change of ministry was powerless to arrest the decline which had
gone so far already. Causes of irritation also arose, as often happens where
discouragements abound. In 1879 it was proposed by a neighbouring pro
prietor that the congregation should remove from the village of Slateford
to a site which, along with a donation of ,£500, he was willing to grant
them in the neighbourhood of the Hydropathic, at least half-a-mile away
from the chief centre of population. The people held back at first, but the
acceptance was urged by the Presbytery's Extension Committee. The old
building needed repairs, and it was imagined that the transition would help
to lift them out of all their difficulties and put them into a position for
beginning life anew. But on reflection other counsels prevailed, and the
congregation were forbidden to remove from their present situation, the
Presbytery undertaking to raise a large sum to put the property into good
condition, an engagement which it was not easy to fulfil. These circum
stances brought the affairs of Slateford Church under investigation, and a
committee reported in December 1882 " that as the result of careful inquiries
they found that the congregation was not meeting the requirements of the
district, and they recommended that the Synodical grants should not be
renewed after March next." Feeling that hard measure was dealt out to
them minister and people brought their case before the Synod by petition
and complaint. The case was remitted to a large committee, and though
Professor Calderwood appeared to uphold the judgment of the Presbytery
the committee after hearing parties "unanimously agreed to recommend
the Synod to instruct the Augmentation Committee to continue the grants
to the Slateford congregation." But though an important point was thus
gained Mr Munsie, after going on for other two years, decided to retire, and
his demission was accepted on 7th July 1885. Since then he has resided at
Craigie, near Perth, in an impaired state of health.
Fifth Minister. — GAVIN STRUTHERS MUIR, M.A., translated from
Grange. Inducted, 27th April 1886. Prior to this they called Mr David
Smith, preacher, now of St Ninians. Along with Mr Munsie's withdrawal
there had been a slight loss of numbers, and the whole session, which con
sisted of three members, resigned. At the close of the year the communion
roll stood at 87. Under Mr Muir's ministry, and through the endeavours of
Morningside congregation to meet "the requirements of the district "by
Sabbath school work and otherwise, there was a large forthputting of
evangelistic activity, but the soil was confessedly hard, and progress did
not come up to expectation. On ist November 1898 Mr Muir, who had
long felt unequal to the task of regular ministerial work, was constrained to
demit his charge. He now resides in Edinburgh.
Sixth Minister. — JAMES G. CALDERWOOD, from Oban. Ordained, nth
April 1899. The membership at the end of the year was 83, and the stipend
from the people ^80, with the manse.
PRESBYTERY OF EDINBURGH 617
WEST CALDER (BURGHER)
THIS congregation originated in an unpopular settlement in the parish
church. On 4th March 1794 the Burgher Presbytery of Edinburgh received
a petition for sermon from 20 men within the bounds of West Calder. They
stated their persuasion that the Presbytery was in a state of separation from
the Established Church on just grounds, and after mature deliberation they
saw it to be their duty to apply to be taken under their inspection. It being
found that the three neighbouring sessions— Longridge, Bathgate, and East
Calder— were favourable supply was unanimously granted. On roth May
34 persons petitioned to be erected into a congregation, and Mr Primrose of
East Calder was appointed to converse with them and ripen them for admis
sion to their fellowship. It ended with 56 persons being constituted into a
congregation on i6th June 1794. In the following year a church was built,
at a cost of not less than .£500, with sittings for about 500. After other two
years had passed the people called the Rev. Andrew Lothian of Port-
Glasgow to be their minister, but he was called to Portsburgh, Edinburgh,
almost immediately after, and to that church the Synod appointed him.
The preacher to whose settlement at West Calder objections were made
was Mr John Muckersie, son of the Rev. John Muckersie, Antiburgher
minister at Kinkell, and grandson of William Wilson, one of the four
founders of the Secession. The young man went over to the Established
Church before commencing his theological course, but why he swerved from
family traditions we are left to conjecture. His father, we know, had trouble
in his congregation a little before his death, and this may have been con
strued into ill-usage, and his elder brother, afterwards in Alloa, was rigidly
dealt with by the Presbytery of Perth before being admitted to the Hall.
But, whatever the reason, Mr John Muckersie became a licentiate of the
Established Church, and in due time received a presentation to the parish of
West Calder. He was ordained, gth April 1794, five weeks after the above
application for sermon had been made to the Burgher Presbytery of Edin
burgh. In the Old Statistical History the narrative, drawn up by himself,
bears that 50 or 60 of the parishioners became Dissenters on the admission
of the present incumbent. Mr Muckersie held the benefice for thirty-seven
years, and it deserves to be mentioned that, though separated from the
Church of his fathers, he and Mr Fleming lived on terms of fraternal
.intimacy.
First Minister.— WILLIAM FLEMING, M.A., from Edinburgh (now
Broughton Place). Ordained, 2gth March 1798. The stipend promised
was only ^60, but the stipend of Mr Muckersie at this time was not more
than ^75, with a large glebe in addition. The original nucleus from the
parish church was largely increased by disjunctions from the sister con
gregations of Longridge and East Calder, with probably a few from
Bathgate. The Secession had got footing in West Calder parish at an early
period, and in 1796 it was reported by Mr Muckersie that of his parishioners
149 were Antiburghers and 169 Burghers. Their numbers prior to his own
settlement he ascribed chiefly to strictness of Church discipline ! Under
Mr Fleming there was growing prosperity, though the stipend was never
above ^100, with manse and large garden. In 1838 the communicants
numbered 400, of whom about two-thirds belonged to West Calder parish.
Of the other third, nearly one half were from the parish of Mid-Calder ;
most of the others from Livingstone ; and a few from Whitburn, Carnwath,
and Bathgate. Altogether, some 70 families were two miles from the place
of worship. The debt on the property amounted at this time to nearly .£200.
Mr Fleming died, i8th December 1845, m the sixty-ninth year of his age
6x8 HISTORY OF U.P. CONGREGATIONS
and forty-eighth of his ministry. His son from Inverkeithing was to assist
at Balgedie communion on the preceding Sabbath, and he preached one of
the discourses on the Fast Day. That morning his father was struck down
by paralysis, and on Saturday it was announced that he himself had gone
to West Calder to await the issue. The end came on the following Thurs
day. A volume of his sermons was published after his death, with Memoir
by his co-presbyter, the Rev. David Smith of Biggar. Mr Fleming was
Moderator of Synod in May 1845, when the Atonement Controversy was at
its height, and it was remarked that his mild appearance contrasted with the
stormy elements he had to control. On that occasion Dr Marshall of
Kirkintilloch was sentenced to rebuke from the Chair, which was awkward
for Mr Fleming, as the two were brothers-in-law, their wives being sisters,
but he vacated his place for the time, and devolved the unpleasant task on
his predecessor.
Second Minister— ROBERT M'LAURIN, a son of the Rev. Robert
M'Laurin of Coldingham. Having previously declined Methven he was
ordained at West Calder, 6th August 1846. The moderation was granted
on condition that the stipend be ^100 instead of ^90. The Presbytery
recommended payment of sacramental expenses, which, from their numbers
and circumstances, they were told they were well able to give. On igth
November 1850 Mr M'Laurin's ministry at West Calder came abruptly to an
end. That day the Presbytery had a letter from him intimating his with
drawal from all connection with the Secession Church. His mind had
changed as to the mode of supporting the gospel, and he considered that
there was no reason now for continuing in a state of separation from the
Established Church. The Presbytery found that he had already removed
from West Calder and gone to reside in Aberdeen. A meeting of the
congregation had also been held at the close of public worship on the
preceding Sabbath at his request, and it was agreed, as he directed, to
make no opposition to the acceptance of his demission. The pastoral
relation was accordingly dissolved and Mr M'Laurin's connection with the
denomination declared to be at an end. Next year he was received into
the Established Church by the General Assembly, and was afterwards
inducted into the parish of Sandsting, Shetland. In 1864 he was deposed
by the General Assembly for immorality, and betook himself to a secular
calling. He became stationmaster at Lindean, near Selkirk, and died,
1 7th November 1890, in the seventy-second year of his age.
Third Minister. — JOHN THOMSON, M.A., from Duntocher. Prior to
this Mr James A. Johnstone, afterwards of West Linton, had been called,
but only by a majority of nine over the other candidate. The Presbytery
unanimously set this call aside, assigning as their reasons for so doing that
only 50 members had signed, and there was no elder among them. On the
two intervening Sabbaths only 3 had embraced the opportunity of
appending their names, and of adherents the number was only 6. Mr
Thomson was ordained, 27th April 1852, having declined to lead the forlorn
hope at Bankhill, Berwick. Loosed, I3th July 1858, on accepting a call
to St Paul's, Birkenhead. Mr Thomson was translated to Westmoreland
Road Church, Newcastle, and inducted, 4th September 1872, where he died,
6th July 1894, in the seventieth year of his age and forty-third of his
ministry.
Fourth Minister. — PETER C. DUNCANSON, from Inverkeithing. The
call in this case was unanimous, and there was much to stimulate ardour, as
Mr Duncanson had four calls besides— Paisley (St James Street) ; Alvav
Thornhill, and Dunfermline (Chalmers Street) ; but West Calder was pre
ferred. The stipend was now ,£120 ; and the ordination took place, 22nd
PRESBYTERY OF EDINBURGH 619
June 1859. On 6th September 1864 Mr Duncanson accepted a call to
Hamilton (Auchingramont). The congregation now attempted to bring
back Mr Thomson from Birkenhead, but the signatures did not reveal extra
heartiness though the call was unanimous, and he set the proposal aside.
Fifth Minister. — DAVID SIDEY, who had been eight years in Auchter-
muchty (North). Inducted, 27th December 1865. The stipend was now
,£160, and the membership, though a good way beneath the maximum of
400, was still 350. An additional ,£40 was also promised for five years by
James Young, Esq., of Ruchill, a Glasgow elder who was much interested in
West Calder Church. On 3rd October 1871 Mr Sidey resigned, the state of
his health rendering removal to a more equable climate imperative. With
this view he had accepted a call to Napier, New Zealand, and the congrega
tion having no alternative but to acquiesce the demission was at once
accepted. In 1884 Mr Sidey, who had retired from active duty shortly
before, owing to the state of his health, but remained senior minister of
Napier, was appointed clerk of the General Assembly. To this was after
wards added the treasurership of the Church, and in 1895 he received the
degree of D.D. from the University of Edinburgh.
Sixth Minister. — JAMES FRASER, from Pollokshaws. Like several others
he declined the honour and the hazard of becoming Dr Archer's successor in
Oxendon, London, and was ordained at West Calder, 3Oth April 1872. The
membership was 384, and the stipend .£200. A new church, with sittings
for 750, was opened on Thursday, igth November 1874, by Professor Eadie,,
the cost being ^3000, and the collections that day and the following
Sabbath ^182. The manse was completely renewed about the same time.
The expense was estimated at first at ,£650, but it came up to ^1150, of
which ^250 came from the Board. Mr Eraser accepted a call to Dalkeith
(now Buccleuch Street), 6th March 1877.
Seventh Minister. — JAMES WARDROP, from Craigend, near Perth, where
he had been for sixteen years. A question was raised in the Presbytery as
to the fewness of the signatures, only 99 members having come forward out
of that large congregation, but it was answered that it was similar in
Mr Sidey's case, and his proved a very successful settlement. Indeed, a
shortcoming in names characterised the West Calder calls, except at the
very beginning, none of them having come near the majority which the
Free Church system requires as a condition of being sustained. Mr
Wardrop was inducted, nth April 1878, and two years afterwards the
University of Edinburgh conferred on him the degree of D.D. At the
Synod in May 1892 Dr Wardrop was appointed to the Chair of Systematic
Theology and Apologetics, the feeling of regret with many being that the
professorship was so long in coming. All that remained now was to preach
West Calder vacant.
. Eighth Minister. — THOMAS Low, M.A., translated after being ten years
in Pathstruie, and inducted, 2nd March 1893. The membership at the close
of 1899 was 283, and the stipend ,£260, with the manse.
BALERNO (UNITED SECESSION)
THIS village is four and a half miles south-west of Slateford and five and a
half east of East Calder. There was room for a new congregation without
serious danger to others so far away, but it was the settlement of Mr Lowrie
in East Calder that brought the matter to a point. He was ordained on
2Oth July 1826, and within a week 96 persons in Balerno petitioned the
Presbytery for sermon, which was refused, on the ground that "it would'
620 HISTORY OF U.P. CONGREGATIONS
encroach injuriously on Mid-Calder and East Calder, and particularly on
Slateford," a decision against which Dr Ritchie protested. At next meeting
the case was brought up again by 1 10 persons petitioning to have the former
sentence reviewed, and the Presbytery referred the question of Balerno's
claims to the approaching Synod, but in the interval granted supply. At the
Synod representations were given in from East Calder and Slateford, and
Dr Belfrage spoke two hours and a half. He said, among other things, that
some of East Calder people who were dissatisfied with the call to Mr Lowrie
had resolved on a place of worship at Balerno, but they could not expect to
be joined by more than 150. Besides, East Calder congregation, he argued,
could ill afford to lose any of its members, as they had bound themselves to
raise ^170 a year while the old minister lived. Dr Jamieson of Edinburgh
also intimated that, though he acquiesced in the interim granting of supply,
he had no hope that Balerno would ever be more than a preaching station.
The Synod, however, had before them the fact that the petition was signed by
1 10 persons not in fellowship with the Secession, and they decided in favour
of the applicants, but enjoined the Presbytery of Edinburgh " to watch over
the interests of the contiguous congregations/' As for East Calder, the
calculation of the session was that Balerno would cut off 34 members, which
was no heavy reduction when they had 315 names on the communion roll.
It is probable that Slateford suffered to a larger, and Mid-Calder to a less,
extent than this. Of the two elders who formed the original session one
had held office in East Calder, and the other had come in from some outside
congregation. The first call, signed by 83 members and 39 adherents, was
unsuccessful. Mr John Young, the object of their choice, had calls brought
up to the Synod in September 1828 from Balerno, Haddington (East),
Monkwearmouth, and London (Albion Chapel), of which the last, in keeping
with his own wishes, was preferred.* In the following year the church at
Balerno was finished, with 450 sittings.
First Minister. — ANDREW TOD, from Dalkeith (now Buccleuch Street),
a family name which has been long prominent in that and in Lasswade con
gregation. Called unanimously, igth February, and ordained, i8th August
1829. Died after a painful illness of little more than a week, 3ist December
1846, in the forty-third year of his age and eighteenth of his ministry. A
volume of his sermons was published in 1848, with a Memoir by his friend
and fellow-student, Dr William Peddie. We recall specially how that sketch
brings out a peculiarity in Mr Tod's method of pulpit preparation. Most
ministers are conscious of varying aptitudes for composition, but with Mr Tod
* As Mr Young passes outside our bounds at this point the present may be a fit time
to give the landmarks of his history. He was ordained at Albion Chapel on 3rd March
1829. Under his effective ministry the church, which had been nearly emptied when
Dr Fletcher left, but had regained some of its lost ground by the union with Miles
Lane, gradually became almost like what it had been at its best. But as years passed
the tide began to ebb, both owing to the outflow from the centre of the city and
from the preaching becoming less adapted to a popular audience. Mr Young, who
had the degree of LL.D. conferred upon him by Edinburgh University in 1856, was
now veering away from the theology of his earlier days, and on 22nd November 1849
he intimated his withdrawal from the United Presbyterian Church. He now retired
into private life, and devoted himself to philosophical and theological study. As an
author he became widely known by his publications, such as "The Province of
Reason" and "The Christ of History," but it was in "The Mystery; or, Evil and
God" that his divergence from what is reckoned evangelical truth first became fully
manifest. Other works in a similar line followed, one of them entitled " Universal
Restoration." Dr Young died at Haverstock Hill, London, 24th February 1881,
aged seventy-five, and it is gratifying to know that he was at this time in full com
munion with Oxendon Church.
PRESBYTERY OF EDINBURGH 621
this went beyond example. For weeks the pen had to be laid down, for the
power of sermon-making was at a dead stand. The season of abundance
followed, like the earth bringing forth in handfuls. Advantage was taken of
the full flow, and discourses were thrown off in rapid succession, and much
beyond immediate requirements, like the years of plenty providing for the
years of famine. Hence when death came it was found that Mr Tod had
several discourses ready for Sabbaths which he was never to see. In this
way three of the five sermons in the posthumous volume, though fully written
out, were never delivered.
Second Minister.— WILLIAM DICKSON, son of the Rev. George Dickson
of North Sunderland. The father, like Mr Tod, was from Dalkeith
(Buccleuch Street). He was ordained at North Sunderland, 2oth April 1819,.
and died of cholera after a few hours' illness, gth December 1832, in the
forty-second year of his age and fourteenth of his ministry. His son William
was in his eighth year at this time, and as he grew up he saw his brothers
and sisters one by one "droop and wither in the flower of their youth."
He was ordained at Balerno, 23rd November 1847, but his ministry was not
to be prolonged, as the ailment which had proved fatal to the other three
members of the family early developed itself. After a lingering illness, with
the usual changes of scene and delusive appearances, he died, ist March
1855, in the thirty-first year of his age and eighth of his ministry. A little
volume of sermons, tasteful, thoughtful, and neatly arranged, with Memoir
by the Rev. William Thomson, Slateford, was published some time after
his death.
Third Minister.— WILLIAM SCOTT, from Biggar (North). After declin
ing calls to Newcastle (now St George's), Lilliesleaf, and Bathgate Mr Scott
was ordained, 2ist February 1856. The call was signed by 100 members
and 28 adherents. The new church was opened on Saturday, 2nd December
1884, by Principal Cairns, and on Sabbath special services' were conducted
by Professor Johnstone and Mr Scott, the pastor. At the social meeting
that week it was announced that the total cost amounted to ^1340 and the
money collected to .£1370. The old church, which stands close by, came
after a time to be used as a Roman Catholic place of worship. In August
1900 Mr Scott intimated to his session that, feeling himself unable for the
full discharge of ministerial work, he had very regretfully decided to retire.
The congregation expressed the wish for his continuance among them, with
the assistance of a colleague, but while appreciating their kindness he could
not see his way to alter his purpose. It was finally arranged that they should
pay him a retiring allowance of ^30 a year, and on 2nd October 1900 he was
enrolled as minister-emeritus. The membership in the beginning of the year
was 160, and the stipend from the people ^140, with manse and garden.
BROXBURN (UNITED PRESBYTERIAN)
ON ist July 1879 the Extension Committee reported to the Presbytery that
it had been arranged to set up a preaching station at Broxburn. It was a
place where there had been a great increase of population, and our nearest
minister, the Rev. William Duncan of Mid-Calder, had been conducting
services among them on alternate Sabbath evenings at the request of some
of the residenters. A student was now to carry on evangelistic work therev
and Mr Duncan to go on as before. At next meeting the Home Board '
intimated their approval of what had been done, and to meet initial expenses
they made a grant of .£50. On 4th November the Presbytery agreed to
form 45 petitioners who had certificates of Church membership into a con-
622 HISTORY OF U.P. CONGREGATIONS
gregation, and Mr Marshall of East Calder was to preach at Broxburn on
Sabbath evening and intimate the same.
First Minister. — JAMES PRIMROSE, M.A., from Edinburgh (now View-
forth). Ordained, 27th July 1880. The call was signed by 66 members
and by 21 adherents, and the people were to contribute £100 of stipend;
while the Evangelistic Fund was to add ^30, and there was to be a sup
plement of ^60, besides allowance for house rent. The church, with 310
sittings, and built at a cost of ,£2750, was opened by Dr Andrew Thomson
of Broughton Place, Edinburgh, on 2gth December 1881. The membership
was now 107, a year later it was 170, and the people were raising an addi
tional ,£25 of stipend. There was some delay with the manse, but in 1887
it was reported to the Synod as finished at a cost of ^800, of which the
Board allowed ,£300. On 5th March 1895 ^r Primrose accepted a call to
Cathedral Square, Glasgow, leaving a membership of 341, and it had been
recently intimated that the whole property was free of debt.
Second Minister. — HENRY FERGUSON, from Midmar, where he had been
seven years. Inducted, 5th September 1895. The congregation was self-
supporting, and the stipend has since been ^200, with the manse. The
membership at the close of 1899 was 364.
PRESBYTERY OF ELGIN AND INVERNESS
ELGIN, SOUTH STREET (ANTIBURGHER)
IT is in May 1741 that the Seceders in the county of Moray first appear in
the records of the Associate Presbytery. On their behalf and that of their
brethren in Ross-shire Mr Gib insisted "that one of the young men be sent
to preach among them " with a view to a settlement, but there was nothing
done till i6th June 1742, when two probationers, Messrs Hutton and
Campbell, were sent on a mission to these northern regions. Thus a
beginning was made, and two months afterwards accessions were given in
to the Presbytery from some people in Moray. A year later there is reference
to accessions from the parishes of Urquhart and Spynie, into which un
popular presentees had been intruded. In June 1745 a moderation was
granted to the united congregation of Buchan, Moray, and Ross, the election
to take place at Moray, the principal centre, on the first Tuesday of August.
The arrangement was that the minister, when ordained, should supply
Moray two Sabbaths and then proceed to Buchan for other two. On return
ing he was to remain two Sabbaths at Moray on his way to Ross, where he
was also to preach two Sabbaths. Thus the pendulum was to swing from
side to side, but resting always half the time at the middle point between,
and it was explained that though the minister was to have a temporary
relation to these three places this was to come to an end as soon as there
was a sufficient number of people in any one of them to form a pastoral
charge. It ended in a call to Mr Isaac Paton, a native of the county of
Deny, who acceded to the Associate Presbytery as a divinity student, I5th
July 1743. Having received a call soon after to Templepatrick, in Ireland,
he was ordained there, and became the first Secession minister in the sister
island.*
* Mr 1'aton took the Antiburgher side at the Breach, and died, I2th June 1799,
in the seventy-ninth year of his age and fifty-third of his ministry. He is described
PRESBYTERY OF ELGIN AND INVERNESS 623
First Minister. — ALEXANDER TROUP, of whose antecedents we only
know that he was a student of philosophy at Abernethy in 1743-4. As he
had the Gaelic language it is natural to infer that he came from the north,
the region over which a great part of his ministry was to extend. Ordained,
I4th September 1747, " to the ministry of the north of Scotland." It has
been said that he was located in the county of Moray when a student, and
supplied the parishes of Urquhart and Elgin in particular, but this is incon
sistent with the fixed aversion of the early Seceders to anything like lay
preaching. Mr Troup had both Elgin and Boghole (now Moyness) under
his charge, though Elgin is understood to have obtained the larger share of
his labours. He was also much engaged preaching the gospel throughout
the wide regions round about, and had he not been a man of popular gifts
and much pulpit power he would not have received the promotion which
awaited him. After being fifteen years in that northern outpost he was
called to Perth (North), one of the most important congregations in the
Antiburgher Synod, and though his possession of the Gaelic tongue was a
strong argument against his removal the transportation was agreed to
without protest or appeal. Thus Elgin and Boghole fell vacant in the
beginning of 1763, and at this point they parted company, Boghole being
henceforth to have a minister for itself. Mr Troup's name, it is said, was
long spoken of by the older inhabitants of these places with the utmost
respect and esteem. Urquhart is believed to have been the main seat of the
congregation at first, but in 1754 the place of worship was built in Elgin,
and so completely was Urquhart lost to the Secession that in the end of the
century there was said to be no Dissenter of any Presbyterian denomination
in the whole parish.
During this vacancy the congregation after a blank of five years called
Mr John Gray, but the decision being handed over to the Presbytery by the
Synod a competing call from Brechin (now City Road) was preferred.
They then fixed on a preacher named Robert Young, but his bearing towards
Presbytery and Synod was so unruly that he was stripped of his licence, and
" some members were in doubts whether he was a proper object of discipline."
He passes from our view at this time, and we neither know whence he came
nor whither he went.
Second Minister. — THOMAS DUNCAN, from Kinclaven. Ordained, i8th
July 1770, over the united congregations of Elgin and Forres, places twelve
miles apart. The call was subscribed at Forres by 54 persons, whom we
take to have been male communicants, but the ordination took place at
Elgin. On i8th March 1772 the two places, after having long insisted on a
separation, were disjoined, and though both pressed persistently for Mr
Duncan's entire services he was assigned with unanimity to Elgin. It leads
to the conclusion that such was his own choice and that Elgin was the more
important congregation. It does not seem, however, that the cause ever
acquired decided strength. We find at least that the North Church, Perth,
which deprived them of their first minister, aided them on three occasions
in those days by donations varying from ,£4 to ^10. In the early part of the
century the chances of increase were much lessened by the organising of a
second Antiburgher congregation in Elgin, and though minister and people
withdrew from opposition they felt that a wrong had been done them. In
1807 the second church was built, with sittings for 430, and on 5th July 1818
as "a little, active, sharp-eyed man," and it is stated that Dr Montgomery, the New
Light leader in the Presbyterian Church of Ireland, "often spoke of the lessons he
learnt from him in his little, old parlour, where he sat upwards of fifty years." Mr
Paton married a daughter of the Rev. Andrew Arrot of Dumbarrow.
624 HISTORY OF U.P. CONGREGATIONS
Mr Duncan died, in the seventieth year of his age and forty-eighth of his
ministry.
Third Minister. — ROBERT CRAWFORD, previously of Auchinleck, from
which he had been loosed in anomalous circumstances after a brief ministry.
Inducted as colleague and successor to Mr Duncan, 2nd January 1817.
Towards the close of 1822 minister and people had much to endure through
a charge brought against Mr Crawford, of which the Christian Monitor said
it was not supported by a single circumstance that could give it the slightest
semblance of plausibility. The universal feeling of the place found ex
pression in a subscription, of which the magistrates took the active manage
ment, the result being that Mr Crawford was presented with a piece of plate
as a token of sympathy and regard.
On I7th December 1827 he lost his most intimate friend, a man of weight
in the congregation, after a brief illness.* Next Sabbath he preached a
funeral sermon, and on the following day he took ill, and was never himself
again. He died, 25th March 1828, in the fifty-second year of his age and
seventeenth of his ministry. He was the father of the Rev. D. G. Crawford of
Burntisland. His preaching is described as having been without ornament,
though rich in evangelical sentiment. But progress was difficult, the old
congregation being overshadowed by the more recent formation in Moss
Street.
Fourth Minister. — JOHN PRINGLE, from Tranent, a brother of the Rev.
Dr Pringle of Auchterarder. Ordained, i6th July 1829. Though the call
was signed by only 45 members and 71 adherents the stipend was to be
^100, with sacramental expenses and a manse. From the report of the
Debt Liquidation Committee for 1840 we learn that the membership at that
time was 120 and that with the aid of ^30 from the Board the debt of ,£126
on the property was cleared off. Some years after this Mr Pringle, who had
been gold medallist in the Edinburgh High School, and was known all along
for his linguistic attainments, rendered important service to theology by
his translations of Calvin's Commentaries on ist and 2nd Corinthians, Philip-
pians, Thessalonians, and Colossians. On Sabbath, 2nd April 1864, a new
church, with 500 sittings, was opened by the Rev. Thomas Finlayson of
Edinburgh. The cost was ,£1300, but by their own liberality and the assist
ance of friends the congregation found themselves practically free of debt.
Mr Pringle died, 3oth December 1879, in the seventy-seventh year of his
age and fifty-first of his ministry. His jubilee had been celebrated on
Wednesday, the 3Oth of July previous, when Principal Cairns preached, and
Mr Pringle was presented with 300 guineas, along with befitting addresses
in recognition of his devoted lifework as a minister and also as a long-tried
and consistent advocate of the Temperance cause. Mr Pringle, it may be
added, was married to a daughter of the minister of his youth, the Rev.
Robert Shirreff of Tranent. She died, 3ist January 1896, in her eighty-
seventh year. A month before Mr Pringle's death the Rev. George B. Carr
of Tranent was called to be his colleague, but he did not see his way to
accept. The charge had meantime become vacant.
Fifth Minister. — ROBERT S. SMILLIE, from Berkeley Street, Glasgow.
* This was Mr James Hoy, who was originally from the congregation of Midholm
and the town of Selkirk. Having entered the Antiburgher Hall in 1778 he continued
there four Sessions, and then became secretary to the Duke of Gordon. In 1784 he
delivered with approval part of his trial exercises for licence, but instead of going
forward to the ministry he settled down in the situation he already held, and re
mained in it forty-six years. He is described as having been specially eminent in
astronomy, botany, and natural history. He was buried beside his old minister, Mr
Duncan, and Mr Crawford soon followed.
PRESBYTERY OF ELGIN AND INVERNESS 625
Ordained, o.th June 1880. Three years after this the membership was 126,
and the stipend from the people ,£130, but no manse. About this time
irritation arose over a proposal to change the afternoon service to the even
ing. At a meeting of the congregation this was carried, but the session
refused their sanction, and the minister's protest against this decision was
unanimously sustained by the Presbytery. Owing to this and other things
six elders and 32 members withdrew during the two following years, and in
the end of 1887 the communion roll was reduced to 74. In November of
that year Dr Lind of the other church expressed a wish for a colleague, and
the Presbytery took the opportunity of pressing the question of union. Be
lieving that the bringing forward of this proposal would do harm to South
Street Church Mr Smillie carried the whole case to the Synod by appeal in
May 1888. A commission with full powers having met at Elgin on the
25th of that month Mr Smillie demitted his charge, and was loosed that
evening, " wishing away from distracting troubles and divisions." The con
gregation were to give him ^300 in money borrowed on the property. His
name was put at once on the probationer list, and in 1892 he was inducted
to Wester Pardovan, where his course has been marked by seeming comfort
and success.
Sixth Minister. — J. W. SHANNON, M.A., from Carluke. The congrega
tion, though much beneath what it used to be, was bent on going on as
before, and for a short time they had Mr G. A. Johnston Ross, M.A. (now of
Westbourne Grove, London), located among them. Mr Shannon succeeded,
and was ordained, nth June 1889, the call being signed by 64 members out
of 70, and 39 adherents. The stipend from the people was to be ,£90, with
sacramental and travelling expenses, but there had been no manse for the
minister for many years, and of the sum named nearly one-half was de
rived from church property. In the beginning of 1891 the congregation
added £40 to their part of the stipend, and on i5th December following
Mr Shannon was loosed from Elgin on accepting a call to Wilton, Hawick.
The membership was now 140.
Seventh Minister. — WILLIAM ADAM, M.A., from Dunbeth, Coatbridge.
Ordained, gth June 1892. The stipend was to be ,£130 as before, with
Synod as well as sacramental expenses. Towards the end of 1894 the
congregation found it needful to reduce the stipend from ^130 to ^100.
The ,£40 added three years before had been contributed by a liberal and
wealthy member, who was now removed by death. The Home Board pro
posed to refer the request for additional supplement to the Synod, intending,
apparently, to have the question of union stirred anew, but the Presbytery
objected with weighty reasons, and a special grant of ^30 was obtained for
the current year, and never withdrawn. But in 1898 the two congregations
in Elgin resolved to unite, and to facilitate negotiations Mr Adam demitted
his charge. The congregation testified to his ability and faithfulness and to
the good work he had done among them ; but, with the consummation of the
union in view, they acquiesced, and the resignation was accepted on
19th April 1898. Within five months Mr Adam was inducted to St Rollox,
Glasgow. The history of South Street Church now merges in that of the
United congregation.
ELGIN, MOSS STREET (ANTIBURGHER)
IN tracing this congregation's origin we begin with a quotation from the
Journal of the Haldanes when on their evangelistic tour through the north
of Scotland in 1797. "A very unpopular minister being settled at Elgin the
2 R
626 HISTORY OF U.P. CONGREGATIONS
other minister applied to the magistrates for the use of an empty church to
preach in during the half of the day when he was at liberty. This was
granted. The people afterwards called a preacher ; one after another suc
ceeded, and in this way the gospel still continues to be preached in Elgin.
Neither baptism, however, nor the Lord's Supper is allowed to be dispensed
in that chapel." We link this with a notice in the Courantior 27th December
1775, twenty-two years before, which runs thus: — "The magistrates and
council of Elgin have granted the town chapel to the kirk session, to be
employed as a Chapel of Ease, and that affair is settled to the satisfaction of
all concerned, public worship being now performed there by Mr Mitchell.''
This Mr Mitchell was ordained, subsequently, as assistant to the minister of
the first charge, and the chapel pulpit was occupied in 1798 by Mr Ronald
Bayne, who continued till 1800. We now draw on the Old Statistical History
of 1793 for additional particulars. We read there of a separate meeting-house
in Elgin, " consisting partly of persons belonging to this parish, but princi
pally from the neighbouring ones. They contribute ,£40 a year to the main
tenance of their clergyman." Another authority describes this place of
worship as on a similar footing with Lady Glenorchy's Chapel in Edinburgh.
Such was the state of matters in Elgin till the last year of the century.
We now find from the Fasti that in May 1798 it was proposed to erect
a new chapel of much larger dimensions and that the Presbytery were asked
to recognise this building as a place of worship in connection with the
Establishment, but after a year's delay they pronounced the proposal
uncalled for. The case came before the General Assembly in April 1800 by
petition from the provost of the town and other managers of the Chapel of
Ease in Elgin, but the judgment of the Presbytery was affirmed, and an
interdict prohibiting all ministers and elders from officiating within these
walls was made permanent. The choice now lay between closing the
stately building and applying for sermon to another denomination. At this
point an Independent preacher, Mr William Ballantine, appeared on the
field, and was chosen to be minister of this " Free Presbyterian congrega
tion," but after going on for three years he found himself at variance with
the leaders of the congregation, who were bent on keeping by Presbyterian
usages. The result was that, along with a few who adhered to him, he
formed a Congregational church in Elgin in 1804, but in 1807 he adopted
Baptist views, and left for America. The great body of the people kept
together, and on 5th April 1803 they obtained sermon from the Antiburgher
Presbytery of Elgin, the application being made, they explained, "with a
good deal of unanimity." In December following they asked for a modera
tion, but it was found that this was premature, as few of the petitioners had
acceded to the Testimony, and they had no elders as yet. In May 1804 a
member of Presbytery spent two days in Elgin, and conversed with 21
persons "who wished admission to sealing ordinances in the way of the
Secession." There was uphill work at the entrance gate, some of the
applicants not being clear as to the duty of covenanting or of abstaining
from occasional hearing. Had the congregation betaken itself to the
Burghers there would have been smoother sailing, but they had no footing
nearer than Aberdeenshire.
As it was, another difficulty cropped up. There was an old Antiburgher
congregation in Elgin, not very strong, and the Presbytery felt that it would
be best if the two would unite. In July they had a conference with the
parties, and the question was started whether it accorded with Presby-
terianism to erect one congregation in the heart of another, but commis
sioners from the new congregation stated that they were resolved to keep by
themselves. In these circumstances Mr Duncan, the minister of the other
PRESBYTERY OF ELGIN AND INVERNESS 627
church, stated that neither he nor his people were disposed to insist on
union, and though he could not positively concur in the erection he was no
way inclined to oppose it. The names of parties conversed with on two
former occasions were then read over one by one, and those whose moral
character was attested were marked as in membership. A fortnight after
wards the Presbytery were asked to appoint one of their number to ordain
to the office of the eldership certain persons who had been chosen by their
Praying Societies, and whose names had been read out from the pulpit on
the Lord's Day and no objection offered. Four ministers were thereupon
appointed to meet at Elgin, examine the candidates, and if satisfied proceed
at once with the ordination, when, in addition to the special work, there was
to be a sermon both before and after. In October 1804 a moderation was
applied for, but in a way which implied imperfect acquaintance with rules
and forms. The petition was from the elders and managers only, and
nothing could be done till they convened a meeting of the congregation.
This and a similar informality later on stayed procedure for a time.
First Minister. — SIMON SOMMERVILLE, who had been loosed from Barry
(now Carnoustie) six months before. We know from Dr Heugh's Life the
disappointment he felt when the issue of the call reached him four days
afterwards. He noted in his Journal the attachment he felt to Elgin from
the general happiness he enjoyed there and from the correspondence be
tween his feelings and those of the people. He had officiated among them
for nearly three months, and the general anticipation was that he would
become the object of their choice. At the first moderation "a few" voted
for Mr Heugh and "several" for Mr Sommerville, and, as the bulk of the
congregation did not manifest much attachment to either, delay was pro
posed and agreed to. Next time Mr Stark of Forres, the presiding minister,
was the first nominated, but he refused to put himself on the leet. Mr Som
merville seems to have been the only other candidate named, and he was
inducted, i7th April 1805, being then a minister of thirteen years' standing.
" The congregation was at that time very small in point of numbers, but
under his ministrations it gradually increased till it became one of the most
numerous in that district. For about seventeen years Mr Sommerville
preached regularly three times every Lord's Day, and although the church
was large, being capable of containing nearly 1000 people, so great was
his acceptability as a preacher that it was generally crowded." In 1835,
owing to impaired vigour, a supply of preachers was obtained with the view
of choosing one to be his colleague. But while these arrangements were
going on Mr Sommerville was suddenly prostrated by a stroke of paralysis,
and his work was done.
Second Minister. — ADAM LIND, M.A., from Craigdam. He was called
first to Comrie and then to Burntisland, but, after he had intimated his
intention to deliver his trial discourses for the latter place, Moss Street,
Elgin, intervened, where he was ordained as colleague to Mr Sommerville,
2/th July 1836. The stipend was to be ^90, exclusive of sacramental
expenses, and the old minister was to receive ^60, and other ^10 if he gave
up the manse to his colleague. Mr Sommerville survived till 1839, but on
lith October of that year the end came very suddenly. He had just taken
his seat beside two friends who came in, when he put his hand to his temples
as if in pain, and in a little all was over. He was in the seventy-second
year of his age and forty-eighth of his ministry. Mr Sommerville's dis
courses, it is stated in the Memoir already quoted from, were characterised
"not so much by originality and vigour as by scriptural simplicity, affection
ate persuasiveness, and a happy art of introducing striking and memorable
remark." In 1858 a new church, with 750 sittings, was built on the old site
628 HISTORY OF U.P. CONGREGATIONS
at a cost of ,£2400. In 1878 Mr Lind published a volume of sermons, which
were much appreciated, and in 1881 he received the degree of D.U. from
Aberdeen University. At the celebration of his jubilee in 1886 he was
presented by his congregation and other friends with a silver salver and a
cheque for ^250 in commemoration of his long and valued services to the
Church and the community.
Third Minister.— JAMES CRICHTON, B.D., from Tay Square, Dundee.
Ordained, nth April 1888. His stipend was to be £160, and the senior
minister was to have ^70, with the manse. The collegiate relation closed
with Dr Lind's death on 2Oth November 1890, in the eighty-sixth year of his
age and fifty-fifth of his ministry. In the early part of that year he published
a^second volume of discourses, which were described as characterised by
"intellectual vigour, a philosophic spirit, and a terse and choice expression,
as well as by scriptural richness and spiritual unction." Dr Lind also
edited many years before the graphic Autobiography of his uncle, the
Rev. Adam Lind of Whitehill. On 27th October 1897 Mr Crichton was
loosed from Elgin, having accepted a call to North Kelvmside, Glasgow.
What remains of this congregation's history falls under the new head
ing of
ELGIN (UNITED CHURCH)
ON ist February 1898 a petition was laid before the Presbytery showing
that in each of the two Elgin congregations a vote in favour of union had
been carried by a large majority, and now a joint committee of their number
craved that steps may be taken to carry out the resolution at the earliest
possible date. Moss Street Church was vacant through Mr Crichton's
removal, and South Street people were feeling that coalescence with the
larger congregation was the simple way to escape from a severe struggle
and heavy liabilities. The membership of Moss Street at the close of 1897
was 264 and that of South Street 134, and the stipend given by the former
was j£i66, i os. and by the latter j£ioo, so that even the stronger of the two
was not quite self-supporting. The present proposal for union originated
among themselves, and it caught the favouring tide which leads on to fortune.
On 1 9th April, after Mr Adam's resignation had been accepted, the articles,
of agreement adopted by both congregations were sanctioned by the Presby
tery as follows :— The elders and present managers to form the united
session and board of management ; the congregation to worship in Moss
Street Church, the church and halls in South Street to be reserved mean
while for Sabbath school and other religious purposes ; Mr Adam to
receive £300 from the sale of house property belonging to South Street
congregation, or from a bond on the church if needed, as compensation for
the sacrifice he was making, pn these terms the Presbytery on 4th May
declared the two congregations in Elgin to be henceforth one.
First Minister.— JOHN HOWITT GRANT, M.A., from Renton (Free
Gaelic). Came over to the U.P. Church after attending a session at the
Free Church Divinity Hall, Glasgow. Ordained, 28th July 1898. The
united congregation was to be independent of all outside aid, the stipend
promised being ,£186, with the manse. At the end of the year the member
ship was 381, and at the close of 1899 it was 406, and the stipend £196, los.
MOYNESS (ANTIBURGHER)
WE know in a general way that this congregation originated in the intrusion
of the Rev. Thomas Gordon of Cabrach into the parish of Auldearn.
PRESBYTERY OF ELGIN AND INVERNESS 629
got the presentation in 1745, ar>d as he was not inducted till I2th February
1747 the settlement must have been persistently resisted, though the case
never came before the General Assembly. There was now a large section
of Auldearn parishioners ready to place themselves under the pastoral care
of Mr Alexander Troup, who was ordained "to the ministry of the north of
Scotland" by the Antiburgher Presbytery of Perth and Dunfermline in Sep
tember of that year. From the first they obtained a regular share of his
labours, and the fact that their first communion tokens bear the stamp of
1748 favours the view that Moyness was a distinct congregation thus early,
•with a session of its own. It is understood that in 1753 their first church
was built, and for other ten years Mr Troup had for his main centres Elgin
and Moyness, places about twenty miles apart. Of these the former was
the more important, and the report to the Synod in 1763 bore that it was
from Elgin Mr Troup had been translated to Perth. The bond between the
two congregations being dissolved by the removal of their minister the
Seceders in and around Auldearn obtained a minister for themselves.
First Minister. — HENRY CLERK, from Abernethy. Ordained, nth
August 1763, five months after Mr Troup's removal. Nairn, five miles to
the west, now became the other centre, Mr Clerk as a rule supplying the
two places on alternate Sabbaths. This went on till I2th February 1777,
when Mr Clerk was assigned to Moyness alone. Nairn people also
petitioned to have him to themselves, but some of the members wished a
minister with the Gaelic language, and this may account for the less populous
place getting the preference. Boghole must have been strained now to sup
port Mr Clerk, for next year they obtained a grant of £7 from the Synod.
It seems to have been in 1779 that the church was rebuilt, as aid with the
debt was sought from sister congregations, such as those of Perth and
Dundee, about the beginning of 1780; sittings 350, cost not known. Mr
Clerk died, i5th June 1809, in the seventy-sixth year of his age and forty-
sixth of his ministry. During his closing years the congregation declined
considerably, so that it was doubtful whether it could be kept up at all after
his death. A vacancy of six years followed, during which they were deeply
indebted to Mr Stark of Forres, who conducted evening services at Boghole
on an average every third or fourth Sabbath. In 1812 they called Mr
Thomas Wood, previously of Rattray, but he refused to return to the bounds
of the Presbytery with a view to induction. In 1813 Mr Thomas Gilmour
became their choice, but he had already accepted North Shields.
Second Minister. — DAVID ANDERSON, from Perth (North). Ordained,
1 5th April 1815. In 1817 the church had to undergo repairs at an expense
exceeding ^100, a burden which the people managed to clear off by their
own exertions. In 1836, though the membership was only 103, there was an
average attendance throughout the year of about 250. The New Statistical
History explains that about one-third of these were not Dissenters, but
attended owing to their proximity to the place of worship. Of those under
the minister's charge nearly one-half were from the parish of Dyke, with a
few from Edinkillie and Ardclach. The minister's stipend was ,£80, with a
house and offices, which had been built in 1830 at an expenditure of over
^200. There was also a glebe, for which the congregation paid £7 a year,
but, being cultivated by the people free of expense, it was worth considerably
more to the minister. On 25th June 1839 Mr Anderson stated to the
Presbytery that he found himself under the painful necessity of resigning his
charge, which the Presbytery accepted, with expressions of regret that such
a step should have been found necessary. There had been dissatisfaction
at work in the congregation three years before, but the matters complained
of carried little weight. Still, the funds suffered, and some had ceased
630 HISTORY OF U.P. CONGREGATIONS
attendance, alleging want of edification. The pastoral tie having been dis
solved and arrears of stipend to the amount of ^60 paid up Mr Anderson
removed to the United States, where he was installed minister of the
Associate congregation, Carlisle, Pennsylvania, 28th October 1841. In May
1842, while putting his daughter on board a steamer at Philadelphia, he met
with an accident, which he only survived some hours. He was in the fifty-
sixth year of his age and twenty-eighth of his ministry.
In the beginning of 1840 the congregation called Mr James Morison,
whose preaching within the bounds had made a mighty impression. The
call was signed by 69 members and 70 adherents, and the stipend was to be
£70 a year, with a manse and glebe. But Mr Morison, although he had a
strong liking for the place, concluded, we are told, that this isolated sphere
was not the one in which he could best serve his Master. Kilmarnock
(Clerk's Lane), with which his name was to be closely linked, obtained his
services before the end of the year. The next they called was Mr Andrew
Gardiner, who also put the offer aside, and after a time obtained Kincardine.
A third call, addressed to Mr Andrew Main,* was not harmonious, and
though sustained by the Presbytery it was both declined by the preacher
and withdrawn by the congregation.
Third Minister. — JOHN WHYTE, from Kinross (West). After this call
was out another, presented to Mr Whyte from Broughty Ferry, made him
pause ; but in the end Boghole, with its rural surroundings and quiet ways,
secured his acceptance. Ordained, 24th March 1842. The church is de
scribed as having been in a very dilapidated state at this time, with square,
box-looking seats and thatched roof. There was a gallery at each end, the
one entered by a stone stair and the other from elevated ground. A new
place of worship was urgently needed, and in 1847 the present church was
built in a more attractive situation, with sittings for 420. In 1868 the manse
was improved at an expenditure of ^325, of which the people raised ^215
and obtained ^110 from the Board. On nth January 1887 Mr Whyte was
relieved from active work, while retaining the status of senior minister. He
removed soon after to Edinburgh, the congregation granting him £16 a year.
He died, nth September 1894, in the seventy-eighth year of his age and
fifty-third of his ministry.
Fourth Minister. — ROBERT KERR, from Head Street, Beith. Ordained
as colleague and successor to Mr Whyte, 5th October 1887. The member
ship at the close of 1899 was 75, and the stipend from the people ,£90, with
the manse. Mr Kerr is a son-in-law of Professor Wardrop.
NIGG (ANTIBURGHER)
So early as I2th April 1738 there is mention in the minutes of the Associate
Presbytery of a Praying Society in the county of Ross being received under
their inspection. To furnish them with supply of gospel ordinances was
scarce practicable owing to the distance, but the Presbytery signified their
desire to be as helpful to them as Providence might admit. For two years
little emerged beyond urgent petitions for sermon on the one hand and
letters of encouragement on the other. At last the Caledonian Mercury of
22nd July 1740 announced that Messrs Moncrieff and Gib had set out on a
* Mr Main was from Craigs, Kilpatrick, and was ordained for mission work in
Jamaica on 27th November 1844 m Wellington Street Church, Glasgow. He was
appointed to Mount Pleasant and Hillside stations to succeed Mr William Scott.
The name was afterwards changed to Ebenezer, and he died there of fever, 7th
December 1865, in the fiftieth year of his age and twenty-second of his ministry.
PRESBYTERY OF ELGIN AND INVERNESS 631
journey to the shire of Ross the week before. Stray visits from ministers
and preachers followed, Ross being generally taken along with Buchan and
Moray. In 1745 Mr Isaac Paton was called by the Seceders in these three
localities, the arrangement being that he was to preach two successive
Sabbaths in Ross out of every eight, the place to be Badens, wherever that
may have been, as most central. But this call came to nothing, and though
Mr Alexander Troup was ordained to the ministry of the north of Scotland
in 1747 the county of Ross was too far away, and the Seceders in these parts
too few, to obtain more than an occasional visit from him and a fractional
share of his labours. The wonder is that, in the face of the barrier which
want of Gaelic interposed, the Secession got entrance into Ross-shire at all,
and there is the further wonder that, with supplies so few and far between,
the cause continued to go on year after year. But at last, through a forced
settlement in the parish of Nigg, reviving came, and a full-grown congrega
tion sprang up all at once into healthy activity.
To follow the case through all its windings would overtax patience. It is
enough for us to state that the presentee was Mr Patrick Grant, minister of
Duthil, whose induction the people kept back for four years. Of the
parishioners not a single individual signed his call. The minister appointed
to read the edict reported to the Presbytery that when he went into the
church he found none there but two servants ; "that he did not think it either
proper or decent to preach, as he could get no more hearers, but that he made
intimation in presence of the said two persons, and left a copy of the edict
in the keyhole of the most patent door of the church, and then came away."
The Presbytery on their part reported to the next General Assembly that
when they met at Nigg on the day appointed for the induction there was
not a single member of the congregation present to witness, or concur with,
Mr Grant's settlement ; " that only one person appeared, who told them that
the blood of the parish of Nigg would be required of them if they should
settle a man to the walls of the kirk, and then went off" ; and that instead
of deciding for themselves in a case "so straitening and unprecedented" they
with concern found themselves obliged to lay before the Assembly these
new and uncommon circumstances. This was plausible, but it did not shield
the five representers from rebuke for not having yielded simple obedience to
the order of their superiors, and they were commanded anew to go on forth
with to admit Mr Patrick Grant as minister of Nigg. The Assembly at the
same time empowered their Commission to inflict deposition on such of them
as should be found disobedient. On 27th July 1756 the ceremony was gone
through, and "the action was concluded with prayer, singing of Psalms, and
pronouncing the blessing." Thus was the connection cut between the
Established Church and the parishioners of Nigg.
For a time, regularly as Sabbath came, people flocked to hear the gospel
in other parishes, but this was an irregularity which the Presbytery at length
refused to tolerate by allowing them to obtain sealing ordinances outside
their own parish church, "and so," says Hugh Miller, "they were lost to the
Establishment and became Seceders." It was a time, however, before this
stage was reached, and the people of Nigg placed themselves under the in
spection of the Antiburgher Presbytery of Perth and Dunfermline. At first
they got for their minister the Rev. Roderick M'Kenzie, a Dissenting
minister from England, but who belonged originally to the Highlands and
the Established Church. On his way to the north Mr M'Kenzie admitted
the Rev. Thomas Boston to his new charge at Jedburgh. This was in the
early part of December 1757, so that we may calculate that he entered on
his ministry at Nigg in the beginning of 1758. There are doubts as to when
the first church was built, whether now or not till seven years later, but it is
632 HISTORY OF U.P. CONGREGATIONS
known to have been thatched with heather and to have been a facsimile of
the parish church in form and dimensions. Mr M'Kenzie remained in Nigg
for about three years, but there was no pastoral tie formed. At the end of
that time he left owing to pecuniary difficulties, and the parishioners of Nigg
were again without the stated dispensation of gospel ordinances. It may be
well at this point to present the reputation they bore in the estimation of the
Presbytery of Tain at the time they were resisting the intrusion of the
obnoxious presentee. The Presbytery declared and certified to the General
Assembly that " by the blessing of God upon the ministry of their late pious
and godly pastor, Mr John Balfour, they are distinguished in the country by
their sobriety, industry, and honesty," and they further declared that "this
people have given at all times the strongest evidence of their strict piety
and true devotion, and may in every respect be compared to any, even the
best of people, within this national Church." Such were the men and women
in the parish of Nigg who came over in a body to the Antiburgher Synod.
First Minister. — PATRICK BUCHANAN, from Callander, Perthshire.
Brought up in the Establishment, but joined the Secession after he had
come to years. From a minute of Abernethy session we find that in July
1754 he was residing there, presumably as a student of philosophy, and was
chosen schoolmaster, precentor, and session clerk. Here he married a
sister of the Rev. Alexander Blyth of Kinclaven, a daughter of one of Mr
Moncrieffs elders, and in 1760 there is mention of a child baptised to
Patrick Buchanan, schoolmaster. He had now reached middle life, being
in his fortieth year. In April 1764 calls to Mr Buchanan came before the
Synod from Greenloaning and Pathstruie, of which the former was pre
ferred. In September, Mr Buchanan being still a probationer, a petition from
Nigg was presented to the Synod craving that he be sent north to preach
there, and along with it there was a paper of accession signed by fourteen
elders and 50 other persons. The settlement at Greenloaning was now
to be postponed, and Mr Buchanan missioned to Nigg, but before setting
out it was arranged that he should have the status of a regular minister.
He was accordingly ordained at Alloa on the 25th of that month. In April
1765 the call from Greenloaning was set aside in favour of another from Nigg
and Mr Buchanan's name was at once entered in the sederunt as minister
there. The formal admission did not take place till I2th June, when of the
Presbytery of Perth and Dunfermline there were present the ministers of
Nairn, Craigdam, and Montrose.
Nigg was now furnished with a stated ministry after nine years of un
certainty, preceded by four years of struggle. Mr Buchanan, when supplying
in Morayshire, had been induced to cross over and preach to them, but
though familiar with Gaelic in his youth he had lost the command of that
language. Still, the people were satisfied that with a little practice this
defect would be got over, and, with the view of obtaining him for their
pastor, they gave in the accession already mentioned. When he returned
to Nigg by appointment of Synod the people testified that his ministerial
gifts were in all respects agreeable to them, and that, having preached four
Sabbaths, "he was better and better every day," and as for the Gaelic, " the
stiffness he had at first as to some vocables is so far worn off that he is
really become fluent in that language." Mr Buchanan found it hard to
reconcile himself to the thought of Nigg being his field of labour, but once
settled down there he could trace in it the hand of Him who fixes the bounds
of our habitation. The first minutes of session present a list of sixteen
elders, and the parishioners kept faithfully by him. In 1794 the Old Sta
tistical History records as follows : — " Nor could the (Established) minister,
though a man of sense and greatly useful to the people by his medical skill,
PRESBYTERY OF ELGIN AND INVERNESS 633
ever procure a decent auditory in the place. After residing among them
above thirty years the number of his hearers did not exceed 60 persons.
The examination roll contains only 260, while that of the Seceders contains
673. The number has increased, but consists chiefly of those who have
come in from other parishes." Mr Buchanan's latter years were attended
with frailty and much suffering, so that a colleague was required.
Second Minister. — JOHN MUNRO, a native of Nigg parish, and brought
up under Mr Buchanan's ministry. Ordained, 2nd October 1799. On the
ordination day Mr Munro himself gave a Gaelic discourse, "as none of the
other ministers present could preach in that language except his aged col
league, who was prevented by his frailty." Mr Buchanan died, 7th August
1802, in the eighty-first year of his age and thirty-eighth of his ministry.
His widow survived till 1817, and one of his daughters was married to the
Rev. /Eneas M'Bean of Inverness. About this time the congregation was
put to serious disadvantage through the loss of their church. At the time it
was built there were no legal rights obtained, so that their possession of the
property depended on the good will of the proprietor of the land on which it
stood. About the beginning of the century he thought fit to assert his
powers by ousting the people from their place of worship, taking down the
walls and applying the stones to his own purposes. This necessitated a new
church in 1803, with 627 sittings. At the time of its erection it was thought
to be worth at least ^600, and it was free of debt in nine or ten years.
There is little said as to stipend during the first two ministries, but in Mr
Buchanan's time, and later, gifts in various forms are likely to have made up
to a good extent for deficiency in money payments. We find, however, from
Mr Munro's report to the Commissioners on Religious Instruction that in
1836 his stipend was ,£120, with manse, garden, and a glebe valued at
^2, ros. a year. The communicants at this time were 171, and the examin-
able persons above seven or eight years of age 492. This betokens that in
the congregation there was a large proportion of adults not in full communion,
a state of matters which still prevails in the Highlands. Of the larger
number now given more than 200 were from other parishes, two-thirds from
Fearn, and the others from Logic, Tain, and Tarbet. Of families, 115 were
at least two miles from the church by the nearest path, and 14 came from
over six miles. The minister conducted three services each Sabbath, two
in Gaelic and one in English.
Towards the close of 1845 illness came, and Elgin Presbytery met at
Chapelhill with the congregation, when adjustments were gone into with a
view to a colleague, and the proceedings laid before the members in Gaelic
through an interpreter. It was suggested that the incapacitated minister
should not have less than .£100 as his stipend, a big sum, all things con
sidered, but he died on 26th December, in the seventy-first year of his age
and forty-seventh of his ministry. Mr Munro was a cousin of Hugh Miller's
mother, and like him was descended from Donald Roy, the leader of the
Disruption in 1756, and a man of patriarchal build, who lived to the age of
at least 105. Mr Munro married a daughter of the Rev. William Bennet of
Forres. Of his sons, one became his successor at Nigg, and another, Walter
R. Munro, got licence from the Presbytery of Elgin in 1845. Gaelic proba
tioners being at a disadvantage in the U.P. Church he applied for admission
to the Establishment in 1849, but the Assembly, on the ground that he had
not passed through a full course at the Divinity Hall, declined the applica
tion. The difficulty was got over, however, and he was ordained minister
of the Gaelic Church, Cromarty, in 1852. After being laid aside from office
for eighteen years he died very suddenly, 28th April 1892, aged seventy-seven.
Nigg congregation found itself peculiarly situated in attempting to secure
634 HISTORY OF U.P. CONGREGATIONS
a successor to Mr Munro, as appears from a petition they addressed to the
Synod in May 1847. They had called Mr William M 'Donald, a Gaelic
preacher who had expressed a preference for Lossiemouth, where Gaelic was
not required. The wish was that the Synod should interpose in the way of
recommending Mr M'Donald to review his decision, the plea being that,
whereas they had very few candidates to choose from, " the congregation
of Lossiemouth had all the ministers and preachers in the Church in their
option." The days were when these arguments would have prevailed, but
now the Synod felt that they could not interfere with Mr M'Donald's freedom
of selection. He might, perhaps, have decided otherwise had the people been
harmonious from the first, but, so far from this, the first call they gave him
had a majority of only three, and for that and other reasons had to be set
aside.
Third Minister. — JOHN BENNET MUNRO, son of the former minister,
and previously of Cambuslang, which he resigned in 1842. Called to Nigg
in November 1847, but in January, instead of accepting, he wished to make
trial of the pulpit for some Sabbaths. He was residing at Chapelhill at this
time, and continued to preach month after month on the above footing.
But after a year had passed the Presbytery wished something definite
arrived at, and the clerk was to write him to that effect. It was felt that
until the pastoral tie was formed he was not in circumstances to administer
discipline or dispense sealing ordinances in a regular way. This brought a
letter of acceptance, and his induction followed on I2th April 1849. The
stipend was to be ^100, with manse and glebe, and ^4 at each communion.
But Mr Munro's health was never robust, and for a considerable time before
the end he was permanently laid aside. He died at Inverness, 25th May
1871, in the sixty-second year of his age and the twenty-third of his ministry
at Nigg. In 1865 Mr Munro wrote three articles in the U.P. Magazine,
entitled "The First Dissenting Congregation in the Highlands." In these
articles he gives a very full and interesting account of his own and his
father's congregation from its troubled origin till the close of Mr Buchanan's
ministry. Those who wish larger information regarding the upbuilding and
early fortunes of the Secession cause at Nigg will find the particulars there
in graphic array.
Fourth Minister. — ARCHIBALD M 'MARTIN, M.A., from Lawers Free
Church. When a colleague was imperatively required for Mr Munro the old
difficulty emerged, but it was got over in a simple and natural way. At the
Synod in 1867 a petition was read from the congregation of Nigg stating
that Mr Archibald M'Martin, a probationer of the Free Church, had supplied
their pulpit for two months with much acceptance, and, considering the want
of Gaelic preachers in the U.P. Church, they were desirous of calling him to
be their minister. It also appeared that Mr Munro concurred in the pro
posed measure and that the Presbytery of Elgin and Inverness cordially
approved. Mr M'Martin had also expressed his willingness to become
junior pastor of Nigg, believing that the two denominations were substantially
at one, and on the understanding that he was not required to disown any of
the distinctive principles of the Free Church. The Synod accordingly
empowered the Presbytery, after communicating with the Free Presbytery
of the bounds, to receive Mr M'Martin as a probationer according to the
rules of the Church. This was on the 8th of July, and at that meeting a
moderation was applied for, the retiring minister to have ,£40 a year, and
the acting minister .£105, with the manse and glebe, and ,£4, IDS. at each
communion. Mr M'Martin was ordained, loth September 1867, as colleague
to Mr Munro, but in reality to the sole pastorate. In 1868 Nigg took its
place on the Augmentation list for the first time, the stipend of the acting
PRESBYTERY OF ELGIN AND INVERNESS 635
minister being ^120 from the people, and ,£30 of supplement. On 2oth
March 1872 a new church, with accommodation for between 500 and 600,
was opened by Dr Finlayson of Edinburgh, when the collection was over
^80. The entire cost was above ^1200, and of that sum a debt of only
^200 remained. The position of Nigg congregation must all along have
necessitated decline, old families removing and incomers belonging, with
very few exceptions, either to the Free or to the Established Church. Still,
the communicants at the close of 1899 were 138, being only 33 fewer than in
1836, and the stipend from the people was ,£115, with the manse.
FORRES (ANTIBURGHER)
THIS congregation was stated by their minister, the Rev. Thomas Stark, in
his evidence to the Royal Commissioners on Religious Instruction to have
been established in 1768, and there is nothing entitling us to assign it an
earlier origin. What the special circumstances were which gave shape to
the Secession cause in the place is not known, though it is probable that
some families had been connected with Elgin congregation in Mr Troup's
time. The minister of the parish from 1718 to 1758 was the Rev. John
Squyre, to whom reference is made under the heading of Bathgate. He is
known to have been a preacher of the evangelical school, and he was one
of nineteen members of the General Assembly who dissented from the
deposition of the Eight Brethren in 1740. His labours and his ecclesiastical
leanings may have prepared the way for a Secession congregation in Forres
at a later time. Accordingly, when the Antiburgher Presbytery of Elgin was.
formed in April 17/0 Mr Thomas Duncan was under call to Elgin and
Forres, and for nearly two years his labours were divided between the two
places. On i8th March 1772 Mr Duncan was assigned to Elgin alone, and
Forres was to be preached vacant on the following Sabbath. The first
church is understood to have been built that same year, and the above may
be taken as the date of the congregation's independent origin.
First Minister. — WILLIAM BEXXET, from Milnathort. When a divinity
student Mr Bennet taught a school in connection with his brother's con
gregation in Ceres, and also acted as precentor. Ordained at Forres,
i6th August 1774. The session minutes from this date till 1794 have been
preserved, but they throw little light upon the strength or the workings of
the congregation. They show that there was a manse almost from the first,
as well as a church, and that the session began with four elders. When an
addition was to be made to their number the Praying Societies, as was
customary, especially among the Antiburghers, were invited to make choice
of a leet. After some months had been allowed the congregation met, and
the two Praying Societies, one in Alves and the other in the town, nominated
two of their own number each. The candidates were then voted on, one by
one, and elected without the semblance of opposition. Only three were
ordained, owing to murmurs being afloat against the fourth, and though the
session pronounced the objections to be groundless it was deemed prudent
not to go forward in his case. Thus peace was preserved, the party himself
fully concurring. The most remarkable feature in the session minutes is
the almost entire absence of discipline cases, a contrast with most records of
the kind. During the long period of twenty years not more than two cases of
flagrant immorality came before them, and the only additional trouble they
had worth mentioning was with an elder who had sought and obtained
marriage from a minister of the Establishment, and had attended public
worship in the town church on the following Sabbath. On two occasions.
636 HISTORY OF U.P. CONGREGATIONS
also members gave offence by encouraging penny weddings, and dancing
thereat, but all was wound up with professions of regret and an admonition.
Hence the proceedings during nearly the whole of Mr Bennet's ministry go
into little compass, and consist largely in arrangements for the yearly com
munion. He died, 2Qth November 1798, in the forty-ninth year of his age
and twenty-fifth of his ministry.
At this time the congregation was in a weak state, and as the accessions
only averaged from I to 5 annually in the latter years of Mr Bennet's
ministry, the tendency must have been to decline. When steps were taken
to obtain another minister the stipend promised was ^50, fuel driven, and
a horse when needed. On the moderation day Mr Andrew Kerr had a
majority over Mr Laurence Glass, afterwards of Midholm. The call was
signed by 20 male members and 7 ordinary hearers, and was remonstrated
against by 69 persons, men and women. The objectors wished Mr Glass, and
promised to contribute £70 if he were obtained. Opposing petitions were
brought up at next meeting, and both parties were willing rather to give up
their respective candidates than hurt the congregation. The call was ac
cordingly laid aside, and they were to begin anew. Mr Kerr comes up
again under Wick.
Second Minister.— THOMAS STARK, from Falkirk (now Graham's Road).
The call was signed by only 15 male members and 2 adherents, perhaps
owing to the recent cleavage, and Mr Stark had difficulties about accepting.
Very fortunately for the congregation these were got over, and Mr Stark
was ordained, 25th November 1802. It was announced at the time that, " the
meeting-house being small, the service was performed in the parish church,
which, though large, was greatly crowded." The stipend at first was ^80,
but it was gradually increased, till in 1821 it amounted to ^130, with ^10
for communion expenses, besides house and garden. In 1812 a new church,
seated for fully 700, was built at a cost of ^650. Five years before this Mr
Stark had been called to Potterrow, Edinburgh, but the Synod, in keeping
with his own wishes, continued him in Forres. It was otherwise in May
1819, when a call to Mr Stark came up from the huge congregation of Kirk-
wall. In his absence they decided by a majority of 2 in favour of translation.
He held back, however, and after assigning his reasons he was allowed to
remain where he was. These things bespoke Mr Stark's powers as a
preacher, and down to the close of his ministry he was looked on as a pillar
of strength to the Secession cause not only in Forres but throughout
Morayshire, and much beyond it. In 1836, though the communicants were
not more than 222, the average attendance was between 500 and 600.
About one-fifth of the congregation were from other parishes, the half
of these from Dyke and Moy, with 6 or 8 families from Edinkillie,
Rafford, and Kinloss. Though, 'in addition to the original cost, ^400 had
been expended on repairs, the church property was entirely free of debt.
The highest price put on the seats was 8s. a year, and, to meet the require
ments of the poorest, nearly 100 were as low as 2s., an example worthy of
wide imitation.
Mr Stark had not been at a meeting of Synod since September 1820,
when he took part in the Union, but in May 1844 he faced the long journey
on a piece of business referred to under Tain congregation, and his brethren
took the opportunity of putting him into the Moderator's chair. His natural
force was abated now, and he was already provided with a colleague. But
before this stage was reached the congregation in 1841 issued a divided call
to Mr Thomas Stevenson, afterwards of Auchtermuchty (North), which, at
the request of the people, was not prosecuted.
Third Minister.— ADAM LIND SIMPSON, from Nicolson Street, Edm-
PRESBYTERY OF ELGIN AND INVERNESS 637
burgh. Called previously to Tain and Keith, and ordained at Forres as
colleague to Mr Stark, igth May 1842, his minister, the Rev. George
Johnston, preaching on the occasion. The call was signed by 145 members
and 105 adherents, and the stipend was to be ^100, or ,£90 with a house.
On 5th February 1849 Mr Stark was suddenly seized with paralysis, and on
the gth he died, in the seventieth year of his age and forty-seventh of his
ministry. Three of his cousins, each belonging to a different family, were,
or had been, Secession ministers — the Rev. Ur James Stark, Dennyloan-
head ; the Rev. Dr Andrew Stark, first of South Shields and then of New
York ; and the Rev. James Stark of Ayton. On Mr Simpson the whole
work of the congregation now devolved, and it was heavy. Even in his
colleague's time he preached twice each Lord's Day, and superintended the
Sabbath school besides. The pressure proved too much for him, and after
repeated periods of absence he resigned, and was loosed from his charge on
loth February 1857. That same day he was appointed the Synod's librarian,
in which office he remained till July 1861, when he was inducted into
Henderson Church, Edinburgh. When in Forres he published a lecture on
"The Pleasures of Literature," a congenial subject, and also a funeral
sermon on the death of his colleague.
Fourth Minister. — WILLIAM WATSON, M.A., from Aberdeen (St
Nicholas). Called to be colleague to his own minister, the Rev. Henry
Angus, but accepted Forres, where he was ordained, 5th November 1857.
There had been progress made under Mr Simpson, as the call was signed
by 208 members and 128 adherents, and the stipend promised was £150,
with manse and sacramental expenses. On 26th November 1871 the present
church, with accommodation for 550, and built at a cost of .£2400, was
opened by the Rev. Dr MacEwen of Glasgow, when the collection amounted
to ^330. On 4th January 1898 Mr Watson, whose labours had been
lightened for some years by assistants, was enrolled as minister-emeritus.
Fifth Minister. — JOSEPH JOHNSTON, M.A., from Aberdeen (Garden
Place). Ordained, i8th August 1898. The membership at the close of 1899
was 219, almost the same as in 1836. Mr Johnston's stipend was .£200,
with the manse, Mr Watson having a retiring allowance of £60.
NAIRN (ANTIBURGHER)
IN the minutes of Ceres Antiburgher session, of date 3ist October 1763, we
have a petition from Nairn "for a collection to carry on the building of a
church." Up till then the Seceders in that town had their place of worship
at Boghole (now Moyness), five or six miles distant, but their minister, the
Rev. Alexander Troup, had been recently translated to Perth, and this led
to a shifting of the landmarks. His successor for that branch of the con
gregation was Mr Henry Clerk, who was ordained over Boghole and Nairn
in August of that year, his Sabbath labours to be divided between the two
places. This arrangement not proving satisfactory the Presbytery of Perth
and Dunfermline agreed to disjoin Nairn from Boghole and from under Mr
Clerk's ministry, but, the case being taken to the Synod by protest, the
decision was set aside. In this state matters continued till I2th February
1776, when, on petition to be disjoined from each other, the severance was
carried through, and Mr Clerk was assigned to Boghole alone. Years of
chronic irritation had now to be passed through at Nairn, the particulars of
which come more naturally in under the troubled history of Hpwford.
Supply of sermon was also irregular, and help was needed for defraying the
debt resting on the place of worship, Perth (North) coming to their aid.
638 HISTORY OF U.P. CONGREGATIONS
First Minister — ISAAC KETCHEN, from Alloa (now Townhead). Called
also to Cabrach, but the Synod were wishful to have Nairn settled, and it
got the preference, without gainsaying. There was confusion over the claims
of the English and Gaelic languages, and this made Mr Ketchen unwilling
to proceed with his trials, but surface difficulties were smoothed down, and
he was ordained, I3th April 1780. On iQth June 1784 the Nairn register
records a marriage between the Rev. Isaac Ketchen and Elizabeth Brodie,
both in this parish. The bride was a daughter of James Brodie, Esq., of
Spynie, Lord Lieutenant of Nairnshire, and her oldest brother succeeded his
cousin in 1759 as proprietor of the Brodie estates. Another brother, after
acquiring large fortune in India, returned home, and was elected M.P.
for Elgin. His only child who came to years was another Elizabeth
Brodie, widely known as the last Duchess of Gordon, whose life has been
so engagingly portrayed by the late Dr Moody Stuart. Mrs Ketchen had a
sister married to the parish minister of Croy, and the Rev. Alexander Stewart
of Cromarty, whom we know so well through Hugh Miller's " Schools and
Schoolmasters," was her grandson. It is not correct to say that Mrs Ketchen
was disinherited owing to her marriage, as her father died thirty years before,
when she was a mere girl, though we may believe that she was looked on
with disfavour by her wealthy kindred. No doubt the contrast was great
between Brodie mansion and the little, thatched house at Nairn, and her
marriage with a Seceding minister contrasted with her brother's marriage to
an earl's daughter. But, by all accounts, she adorned her humble position
by a life of deep-toned piety, and is said to have spoken of her husband after
his death as having been one of " God's nobility."
It was recently stated in a provincial newspaper that on a Sabbath even
ing in March 1796 disaster befell the frail building. The congregation was
assembled for public worship, but just as the service was about to commence
a crack was heard overhead. No sooner had the audience dispersed than
the roof fell in with a loud crash, and the little Secession church was a com
plete wreck. The extent of the damage may be overstated, but we find that
in May of that year the congregation of Nairn petitioned the session of the
North Church, Perth, for aid in repairing their place of worship, and we are
warranted to infer from this that the account given is substantially correct.
In the following year the Haldanes visited Nairn, and entered in their
Journal : " Met with a most affectionate reception here from some friends
of the gospel in the Antiburgher congregation. The interests of Christ's
kingdom seem to flourish in this congregation. They have a monthly
meeting, where Christians of different denominations join in prayer for the
success of the gospel. They have also a Sabbath school under the care of
some of their members." The wonder is that liberality like this did not
subject them to the frown of ecclesiastical authority or even to something
worse. The second church, with sittings for 512, was built in 1815, at a cost
of about ^820, of which only £200 remained to be paid six years thereafter.
Mr Ketchen died suddenly, I2th May 1820, in the seventieth year of his age
and forty-first of his ministry.
Second Minister. — JAMES MEIN, from Blackfriars, Jedburgh. The call
was signed by 55 male members and adhered to by 45 seatholders not in
communion. The stipend was to be ,£no, with £j for each communion,
and the promise of increase as soon as their funds allowed. Mr Mein was
ordained, 3Oth January 1822. The services were conducted in the parish
church, and the audience was estimated at little short of 2000. In 1836 the
communicants were put at 125 and the average attendance at about three
times that number. Of the congregation ten-elevenths belonged to the |
parish, but 10 or 12 families were from other parishes, most of them
PRESBYTERY OF ELGIN AND INVERNESS 639
from Auldearn. The stipend was still ^110, and there was no house or
glebe. The debt had been reduced to ,£150, and the ordinary income was
between ,£120 and ^130. Mr Mein died, 9th June 1841, in the fiftieth
year of his age and twentieth of his ministry. Of him, as his fellow-
assistant at Forres communion in 1831, Dr Heugh wrote home as follows : —
He is "just such a preacher and such a man in prayer as you would fancy
Davidson, the friend of Boston, to have been — calm, thoughtful, tender, soft,
and insinuating like dew."
During this vacancy the congregation called Mr George Jerment
M'Kenzie, but he drew back, as he afterwards explained, from the responsi
bility of a fixed charge at this early stage of his probationary life, and after
waiting other four years he was ordained at Carnoustie. They next called
Mr Thomas Stevenson by a large majority, but there was resolute opposi
tion, and Auchtermuchty (North), which was already on the field, secured
the preference.
Third Minister. — JOHN BISSET, a native of Cluny parish, Perthshire,
and brought up in the Established Church. During his course at college,
when the Voluntary Controversy was going on, he joined the Secession, and
entered the Divinity Hall from Erskine Church, Arbroath. Ordained,
2yth September 1843. The stipend was substantially the same as it had
been twenty years before, ^100, with £10 for a house, and ^10 for sacra
mental expenses. But there was improvement forthcoming. In 1845 tne
debt of ,£150 was liquidated, and in 1847 a manse was built, the first the
congregation possessed. In 1847 Mr Bisset was called to Lethendy, but he
was not prepared, even for the prospect of lightened labours or proximity to
his birthplace, to have his light put under a bushel, and the offer was
promptly declined. In 1852 the present church, with sittings for 825, was
l)uilt at a cost of ,£1600. Towards the end of 1875 sick supply was required
for Nairn pulpit, and in April 1876 application was made for a moderation
with the view of calling a colleague and successor to Mr Bisset. The senior
minister was to have ^100 a year, with the manse, and the junior ^160,
with ^10 for sacramental expenses, and an additional ^40 was expected
from the Augmentation Fund. It contrasts with the money arrangements
when Mr Bisset was ordained.
Fourth Minister. — H. J. T. TURNBULL, from Lauriston Place, Edinburgh.
Called first to Cabrach, and perhaps it would have been well if Mr Turnbull
had begun by testing his nervous endurance in this quiet and lowly sphere,
but Nairn followed, and, as was natural, it got the preference. Amidst
promising appearances he was ordained colleague and successor to Mr
Bisset on 27th September 1876. But the excitement of evangelistic work
had already left its mark upon him, and in a few months sleeplessness came
and deep mental depression. As in the case of Cowper the poet, the cloud
remained unlifted, and he died, 25th July 1877, in the thirty-first year of his age
and the tenth month of his ministry. Those familiar with Mr TurnbulPs rich
gospel discourses, even in student days, and his earnest, artless, impressive
delivery, looked on it as a mild, silver light early quenched. In January
1879 tne congregation, thus early deprived of its young minister, called
Mr George Smart to be his successor, but he preferred Denny.
Fifth Minister. — GEORGE K. HEUGHAN, who had retired from the
collegiate charge of Trinity Church, Irvine, eight months before. Inducted,
2nd July 1879. He was sole pastor from the first, Mr Bisset having died,
1 6th March 1878, in the seventieth year of his age and thirty-fifth of his
ministry. The membership amounted now to very nearly 300, and the
stipend was ^250, with the manse. On loth May 1889 Mr Heughan was
loosed from his charge, having accepted a call to Pollokshaws.
640 HISTORY OF U.P. CONGREGATIONS
Sixth Minister. — JAMES MACMILLAN, M.A., from Kilmarnock (King
Street). Ordained, 4th July 1890. Declined a call to Pollok Street, Glasgow,
in 1893, but accepted Lansdowne, to be colleague to the Rev. Thomas
Dobbie, 4th February 1896.
Seventh Minister. — GEORGE ERSKINE NicOL, a native of Clackmannan.
Mr Nicol was brought up in the Established Church, but during his
University course his interest in Christian work drew him into fellowship
with the Free Church. When missionary in connection with Stockbridge
he was chosen to take charge of Ebenezer U.P. congregation, Leith, for a
year. This was when he was about to enter on his theological course, and
in this way he was led to become a U.P. student and licentiate. Called to-
West Hartlepool and Nairn in close succession he chose the latter, and was
ordained, 24th June 1897. The membership two and a half years after that
was 284, and the stipend .£225, with a manse.
HOWFORD (ANTIBURGHER)
THIS congregation, in its origin, and all onwards, was a centre of contention.
At the Synod in May 1770 a protest and appeal came up against a deed of
the Presbytery of Perth disjoining Nairn from Boghole. The severance
was favoured by a party in Nairn congregation, who wished to have a
minister able to preach in the Gaelic language. With this view Mr Clerk,
whose labours had been divided between the two places, was to be assigned
to Boghole alone. The Synod reversed the Presbytery's decision, but wished
Mr Buchanan of Nigg to preach occasionally at Nairn for the benefit of the
Gaelic-speaking portion of the congregation. At that Synod the Presbytery
of Elgin was constituted, and at its first meeting some people to the west of
Nairn came forward, insisting on having services in Gaelic, but from the
fear of doing harm to the English-speaking congregation the parties were ^
advised to fix on a site at a proper distance to the south or west. We read .
now of a clamour being raised and reproaches cast on certain members of
Presbytery. The Highland section carried their case to the Synod again
and again, where their claims were looked on with favour, but perpetually
the Presbytery contrived to block the way, till in 1777 Nairn became vacant
by being disjoined from Boghole. Had an acceptable preacher been avail
able now, with the command of both languages, the contending parties might
have found an outlet from all their troubles, but this could not be accom
plished. Two congregations were at last resolved on, but with this proviso :
that they must be at a respectful distance from each other. In this way;
Howford, a hamlet two miles south of Nairn, was fixed on for the Gaelic.
There a place of worship was erected, with 500 sittings, but not so early by
some years as has been supposed. From an entry in the session minutes
of the North Church, Perth, it appears that the meeting-house and manse
were in course of erection in October 1781 and that their application for
assistance from that congregation brought them ,£6.
First and only Minister. —ALEXANDER HOWISON, a nephew of the
Rev. Alexander Preston of Logiealmond, and said to have been from his
congregation. The Synod was desirous at this time to have two or three
students who had some knowledge of Gaelic sent to the north to acquire a
better mastery of that language, and Mr Howison was fixed on by the
Professor for that purpose. In the following year he was appointed to go
and reside at Nigg, in Ross-shire, aid to be given him from the Synod funds.
In 1773 Mr Howison got licence, and was sent forthwith to minister to the
Gaelic-speaking people about Nairn. But notwithstanding the pains taken
PRESBYTERY OF ELGIN AND INVERNESS 641
to perfect him in the speech of the Highlands Mr Howison, in preacher days
at least, was unable to go on regularly in that language. But there was no
choice for Howford congregation, and towards the end of 1777 he was called
to be their minister. There was no progress made towards a settlement for
a year and a half, and then, Nairn congregation having called Mr Isaac
Ketchen, it was thought opposing interests might be harmonised if the two
vacancies were filled up together. This was at last arranged for, and Mr
Howison was ordained at Howford on I2th April 1780, and Mr Ketchen at
Nairn on the following day.
For ten years matters moved quietly on, but in April 1790 the state of
Howford congregation was brought before the Synod by two representa
tions, the one from the minister and the other from the congregation. The
Presbytery along with certain correspondents met at Howford in September
following to investigate into the state of affairs there, when they found the
communicants to be about 70, of whom 12 had no Gaelic and attended the
English service only, and 10 had little or no English and attended the Gaelic
only. Of the remainder the greater part could only be examined in Gaelic,
and it is added : " This is the case in general all around the country outside
the burgh." For some time there had been a decrease in attendance owing
to Gaelic having been arranged for in the Established Church at Nairn, but
there had been no loss of communicants except by death. The stipend was
in arrears about ^41, and the utmost the people could give in future was
.£27, 155. The congregation was prepared to insist on one of two things —
either to have their place of worship transferred to Nairn, or be allowed
£12 a year to make up the stipend originally promised. If neither of these
requests was granted, let the relation between Mr Howison and them be
brought to an end. In this form the matter came before the Synod in 1791,
and it was resolved to continue the pastoral relation and grant aid to the
extent named, but removal to Nairn was not to be thought of. In 1792 it
was found that the confusion in Elgin Presbytery was worse than ever, and
on 2nd May it was decided, with only two dissenting -voices, to loose Mr
Howison from his charge, as he himself had requested two years before.
The change was for good, so far as he was concerned, as he was admitted a
year afterwards to Auchtergaven, where he was useful and much respected.
The congregation of Howford was now to have supply of sermon ap
pointed them in Gaelic and English, as the Presbytery might find practicable,
should it be applied for, which it never was. Feeling was so strong on the
subject that though old Mr Buchanan of Nigg, who was commissioned to
intimate the vacancy, preached at Howford he made no allusion to what the
Synod had done. It was a protest against the treatment the congregation,
as he reckoned, had received in being deprived of their minister. ' To show
his dissatisfaction with the sentence he ignored it altogether. In 1793 the
Synod ascertained that in consequence of old animosities the people of
Howford had never applied to Elgin Presbytery for sermon during the
twelve months which had intervened. They now annexed them to Inverness
congregation, Mr M'Bean, the minister, to preach to them occasionally. In
1794 Elgin Presbytery had complaints up to the Synod about Howford.
The people there who understood English, instead of waiting on Mr
Ketchen's ministry at Nairn, were holding Society meetings on Sabbath.
The Presbytery thought Mr M'Bean ought not to be allowed to conduct
service in English at Howford, and the Synod decreed that he should preach
there as he and his session might find for edification, but it was to be in
Gaelic only. The object was to hem the English-speaking section in to
Nairn, where they were much needed owing to the weak state of the con
gregation. In 1795 it was decided that the Gaelic people should henceforth
2 S
642 HISTORY OF U.P. CONGREGATIONS
form a wing of Inverness congregation, sixteen miles away, and the others
should annex themselves to Nairn, and the session was enjoined to receive
them without demur, but owing to distance from Inverness on the one hand,
and bitter aversions on the other, most of the members were probably lost
to the Secession. As Ur Blair put it in editing the Annals and Statistics :
" A small white cottage with thatched roof, near the wooden bridge of
Howford, is all that remains of the church premises erected there a century
ago."
The Synod in 1794 gave a condensed and pointed account of this ill-fated
congregation's history in answer to certain lengthy reasons of dissent by
Mr M'Bean of Inverness. They went back to 1770, when an application
was made by a part of Nairn congregation for sermon in the Gaelic language,
and told how, in the face of strong opposition from the minister and the
other section of his people, the Synod granted the request. Then, finding
the animosities between the two parties such that it was not for edification
to have them associated together, they erected the Gaelic people and their
adherents into a separate congregation, and fixed their place of worship at
Balblair, a mile to the west of Nairn. But when it appeared that peace
could not be restored while the places of worship were so near each other
Howford, two miles to the south, was resolved on, and for a course of years
the supreme court was not troubled with their affairs, but in 1790 Howford
came up to perplex them again. The flame, it appeared, had never been
extinguished, and now it had burst forth anew, and spread through the
whole bounds of the Presbytery. All the English congregations with their
ministers had taken part with Nairn, and all the Gaelic congregations
and their ministers had taken part with Howford. Mr Howison's labours
had been so little successful among the Gaelic population that no more
than 13, who did not understand English, were in communion with the
congregation, and the entire membership had never been much above 70,
of whom all, except those 13, but for prevailing animosities might have been
edified by sermon in the English language, a to which most of them were
more adjacent than to the Gaelic at Howford." Mr M'Bean accused the
Synod of having acted rashly in dissolving the connection between Mr
Howison and his people, but the Synod made answer : " Was it rash to
remove a minister from a congregation which acknowledged it could pay
him no more than £20 a year ? " They urged also that Howford had been
a bone of contention for eighteen years, and had at last interrupted com
munion between the English and the Gaelic Seceders within the bounds.
Finally, they said: "The Synod do not mean to promote Mr Howison's
comfort at the expense of burying his talents, but to give him an opportunity
of improving his talents to better advantage without having his comfort
marred by living in the fire."
INVERNESS (ANTIBURGHER)
THE earliest notice of the Antiburgher cause attempting to take shape in
Inverness is on i4th June 1773, when five persons in that town or neighbour
hood applied to the Presbytery of Elgin for sermon, and a day's supply was
appointed them. There was little more done for upwards of a dozen years,
though Mr Buchanan of Nigg might occasionally favour them with a Gaelic
service. On 3oth June 1788 fourteen persons petitioned to be received under
the inspection of the Presbytery, and to obtain frequent supply, which was
granted.
First Minister.— ^NEAS M'BEAN, from Nigg. As a Gaelic preacher he
PRESBYTERY OF ELGIN AND INVERNESS 643
was in urgent demand for Pictou, a mission which the Synod wished him to
undertake, but as he had his difficulties they did not insist. Inverness had
now come in claiming his services, and his minister, Mr Buchanan, wrote
r MGregor of Pictou as follows :-" The congregation of Inverness is
small, and most of them very poor. They have promised £20 of stipend
their greatest dependence for the payment of which is on occasional hearers'
and the future increase of the congregation. But Mr M'Bean is resolved to
be content with whatever they shall be able to give him." Ordained soth
November 1790. Of the Antiburgher cause in Inverness the Haldanes
"By the erection and establishment (thereof) it was hoped
that the interests of true religion would have been greatly promoted in this
istnct but it is greatly to be regretted that zeal for the peculiarities of the
party have cut off the prospect of extensive usefulness." A condensed
account of Mr M'Bean's ministerial course is given by Dr M'Gregor •
His life afterwards was not a happy one. The congregation did not grow
but continued always small and poor, and to be able to live at all he found
it necessary to follow teaching or some other employment, and finally was
involved in charges of immorality, which brought him under the discipline
of the Church." Everything by this time -was "sick and helpless and
The minister of the straitest sect of our religion had been
frequently and openly seen coming out of public-houses in a state of intoxica
tion, specially on Saturday evenings and Sabbath mornings For these
offences and neglect of ministerial duty the Synod in April 1810 suspended
him, and on 2gth August 1811 they loosed him from his charge In May
1812 the merits of the case were gone into, but the sentence of suspension
sine die carried over a motion to depose. Nine years before this a specific
charge of another kind was brought against Mr M'Bean, but the evidence
being considered untrustworthy the Synod allowed, or rather tempted him
to take the oath of purgation, a measure of which some members expressed
strong disapproval. All we know of him further from the Church records
is that the Synod granted £5 in 1820 for his behoof, the money to be at the
disposal of the minister of Forres. He is said to have died in 1824.
Inverness congregation now passes very much out of notice for some
years, but it continued to exist, though in a weakened state. In 1810 the
Synod enjoined the Presbytery of Elgin to give them supply of sermon as
.they were able, the difficulty being increased owing to Gaelic preachin"-
being indispensable. In 1816 interest revived on the Synod's part, and
Mr yEdie of Forfar was sent to supply two months in Inverness He was
followed in 1817 by Mr Stark of Dennyloanhead and Mr Ritchie of
Cilmarnock, who were to remain two months each. It was explained that
tthese appointments were made "owing to the peculiar circumstances of the
Congregation," and the expenses were to be defrayed from the general fund
[Under these fostering influences the cause began to lift up its head anew
and liberty of moderation was applied for, though the people stated that they
icould not undertake from their own resources more than ^60 of stipend
The Synod promised aid to the extent of £20 a year for the time, provided
UUgm Presbytery would raise other £20 by collections from their several
pongregations.
j Second Minister.— JAMES SCOTT, from Pitcairngreen. Ordained, 2ist
March 1821, the congregation consisting at this time of 12 members.' The
jJtipend they offered was ^60, with house rent, and outside aid consisted now
Of a grant of ^25 from the Synod for three years by way of experiment. A
lew church was also required, and for this purpose the Synod allowed the
large sum of ,£300, the Presbytery being instructed to take care that the
property be not so burdened as to defeat the object. In 1829, though the
644 HISTORY OF U.P. CONGREGATIONS
congregation was raising annually ^160, the debt of ^600 was felt to be
overtaxing their energies, and an appeal for assistance had to be made to
the Presbytery. In 1836 the communicants were upwards of 150, and the
stipend, including everything, was .£123. Of the 650 sittings not quite
one-third were let, and a considerable part of the income was derived from
extraordinary collections. Mr Scott was warranted in saying "few congrega
tions in the body, if there is one, have had to struggle with such poverty,
opposition, and difficulty as they had." But in 1839 the Liquidation Board
came to their aid, and the remaining debt of ,£420 was entirely extinguished,
the congregation having raised ,£270 and obtained a grant of ,£150. In
1845 the stipend was ,£100, with sacramental expenses, and there was also
a manse now. Thus the congregation gradually surmounted its early
hardships and reached the self-supporting point.
Third Minister. — GEORGE ROBSON, M.A., son of Dr Robson, Wellington!
Street, Glasgow. Was also called to Dennyloanhead, but preferred Inver
ness, and was ordained as colleague to Mr Scott, i4th November 1866.
The two ministers were to have ^150 each, and the call was signed by
156 members and 185 adherents. Mr Scott's jubilee was celebrated in
April 1871, when he was presented among other gifts with ,£156, and before
the close of the year he received the degree of D.D. from Monmouth College,"
Illinois. He died, I2th December 1875, m tne eighty-fourth year of his age
and fifty-fifth of his ministry. His only published sermon, so far as we
know, is that occasioned by the death of the Rev. Thomas Stark, Forres, the
text being these appropriate words : " How are the mighty fallen ! "
daughter of Mr Scott's is the widow of the Rev. John P. Miller, formerly o
Carnoustie.
At the close of 1879 the congregation had a membership of 261, and the
minister received a stipend of ^300. In 1890 Mr Robson obtained the
degree of D.D. from Glasgow University, and at the Synod in 1891 he was,
appointed editor of the Missionary Record. The distance of Inverness
from Edinburgh now occasioned inconvenience, but this was got over by the
acceptance of a call to Bridgend, Perth, on 26th December 1894.
Fourth Minister. — GEORGE S. STEWART, M.A., from Camphill, Glasgoi
Ordained, I7th October 1895. Mr Stewart, having devoted himself U
mission work in Kaffraria, was loosed from Inverness, 28th March 1899
The congregation now agreed to call the Rev. G. A. Johnston Ross from
Westbourne Grove, London, a native of Inverness, but at his earnest reques
they went no further.
Fifth Minister. — CHARLES ROBSON, M.A., translated from Pollok Street,
Glasgow, where he had been two and a half years. Inducted, 2ist December
1899. The membership at this time was 400, and the stipend ,£350.
INVERNESS, QUEEN STREET (UNITED SECESSION)
ON i6th July 1829 the Presbytery of Elgin received a letter with thirte
signatures praying for sermon in the Gaelic language. The session of Mr
Scott's congregation having no objections this was granted, with certain
limitations, on 24th November following. There were at this time several
Gaelic stations in the counties of Ross and Inverness, supplied by preachers
under the direction of a special Synodical Committee. It was now agreed
that these new applicants should obtain a share of their labours on condition
that they paid all expenses, the funds of the Gaelic committee being limited
to the maintenance of the gospel in destitute places. On this footing Gaelic
services were kept up at intervals in Inverness till the beginning of 183:
PRESBYTERY OF ELGIN AND INVERNESS 645
Then the people petitioned to have Mr Alexander Munro located among
them till the end of March. They had hitherto been paying a guinea for
each Sabbath's supply, and they were willing to go on at the same rate as
before. This was given effect to, but Mr Munro's labours were not confined
to Inverness till June 1836. On Qth July 1833 he was ordained at Boghole
as a minister at large, both himself and the Presbytery believing this would
be to the advantage of his missionary work. In the early part of 1836 there
were tokens of an adverse tide. It had been already found that the funds
would not yield more than i6s. each Sabbath, and now it was intimated that
owing to political opposition the people were to be deprived of their place
of meeting. Fortunately, a friend of the Secession came forward and volun
teered to erect a church at his own expense and rent it to them at ^5 a
year. This arrangement was gone into, but the building became almost at
once their own property.
On i /th November 1837 ten persons were received into Church fellowship
at a meeting of Presbytery — all women, and 6 of them widows. This step
was taken to meet the wishes of Mr Munro, who had made a premature
intimation about having the communion dispensed. On I4th May 1839 a
congregation was formed consisting of 4 men and 14 women. A year and
a half before this a report given in to the Commissioners on Religious
Instruction brings out the state of affairs in the forming congregation. The
church, it is stated, cost .£163, of which ,£66, IDS. was still to be paid. The
missionary's salary of ,£70 came from the Synod, but of this ^24 was paid
back from the ordinary collections. The income of £20 from seat-rents and
extraordinary collections went to reduce the debt. There were 212 sittings
let, those in front at 2s. a year, and those farther back at is. 6d. They had
sermon three times each Sabbath, all in Gaelic, except on the evening of
alternate Sabbaths, when there was English.
First Minister. —ALEXANDER MUNRO, a native, his relatives believe, of
Strathhaldane, in Farr parish, Sutherlandshire, so that he must have come
from the Established Church. Inducted on 8th March 1842, but this made
little change in the relation between him and the congregation. The stipend
promised was .£49, and the Presbytery were to ask the Board to make it up
to ,£80. The call was signed by 34 members, which must have been within
a Tittle of the whole number, and by 114 adherents. Mr Munro got licence
from Edinburgh Presbytery eighteen years before this, and was appointed
by the Synod to Lochgilphead as his centre for the time, and he was to
itinerate in the adjacent district, preaching both in Gaelic and English. In
a few years he was transferred to the North Highlands. In the Mission
Report for 1844 the membership of Inverness congregation was given as
62, and the attendance 300. The place had become too strait for them, and
they were erecting a gallery to accommodate 120 more. Few missionary
congregations, it was testified, had prospered as this was doing, and during
the past year they had contributed over ^100 in all. Next year the debt on
the property was liquidated, the congregation having raised ,£140 and the
Board having allowed ,£100. About the same time a plain manse was built
almost entirely through the exertions of the minister. During the following
years there was gradual increase in numbers, and in 1848 there were 84
names on the communion roll. Mr Munro died, I3th December 1854, in the
sixty-eighth year of his age and thirteenth of his fixed ministry. His son,
Mr Daniel Munro, got licence from Elgin Presbytery, but joined the Estab
lished Church, and was ordained minister of the Parliamentary Church, Inch,
in the parish of Kingussie, in 1846. He retired in 1894, and died suddenly
on 1 3th December of that year, aged eighty-one.
The scheme for evangelising in the North Highlands which was carried
646 HISTORY OF U.P. CONGREGATIONS
on at a considerable outlay for many years had now been abandoned. In the
beginning of 1841 the Presbytery of Elgin recommended that services be
discontinued at Evanton, in Kiltearn parish, owing to the large expenditure
laid out on if in vain, and also v'on the ground of the Gaelic probationers in
connection with the United Secession Church being in general imperfectly
acquainted with the language, and unable in other respects to compete with
the ministers of the Establishment in a district generally distinguished by
evangelical, acceptable, and efficient preachers ; and further, on the ground
that the Gaelic preachers connected with the Secession might, in the Presby
tery's opinion, be advantageously employed in those parts of the Highlands
that are destitute of evangelical preaching." In the same way other Gaelic
stations were surrendered— Petty before this, and Dulzie followed in 1844— but
in the latter case the withdrawal was partly because the Free Church had
come in to dispute possession of the ground. All that remained now as the
fruit of the Secession mission to the North Highlands was Mr Munro's con
gregation in Inverness. In 1851 an attempt was made to revive the scheme
by the Presbytery of Inverness petitioning the Synod to grant a certain sum
annually to assist young men in their studies with a view to becoming
preachers in the Gaelic language, but next year their former brethren of
Elgin Presbytery overtured the Synod to do no such thing. The failure of
similar attempts in the past, the gradual discontinuance of the Gaelic lan
guage, and the occupation of the field by other evangelical denominations,
were the grounds taken. The proposal was accordingly allowed to drop.
After Mr Munro's death Inverness (Second) was for some years under
the charge of Mr Adam Gordon, a Gaelic missionary who came from among
the Congregationalists in 1851. His application for admission to the U.P.
Church was sent up to the Synod by Falkirk Presbytery, Mr Gordon being
town missionary in Linlithgow at the time. We find that he was a theo
logical student under Dr Wardlaw and Mr Greville Ewing so early as 1834,
and having been long engaged preaching in Gaelic he was recommended as
a valuable accession to the Church. In 1856 he received ordination, and
\yas located at Inverness, but the pastoral bond was never formed. On the
Synod roll the name appears at three successive meetings with the word
missionary appended, but he was never present, and neither ordination nor
admission is entered in the records. In May 1860 he retired from this
anomalous position, and is said to have died eleven years afterwards.
Second Minister. — DONALD Ross, from Nigg. Ordained, 22nd August
1860. The membership at the beginning of "that year was 62, and the
attendance was returned at nearly four times that number. Mr Ross' call
was signed by 40 members and 112 adherents, and the stipend was to be
.£65 and a manse, and ^25 from the Mission Board. In 1867 a new manse
was built at a cost of .£650, of which .£350 came from the Manse Fund, and
on i ;th September 1865 a new church, with sittings for 600, and built at a
cost of .£1200, had been opened by Dr George Johnston, Edinburgh, to
whose congregation Mr Ross belonged in his student days. In 1870 the
debt of ^120 which remained on the property was liquidated, the people hav
ing raised .£70 and the Board having granted ,£50. At the end of that year
there were 132 names on the communion roll, but changes were now im
pending. Mr Ross died, 2oth July 1871, in the fifty-first year of his age and
eleventh of his ministry. His son, the Rev. G.' A. Johnston Ross, was
minister of Westbourne Grove, London, in October 1900.
The congregation in choosing a successor to Mr Ross got upon altered
lines.^ In February 1872 a cordial and unanimous call to the Rev. Alexander
C. M Donald of Thamesford, Canada, signed by 122 communicants and 341
adherents was laid on the Presbvterv's table. As Mr M'Donald belonged
PRESBYTERY OF ELGIN AND INVERNESS 647
to a Church which was not within the compass of the Mutual Eligibility Act
the call was not sustained till a subsequent meeting, and even then by only
5 votes to 4. The case being referred to the Synod their advice was
to set aside the call and recommend the congregation to seek a Gaelic
minister from the Free Church, the main difficulty to appearance being Mr
M 'Donald's want of consent to become a U.P. minister. But the people
were bent on obtaining the man of their choice, and at a meeting of Presby
tery in August their commissioners intimated very plainly that unless this
were to be the issue they would give them no further trouble. At next meet
ing the Presbytery consented to request Mr M'Donald to perform pulpit and
pastoral duties among Queen Street people meanwhile, on the understanding
• that he should receive the full amount of stipend and supplement. They
could do nothing more till May, as it was to the Synod alone that the power
belonged of admitting him to the ministry of the U.P. Church. But already
the congregation had resolved to apply for admission to the Free Church,
and at a regular meeting on 28th October this resolution was confirmed by a
majority of 85 to 6. Straggling votes were afterwards gathered in, and the
total numbers were 104 to 16. As the trust-deed secured the property to
three-fourths of the congregation, go where they might, the church and
manse were lost to the denomination. The minority included two elders out
of seven, but being so few in number, and supply in Gaelic so difficult to be
had, it was deemed inadvisable to attempt keeping up sermon, and on i6th
December 1873 they were formally united to the English congregation. A
few weeks before this the Free Church Commission agreed to receive the
Queen Street petitioners on condition — (i) That before proceeding to call a
minister they engage to contribute ^100 a year for his maintenance ; and
(2) That they repay the U.P. Church ^250 in consideration of money grants
formerly received. Mr M'Donald, who got the degree of D.D. in 1894, was
inducted over them soon after, and at the time of the recent Union they had
a membership of 530, including adults not in full communion, and their
income for the preceding year was little under .£400.
BURGHEAD (UNITED SECESSION)
ON 2 ist March 1821 the Presbytery of Elgin took into consideration the
state of Burghead, a fishing village with upwards of 500 inhabitants, distant
five and a half miles from Elgin, nine and a half from Forres, and with no
place of worship nearer than four miles. " The Dissenters," we read in a
History of Moray, "did something for the neglected place, and we must
particularly mention with honour the Rev. Messrs Stark (of Forres) and
Crawford (of Elgin), who occasionally preached themselves, and also induced
others of their brethren to do so." The claims of Burghead were laid before
the Synod at its approaching meeting, and a donation of j£io obtained to aid
in the support of ordinances during summer. On 27th August a petition
from 26 men, mostly heads of families, was given in professing adherence
to the Secession. They had raised ,£100 themselves, and wished assistance
in building a place of worship. A site was obtained from the proprietor of
the village, who gave them a subscription of £20 besides. The church, with
accommodation for 500, was built at a cost of .£367, and 300 sittings were
let at the first term. There was large promise, but a check came from the
action of the Established Presbytery in proceeding with the erection of an
opposition church. The parish minister even made a proposal to reimburse
the Secession Presbytery for the expenses incurred in supplying the station
with preachers, and he would also settle with the workmen for the cost of the
648 HISTORY OF U.P. CONGREGATIONS
building if they would quietly withdraw. An attempt was made, on the other
hand, to buy off the Established Church by an offer of ^40, but this was
positively refused. " They would enter into no terms of accommodation
unless for the purpose of removing the Secession." As for the people, they
were resolute against giving up, but the counter-movement went on, and on
28th November 1822 the Rev. Mr Gordon, minister of Duffus, reported to
the Presbytery that a place of worship had been erected in connection with
the Establishment, and that Mr David Simpson had been elected minister,
and had commenced his labours on the 3rd of that month. Overlapping
had now taken the place of destitution and neglect.
On 3Oth May 1822 a committee of Presbytery met to ascertain how many
members of the Secession congregations in Elgin and Forres were willing to
gather round the new cause. It was found that there were 6, including
an elder, in Elgin (South Street), 8 in Elgin (Moss Street), and u in Forres.
On i yth June these 25 were formed into the Secession congregation of
Burghead. In July 1823 a moderation was applied for, the stipend to be
^60. The call was addressed to Mr James Hardie, but after long delay
Kinghorn offered, and Burghead declined to enter into the competition.
This call was signed by 22 members and 38 adherents, but it was explained
that the women had mostly left before it was known that they were allowed
to subscribe.
First Minister. — DAVID CARMICHAEL, from Perth (North), through
whom, as was testified fourteen years afterwards, the congregation received
a stroke from which it had never since recovered. Let us trace this
gentleman's antecedents as a preacher, and see what failure in discipline at
the right time may come to. In 1821 the Presbytery of Wigtown by
appointment of Synod made inquiry into reports affecting the character of
Mr Carmichael, probationer. The principal charge failed for want of an
accuser, but the Presbytery found indications of too great fondness for
drinking companies, so much so that none of them could have employed
him without giving offence. By his own account, "the imputation arose
from something in his manner which he was not aware of till friends told
him of it." Kilmarnock Presbytery had also been enjoined to deal with
kindred rumours which were afloat within their bounds, but nothing
tangible followed, and at the Synod in September of that year Mr CannichaePs
name was restored to the preachers' list. In 1822 he was called to Banff,
but after having him other two months opposition arose, and to save the
congregation from ruin the call had to be laid aside. But again Mr
Carmichael became the victim of bad reports, which, like those that went
before, he declared to be utterly false. A certain party in Elgin was to be
conversed with as to what he had seen, but though it was elicited that Mr
Carmichael looked like one who had been drinking the witness considered
this to be unworthy of notice.
The ordination was appointed to take place on 2nd February 1825, but
when the Presbytery met at Burghead that day misfortune was once more
on Mr Carmichael's track, in the form of a letter from Messrs Angus and
Stirling of Aberdeen. Rumours affecting his moral character had cropped
up in that town of fully a worse type, and proceedings had to be sisted for
the time. Again there was flat denial, and the offer to prove an alibi
besides. A civil prosecution was also spoken of, and this may have helped
to keep the most important witnesses from coming forward. The congrega
tion of Burghead were all the while insisting on having the man of their
choice set over them, and the Presbytery of Elgin in their difficulties agreed
to refer the papers simpliciter to the Synod. The supreme court in their
finding gave full effect to technicalities. Their declaration bore that as the
PRESBYTERY OF ELGIN AND INVERNESS 649
fama to Mr Carmichael's prejudice was not supported by evidence it could
not suffice to prevent his ordination. Still, the Presbytery were not clear
about going forward, but at the congregation's request they appointed Mr
Carmichael for interim supply at Burghead. Nothing further having
emerged he was ordained on 29th August 1825. It was to be hoped that
minister and people were now out of their troubles, though with some who
knew the circumstances there might be hoping against hope. On igth June
1826 the congregation complained to the Presbytery that their minister was
unable to preach, and though he assured them of supply for the last three
Sabbaths they found on assembling that there was no one to take the pulpit.
The consequence was that they were suffering, and greatly scattered.
On loth July 1826 a committee of Presbytery went to Burghead, accom
panied by a medical gentleman from Elgin who had formerly attended Mr
Carmichael. He complained of great weakness, but the doctor found that
his disorder was greatly aggravated, to say the least, by the use of spirituous
liquors, against which " in every shape and degree he had often and all
along warned him." It was to fare ill now with the Secession cause at
Burghead, in conflict, as it was, with the Established Church. Members
came forward to the Presbytery explaining that they never received Mr
Carmichael as their pastor, though they were willing to give him a fair trial,
but, feeling dissatisfied, they craved to be disjoined. Persons recently
elected to the eldership also, with one consent, refused to be ordained,
pleading that on moral grounds they could have no connection with Mr
Carmichael. The Synod, before which the state of Burghead congregation
was brought in September 1826, declared that they did not by their former
decision enjoin the Presbytery to ordain Mr Carmichael, that he appeared
to have been treated with undue lenity, and orders were now given to call
him to account for his alleged misconduct. Two months later the congrega
tion complained to the Presbytery of their deplorable condition, which was
daily growing worse, attributing this state of things to the behaviour of their
pastor. The court now proceeded with a libel, in which the root-evil
hardly got its rightful place. A tiresome examination of witnesses followed,
Mr Carmichael disputing every inch of ground, but on 6th February 1827 he
gave in the demission of his charge, which was at once and unanimously
accepted. Yet at this very time he was armed with a paper signed by 113
persons calling themselves hearers in his church, who gave it as their
opinion that Mr Carmichael was chargeable with nothing worse than " want
of health."
Further investigation followed, and on 25th September 1827 the Rev.
David Carmichael was deposed from the office of the holy ministry and
excluded from the fellowship of the Church. The essential merits of his
case were now beyond concealment, even those who had done their best
for him being unable to hold out against the evidence of their own eyes.
He had also suffered incarceration for debt, and in an open meeting of the
congregation, when he applied for some pecuniary aid, he was told to his
face "that they would give him nothing, because he would spend it in
purchasing spirits as soon as he got it." " Habit and repute a tippler," or
worse, was the character he carried with him from Burghead and retained
to the end. He now went to reside at Craigie, near Perth, where he earned
an uncertain livelihood by porterage work, writing letters for people un
skilled in the use of the pen, and such things. He died in the poorhouse,
Perth, on 5th August 1865, aged sixty-nine. These details have been given
to show how a young and promising congregation was all but ruined through
the remissness of Church courts in dealing with moral delinquency as it
•deserved.
650 HISTORY OF U.P. CONGREGATIONS
Second Minister.— ROBERT SCOTT, from Stow. The stipend promised
was ,£60, but an allowance was expected from the Synod as formerly, and
the Presbytery was satisfied that a settled pastor was needed if the
congregation were to be preserved in existence. A session was meanwhile
organised with three elders, and Mr Scott was ordained, 2nd April 1828,
but he died before the end of the year. On i6th December the Presbytery
held its ordinary meeting at Elgin, but as the Rev. Robert Scott had been
removed by death on the i4th, and that being the funeral day, they took
his name from the roll, and adjourned to meet at Burghead immediately
after the interment. Mr Scott was in the twenty-sixth year of his age and
the ninth month of his ministry. It is gratifying to read that during his
brief course the church prospered, and the Presbytery even hoped that it
would reach the self-supporting point ere long. The congregation soon
afterwards presented a call to the Rev. William Taylor, who had retired from
Stronsay five years before, and was now on the probationer list. The call
was either signed or acceded to by 24 communicants and 1 16 adherents, but
owing to the Synod having refused a continuance of the usual pecuniary
assistance, the people felt much discouraged, the attendance was falling off,
and regular supply of sermon could hardly be maintained. Mr Taylor had
also failed to come within the bounds with a view to induction at Burghead,
and the congregation wished the call to lapse, which was agreed to. They
now called Mr Patrick Robertson, a son of the Rev. Patrick Robertson of
Craigdam, but he lingered with his trials till he received a call to Sunder-
land, and then that from Burghead was withdrawn.
Third Minister.— JOHN ROBERTSON, M.A., another son of Mr Robertson
of Craigdam. The two brothers entered the Divinity Hall together, finished
their course together, and got licence together from Stewartfield Presbytery.
Ordained, 22nd May 1832. At this time the collections from an audience
of between 1 50 and 200 averaged 75. 6d., the seat-rents amounted to less
than ^10 a year, and they owed ,£70 of borrowed money, besides accumu
lated interest on their place of worship. After Mr Robertson had gone on
for fully two years the Presbytery held a pro re nata meeting at Nairn to
receive the demission of his charge, as he intended to set out for America in
a few days. The commissioner stated that their minister had, as he believed,
left Burghead not to return ; that though he preached to them on Sabbath
week he gave the people no notice of his intention, and the state of mind
produced in the congregation was such that few had any wish to retain him.
In a letter to the Presbytery Mr Robertson assigned as reasons for the
step he had taken his want of success at Burghead, the inveterate prejudices
prevalent there against the Secession, inadequate support, and intolerable
distress of mind. That day, 26th August 1834, the resignation was accepted,
and Mr Robertson'? conduct was to be pronounced on. He was not beyond
reach, for at next meeting he gave notice to the Presbytery that he was not
to leave this country till spring, and in reality he never went to America at
all. In the whole matter he ultimately acknowledged that he had not acted
with fair and downright honesty, and they agreed to let procedure drop.
Without having returned to the preachers' list he was inducted to Wallsend,
near Newcastle, 3rd October 1837, of which his resignation was accepted,
4th November 1845.*
Mr Robertson was located at Walker after this, but in November 1846 he
intimated to the Presbytery that he had strong scruples about infant baptism. A
committee reported a month afterwards that they had met with him, that he declared
his belief that infant baptism was not sanctioned by Scripture, and that he withdrew
from the Secession. He petitioned soon after for aid from the Synod, but the
Presbytery, while sympathising with him, did not deem it expedient to make any
PRESBYTERY OF ELGIN AND INVERNESS 651
Fourth Minister.— ALEXANDER TILLIE, from Earlston. They had
previously called Mr James Barrie, but he declined, and obtained' Carn-
\vath soon after. The stipend remained fixed at ^60, and Mr Tillie was
ordained, 1 4th October 1835. In 1839 the Debt Liquidation Board outlined
the troubled history of Burghead congregation through the immorality and
consequent ejection of their first minister, the early and sudden death of the
second, and the abrupt departure of the third, " greatly to their hurt." A
burdensome debt of .£115, with the effective aid of ,£65, was now extin
guished, the congregation managing to raise the other .£50. The year
before this Mr Tillie had resigned, pleading the smallness of the member
ship and attendance and the little prospect of increase, but the congrega
tion having petitioned the Presbytery against being deprived of their
esteemed pastor he agreed to remain. He continued to bear up in the
face of discouragements till the first Sabbath of February 1852, when he
was seized with paralysis in the pulpit, and never appeared there again.
His resignation was accepted on 2oth April, amidst expressions of deep
sympathy, and he died, 22nd August 1853, in the fifty-ninth year of his
age and eighteenth of his ministry. The congregation now called the Rev.
Alexander Walker, formerly of Newcastle, who was inducted to Crail some
time afterwards.
Fifth Minister. — JAMES MUCKERSIE ERSKINE, from Alloa (Townhead).
The congregation promised ^50, with the manse, and the Presbytery ex
pected ^40 from the Board. Ordained, 3Oth March 1854. A new church
was opened on 8th December 1861, with 300 sittings, and built at a cost of
^750, the people out of their scanty resources having contributed ^200 in
advance. In 1866 the membership was over 100, and the people were
paying ^70 of stipend, which supplement raised to ^115, besides the manse.
On 5th June 1872 Mr Erskine accepted a call to Bow, London, where he
would have difficulties of another kind to face. He died, 29th April 1885,
in the sixtieth year of his age and thirty-second of his ministry.
Sixth Minister. -— JOHN SMITH, M.A., from Forres. Accepted the call
without demur, and was ordained, 5th March 1873. There was encourage
ment for Burghead now, but it was not to be of long duration. Though Mr
Smith declined Blantyre next year he was loosed from Burghead on I4th
September 1875, having agreed to return to Fraserburgh, where he did good
work when a divinity student.
Seventh Minister. — ALEXANDER WATT, M.A., from College Street,
Edinburgh. Ordained, 27th July 1877. His health having suffered from
the breezes of the Moray Firth Mr Watt resigned his charge, ist August
1882, and went to reside in Edinburgh. Having tried New South Wales by
medical advice he found the climate unsuitable, and returned, but was so
much benefited by the voyage that his name was restored to the probationer
list at his own request in the beginning of 1888, and he was inducted to East
Linton in 1890.
Eighth Minister. — JAMES MANN, from East Campbell Street, Glasgow.
Ordained, 27th June 1883. A few years after this a new manse was built,
the estimated cost being .£480, of which the Board were to pay ^200. The
membership at the close of 1899 was 109, and the stipend -from the people
with the manse.
such application. In his new connection Mr Robertson was first in Middle ton,
Teesdale, then on 6th May 1849 he was inducted to the Baptist Church, Keppel
Street, London. He was afterwards at Dunstaple, and his last charge was near
Cambridge. He died at Stroud, Gloucestershire, I2th March 1874, aged sixty-eight.
He is said to have been erratic all along.
652 HISTORY OF U.P. CONGREGATIONS
LOSSIEMOUTH (UNITED SECESSION)
ON 28th July 1840 the Presbytery of Elgin, which at that time was on the
outlook for new fields, appointed Mr Andrew Reid, probationer, to supply
the first four Sabbaths of August at Lossiemouth. This was a fishing
village, five miles north-east of Elgin, with a population of 900, and, being
two and a half miles from the parish church, it had been much neglected.
On 1 5th September these services were followed up by a petition from
upwards of 240 persons for Mr Reid's continuance among them, and in view
of erecting a place of worship, which they calculated would cost between
^250 and ^300, they readily agreed to raise ^100. On 2oth October a
congregation was formed, consisting of 17 members who had been disjoined
from the Secession churches of Elgin and Burghead, two of whom, being
elders already, were invited to constitute the session of Lossiemouth. On
24th November a call was addressed to Mr Reid, signed by 20 members and
122 adherents, the stipend promised being ^60.
First Minister. — ANDREW REID, M.A., from Cambuslang. Ordained,
22nd September 1841. The new church, with sittings for 500, was opened
on the preceding Sabbath. In the Mission Report for 1843 the membership
was given at 94 and the attendance at 300. In 1845 the debt of ,£200 which
rested on the chapel was cleared off, with the help of ,£100 from the Liquida
tion Board. Mr Reid died, 25th July 1846, in the forty-third year of his age
and fifth of his ministry. He had over-exerted himself in conversing long
and earnestly with seven young men in succession on their religious state.
This was followed by the bursting of a blood-vessel in the lungs, which
ended in consumption. During his five years of preacher life Mr Reid was
much occupied in new stations like Lossiemouth, and from two of these —
Ramsay in the Isle of Man, and Creetown in Galloway — he received calls.
The impress of his labours he left behind him in the improved religious and
moral aspect of Lossiemouth, especially on the sacred day.
Second Minister. — WILLIAM M'DONALD, M.A., from Inverness (First).
Called also to Nigg, which put forth strong claims to his services, as he
possessed the Gaelic language, but he adhered to his acceptance of Lossie
mouth, where he was ordained, ijth June 1847, the call being signed by 91
members and 206 adherents. Six years afterwards Mr M'Donald demitted
his charge on the ground of inadequate support. The stipend prior to this
had only been £70 from the people, with the manse, and ,£20 of supple
ment. But, deeply concerned at the thought of their minister leaving, the
people made an advance of £20, and the resignation was withdrawn. On
i6th April 1889 Mr M'Donald, who had required regular assistance for some
time, was at his own request relieved of his charge. It was agreed that he ;
should have a retiring allowance of ,£30 a year, and, much to the regret of:
his people, he was to remove from Lossiemouth to Elgin. The membership
was given at this time at 258, but owing to partial failures in the fishing
seasons, and the absence of so many during six months of the year, the
funds had been falling behind, and the debt amounted to ,£360. In these
circumstances Mr M'Donald saw reason to forego his claim to the retiring
allowance and accept a testimonial of .£77 instead. This was in 1891, and
on nth November 1894 he died, in the eightieth year of his age and forty-
eighth of his ministry.
Third Minister. — MATTHEW LEISHMAN, from Lauriston Place, Edin
burgh. Ordained, i ith February 1890, after the people had had a prolonged
trial of his gifts. The membership at the close of 1899 was 201, and the
stipend from the people ^130, the sum promised him originally, but they
have no manse, and never had.
PRESBYTERV OF ELGIN AND INVERNESS 653.
TAIN (UNITED SECESSION)
ON 4th September 1838 Mr Pringle of Elgin reported to his Presbytery that
he had lately visited Tain at the request of some friends there who were en
gaged in erecting a Secession place of worship, and they requested him to
bring their case under the notice of the court. On Sabbath, gth June 1839,
the church, with 30x3 sittings, was opened, when the Rev. Thomas Stark of
Forres preached in English from the words: "This is none other but the
house of God," and the Rev. John Munro of Nigg from the corresponding
words: "This is the gate of heaven." Bristo congregation, Edinburgh,
had already come to the assistance of the Seceders in Tain, and of the ^424
which the building cost more than ^300 goes to the credit of that congrega
tion. Appointments now began to be regularly made, the preachers being
generally continued two months each. In December they were visited by
Mr James Morison, who was then in the full fervour of his evangelistic
activity, and who remained amidst abounding labours till the end of January.
He spoke of many having been awakened under his preaching and of nearly
20 having given evidence that they had passed from death to life. The in
terest was well sustained, and on 28th July 1840 13 persons were formed
into a congregation, of whom 7 had certificates from Secession churches,
and 3 or 4 of these had been members at Nigg, six miles to the south.
In this way there may have been sermon at Tain on some rare occasion by
a Secession minister, but the name has no place in the Presbytery records
till the church was in course of erection.
The next real difficulty lay in the obtaining of a minister. Towards the
end of 1841 they called Mr A. L. Simpson, but the light was too bright to
be placed under a bushel, and it was about to find its befitting altitude at
Forres. The stipend was to be ^100, of which Bristo guaranteed one-half.
The next they called was the Rev. Robert Paterson, but he drew back, and
obtained Midmar. The third call, which was not till February 1843, led to
some rare unfoldings. It was addressed to Mr Andrew G. Hogg, a son of
the Rev. William Hogg of Haddington. After some months' delay, longer
time having been asked for deliberation, Mr Hogg declined the call. The
congregation thereupon complained that Mr Hogg not only encouraged
them to call him but told them on leaving that he would return in two or
three months to be their minister. The Presbytery on investigation found
that a positive promise to accept the call was not established, though the
strain and tendency of his correspondence was to tempt that conclusion.
The affair might now have dropped, but some remarks made in open court,
and reported in the public prints, prompted Mr Hogg to take up the pen
and write a long letter to the Forres Gazette " censuring in a strain of rude
insolence the proceedings of the court in his cause." The Presbytery took
drastic measures to redress the wrong, and summarily suspended Mr Hogg
from the exercise of his licence. They also ordered intimation of their
deed to be sent to all the Presbyteries of the Church and to the Distribu
tion Committee. In a fortnight Mr Hogg had his complaint before the
Synod, which, without entering on the merits, declared the sentence to be
incompetent, as he was outside the bounds of Elgin Presbytery at the time
they pronounced upon his case. This decision when reported to next meet
ing of Presbytery stung the members out of their propriety. Their rights,
they said, had been so encroached on that, instead of proceeding with their
ordinary business, they would simply adjourn. At next meeting, however, it
was agreed by the Moderator's casting vote not to abdicate their functions
but wait till next Synod should remove the injustice of which they coi
654 HISTORY OF U.P. CONGREGATIONS
plained. Mr Stark of Forres was clear against moving a finger meanwhile,
and he had several followers, but at next Synod he was placed in the
Moderator's chair, and though the cancelling of the sentence was confirmed
Mr Hogg was handed over to be dealt with by Elgin Presbytery. Before this
case was issued Tain congregation had called Mr John M. Dyer, who ac
cepted North Berwick.
First Minister.— Rom*.? FERRIER, from Bristo, Edinburgh. The call
was signed by 34 members, the whole number given in that year's report,
and there were also 94 adherents. The stipend was ,£100, as had been
originally arranged for. Mr Ferrier before obtaining licence wrote a
Memoir of a gifted fellow-student, Mr William Dickson, which formed two
articles in the Secession Magazine for 1841. We recall the air of deep
solemnity with which he preached in his probationer days and the earnest
ness of his opening prayers, one of them extending in length to twenty
minutes. Ordained, nth July 1844, having previously declined a call to
Lumsden. Invited in 1851 to Campbelltown, Ardersier, but remained in
Tain, though there was not much to detain him there. The membership
was only 43, and that was about the highest figure it ever reached. Indeed,
his experiences then and all on might have raised the thought whether there
ought ever to have been a Secession church in the place. The Haldanes on
visiting Tain in 1797 entered in their Journal : "The people here are highly
favoured; they are blessed with a zealous and faithful minister in the
Established Church, who is the fifth of that character in immediate succes
sion." The chain, we believe, has remained unbroken ever since — at least
in the line of the Free Church. A year before Mr Ferrier was ordained the
Disruption had cut away whatever need there may have once been for a
Secession congregation there, but, of course, there would be aversion to re
nounce the undertaking and secularise the place of worship. On i6th October
1877 Mr Ferrier was loosed from his charge owing to failing health, and he
died, gth February 1878, in the seventieth year of his age and thirty-fourth
of his ministry. The membership, which had tended to the side of decline
for twenty-five years, was now reduced to 33, but their contributions for
stipend reached £6y a year.
Second Minister. - RICHARD HUTCHINSON, from Boveedy, Ireland. Or
dained, 1 8th September 1878. The communion roll was returned in De
cember 1899 at 38, and the stipend from the people was what it has long
been, ,£70, which the supplement raised altogether to ,£166, with £20 for a
house.
ARCHIESTON (UNITED SECESSION)
THIS is a village of some 300 inhabitants in the parish of Knockando,
Morayshire, sixteen miles to the south-west of Elgin. Great as the
distance was we find Mr Duncan, the Antiburgher minister of Elgin,
petitioning the Presbytery for sermon to his people in Knockando in 1780,
and they had occasional supply some time before that. This was long dis
continued, but on 29th August 1825 a petition from 27 persons in that
parish was presented to the Presbytery of Banff. They had begun to build
a place of worship, and they craved collections in aid from the congregations
within the bounds. In October they asked for supply on alternate Sabbaths
as long as the season should continue favourable. In December the com
missioner stated that the church was built on his farm, but it was not secured
to them by legal rights as yet. For years there was worship kept up with
655
more or less frequency at two stations within the parish, four miles apart
The one was Tomdoe, the place where the church was built, and the other
Archieston, in the east end of the parish, where there was a much larger
population. The preacher generally supplied at the latter place durin- the
day, preaching twice, and at the former in the evening. On I3th June
1 843 fifteen persons were formed into a congregation. A year before this the
church at Archieston was reported to be nearly finished, and the other
which had been built without security for permanent possession, was to be
required for another purpose.
First Minister.— ANDREW SPROTT, M.A., who had retired from West
Kilbnde three years before. In December 1844 he was appointed to a
location at Archieston for six months, but at next meeting a moderation
was applied for. The worthy people could offer no more than £30 a year
with lodgings and fuel, but the Mission Board was asked to give £40
which was agreed to, and the induction took place, 8th April 1845 The
call was signed by only 21 members, but it was adhered to by 134 others
At this time they were ^44 behind owing to outlay on the church but
they were advised by the Presbytery to get the chapel improved and fitted
up with a gallery as far as required, and they would procure them assistance
During the whole course of his ministry Mr Sprott supplied at both
Archieston and Tomdoe each Lord's Day, usually travelling the four miles
between on foot in all states of the weather. In 1848 there was a member
ship of 40, and the stipend of ,£40 from the people was made up to /oo by
a supplement from the Board, but there was no manse. Mr Sprott died
4th May 1864, in the fifty-eighth year of his age and twenty-eighth of his
ministry. The membership at this time was 60, and the stipend raised by
the people .£40, as before. Next year the congregation called Mr Nathanael
F. Macdougall, who preferred Portsoy.
Second Minister.— WILLIAM SHARPE, from Crieff (North). Ordained,
3oth November 1865. The membership at the close of 1899 was 75, and
the stipend from the people ,£52 and a manse. In May 1900 the Vree
Assembly in sanctioning the calling of a colleague to the minister of
Knockando recommended the Presbytery of the bounds to see what could
be done to effect a union with the U.P. congregation. The churches, though
they had different names, were both in the village of Archieston, and the
united membership was under 200. This led the two Presbyteries to ap
point a joint committee to promote the movement. The negotiations went
smoothly and rapidly on, so that on 2nd October it was reported to the
Presbytery of Elgin and Inverness that both congregations had passed a
resolution in favour of union, only the U.P. congregation stipulated that
Mr Sharpe should be on equality with his Free Church brother in respect
of retiring allowance. The terms finally agreed on were that Mr Sharpe
be minister-emeritus, that the former supplement of £70 be continued till
he is admitted an annuitant on the Aged and Infirm Ministers' Fund, and
that he have ,£15 in addition from the funds of the united congregation
and retain possession of the manse. The property of the U.P. congregation
was to be secured to the united church, and, as a matter of course, the two
sessions were to form the united session. Mr Sharpe was acquiescent, and
the conditions only required the sanction of the Free Presbytery of Aberlour.
Thus it was made all but certain that the larger Union of 3oth October
would be followed forthwith by the smaller union of the two churches at
Archieston.
656 HISTORY OF U.P. CONGREGATIONS
CAMPBELLTOWN (UNITED SECESSION)
THIS is a village of 900 inhabitants, most of it in the parish of Ardersier,
Inverness-shire, seven or eight miles west of Nairn. The place was receiv
ing supply of sermon from the Antiburgher Presbytery of Elgin so early as
1781, but this was followed by a long blank. Now, on 8th November 1842,
it was decided to resume public services there on the following Sabbath, and
in the Home Mission Report for 1843 the attendance was put down at 200
in the forenoon and from 250 to 300 in the afternoon. From the first they
had the use of a school free of charge from Lady Anderson, who also in
other ways proved a benefactress to the cause. On I2th December of that
year a congregation was formed, but with a membership of only 10. In the
summer of 1844 Campbelltown station enjoyed the services of Mr John
Riddell, afterwards of Moffat, for three months, and this brought a steady
flow of prosperity. They wished his stay prolonged for a like period, but
he did not see his way to continue longer in that obscure outpost. Another
location a year later promised permanence, issuing, as it did, in a call to Mr
John Hunter signed by 9 members and 46 adherents. The call was
accepted, but before proceeding further it was deemed advisable to pause.
The Presbytery complained that the congregation had gone forward in this
very solemn matter without sincerity, and that, hostile feelings having arisen
towards Mr Hunter's settlement, he would consult his own comfort and
usefulness by giving up the call. This was done, and he had Pitrodie for
his reward soon after. In June 1847 it was reported to the Presbytery that
the congregation had purchased the school and a dwelling-house opposite
from Lady Anderson for ^200, and that they were in course of raising
among themselves ^60 or ^70 of the money required.
The master difficulty now lay in finding a preacher or minister willing,
as Mr Hunter had been, to undertake the charge of Campbelltown. In
November 1846 they addressed a call to Mr George Bartholomew, but he
waited on other two years, and then obtained Whitby.* In May 1850 they
called Mr William Main, who ultimately became their minister, but the
invitation came to nothing for the present. Next they attempted Mr William
Drummond, afterwards of Whitehaven, and then the Rev. Robert Ferrier of
Tain, but all without effect.
First Minister. — WILLIAM MAIN, from St James Place, Edinburgh,
who, besides the prior offer of Campbelltown, had been called in the interval
to Hexham and Lumsden. Ordained, I2th August 1852. The place of
worship had been enlarged in 1849 to accommodate 260, and the debt cleared
off, the congregation, with the help of the Presbytery, raising ,£100, and the
Board allowing a grant of another ^100. In 1867 a manse was built at a
cost of .£600, of which ,£250 came from the Manse Fund. Mr Mam died,
1 4th April 187 1, in the sixtieth year of his age and nineteenth of his ministry.
His son, Mr George H. Main, was ordained at Norham, I4th July 1869.
Second Minister.— ROBERT PRIMROSE DOUGLAS, son of the Rev. Hugh
Douglas, Lockerbie. Ordained, 26th April 1872. Accepted a call to
Otterburn, where he still labours, and was loosed from Campbelltown,
-•2nd September 1874. At this break two disappointments intervened. First
they called Mr James Bell in August 1875'. and Mr John Moir in August
* Ordained at Whitby on 26th September 1849, and was loosed, ist August 1854.
He was said to be about to join the Church of England, but we believe his de
nominational connection to have been henceforth of a very slender kind. He died
at Edinburgh, i;th May 1870, in the fifty-fourth year of his age.
PRESBYTERY OF FALKIRK 657
1876, but the one reserved himself for Auchtermuchty (East) and the other
for Cairneyhill.
Third Minister. — ALEXANDER A. ANDERSON, from Rosehearty. Or
dained, 2Qth March 1878. Though the membership at the close of 1899
was only 30 the people contributed ^80 of stipend, which was made up in
all to ,£176 and a manse.
PRESBYTERY OF FALKIRK
FALKIRK, ERSKINE CHURCH (BURGHER)
IN the early records of the Associate Presbytery Falkirk appears again and
again along with other parishes, but on I3th December 1738 it took a step
in advance. That day seven elders gave in a formal adherence to the
Secession Testimony, of whom six appeared in person. The parish minister
at this time was Mr William Anderson, who had been ordained by order of
the General Assembly a few years before, the reason assigned being that
though he had only a minority of the callers on his side that minority
included the principal heritors. He died in May 1741, and during the
vacancy of three years which followed there was considerable confusion
about the choice of a successor. This was favourable to the Seceders, and
in 1742 they built a church, with sittings for 950. In August of that year
they called Mr Hutton of Stow, but the Presbytery decided unanimously
against the translation.
First Minister. — HENRY ERSKINE, oldest son of the Rev. Ralph
Erskine, Dunfermline. Ordained, 13th March 1744. Within three weeks
the parish pulpit was filled by the admission of Mr James Adam, who
proved an evangelical preacher, and figured at the Assembly in 1751 as an
able upholder of the people's rights in the Torphichen case. But his
struggles only brought out the strength of the opposing tide, and hence his
personal acceptability may have done little to thin the Secession ranks at
Falkirk. As for Henry Erskine, unlike his brother John, who passed
through the classes with him, he kept close by his father and uncle at the
Breach, but like his brother he had a short ministerial course. He died,
29th July 1754, in the thirty-fourth year of his age and eleventh of his
ministry. His daughter Magdalene became the wife of the Rev. John
Fraser, Auchtermuchty, and in that line his descendants have filled Secession
or U.P. pulpits for three generations. During this vacancy the congregation
called Mr George Coventry, whom the Synod appointed to Stitchel, and
Mr Andrew Moir, whom they appointed to Midholm or Selkirk.
Second Minister. — JOHN BELFRAGE, from Kinross (West). The family
estate was Collision, in Orwell parish, and his mother was a daughter of the
Rev. Andrew Ure of Fossoway, an evangelical minister of the Established
Church. In this connection it is interesting to read, in Thomas Mair's Diary
of 26th February 1734, the following entry : — "At night went to Fossoway,
and married one of our parishioners with Mr Ure's daughter." Their first
; child, afterwards minister of Falkirk, was born, 5th February of the following
j year. Mr Belfrage was also called to be Ralph Erskine's successor at
j Dunfermline, but some objectors, as we have already seen, brought up
(against him at the Synod that he had been guilty of engaging in dancing.
He confessed that he and some other students had attended a dancing-
I master an hour in the evening for a month. " It was in order to teach them
2T
658 HISTORY OF U.P. CONGREGATIONS
how to behave themselves when they went into or came out from a company,
but no female was ever present." After being admonished to circumspection
and tenderness in his whole deportment he was appointed to Falkirk instead
of Dunfermline. The scandal, however, was not buried, for after the edict
was read on his ordination day 4 members of the congregation appeared to
oppose the settlement. They alleged want of candour in the acknowledg
ment Mr Belfrage made at the Synod, and also that since his appointment
to Falkirk he had tampered with Dunfermline people to obtain a second call,
but after explanations opposition was dropped, and Mr Belfrage was
ordained, 6th September 1758. The congregation must have become
numerous under Mr Erskine's ministry, since upwards of 300 members came
forward with an adherence to the call after it had been sustained, explaining
that they were either absent on the moderation day or refrained from
signing on account of former disappointments. On ist July 1793 ^r
Belfrage's son Henry got licence, and was appointed to fill his father's
pulpit on first, second, and fourth Sabbaths of that month, and at next
meeting of Presbytery a moderation was applied for.
Third Minister. — HENRY BELFRAGE, to whom other calls followed from
Saltcoats and Lochwinnoch, but the claims of Falkirk prevailed, and he was
ordained as his father's colleague and successor, i8th June 1794. The call
was signed by 443 members, and each minister was to have ^86 a year,
the father's former stipend, and he was also to retain the manse. Should
the son become sole pastor he was to receive ,£100, with the manse. His
father died, I4th May 1798, in the sixty-fourth year of his age and fortieth
of his ministry. The young minister of Falkirk speedily obtained a high
place in the Burgher Synod, and acquired renown both as a preacher and a
writer. His publications were favourites in old Secession families, and,
drawing from early remembrances, the writer would specially name his
"Sacramental Addresses" in two volumes, his "Discourses to the Young,"
his "Discourses to the Aged," and his "Exposition of the Shorter Cate
chism." In 1824 the University of St Andrews conferred on him the degree
of D.D. He died, i6th September 1835, in the sixty-second year of his age
and forty-second of his ministry. His " Life and Correspondence " was
published in 1837. The authorship was divided between the Rev. John
M'Kerrow, Bridge-of-Teith, and the Rev. John M'Farlane, then of Kin
cardine, the latter confining himself to the critical estimate. Dr Hay of
Kinross, one of the oldest friends of the deceased, was also expected to take
part in the work, but he disapproved of this unusual division of labour, and
declined. On one question, it may be remarked, Dr Belfrage lagged behind
most of his Secession brethren in his latter years. He took no part in the
agitation against Church Establishments, and when prompted to declare
himself he wrote as follows : — "I see much that is valuable associated with
such institutions, and my wish is not to see them subverted but purified and
improved." The Doctor's family ultimately joined the Episcopal Church.
Fourth Minister. — ALEXANDER C. RUTHERFORD, from Portsburgh,
Edinburgh (now Lauriston Place). Ordained, 2ist February 1837. The
return made to the Commissioners on Religious Instruction a few months
after this reveals the strength of the congregation as Mr Rutherford received
it and before strife and disruption came on. There was a communion roll
of 900, and the stipend was ^160, with a manse, ,£40 less than Dr Belfrage
had, the custom of the congregation being to give a smaller stipend for the
first two years. About 50 families were from Larbert parish, and half that
number from Polmont. The church in which they worshipped had been
built in 1817, and was afterwards enlarged at an expense of ^1000. It was
seated for 1258, and carried a debt of ,£750. There was not entire harmony
PRESBYTERY OF FALKIRK
659
when Mr Rutherford went, and in a few years turmoil took possession. The
Atonement Controversy furnished the occasion, and the first decided out
break was in July 1841. At the Synod two months before this Mr James
Morison's connection with the Secession had come to an end, and now the
young minister of Falkirk came forward with a pamphlet, entitled "The
Universal Atonement proved from the Nature of the Gospel Offer." It con
sisted of four letters addressed to the Rev. William Fraser of Alloa, who had
published three sermons on the Calvinistic side of the question. These
sermons, according to Mr Rutherford, involved a departure from the very
essence of gospel truth, though he admitted that Mr Fraser was a faithful,
conscientious, and useful minister. When charges of this kind were going
the Presbytery felt called on to interpose, and in a little while the confusion
became hopeless and interminable.
As months passed we read of protests given in and withdrawn, mis
representations complained of as having been made from the pulpit, meet
ings of Presbytery to take up some particular matter, and the principal party
absent without excuse. Amidst general bewilderment it is a relief to come
on tangibility in the form of a notice from Mr Rutherford's managers to the
Presbytery telling them that the use of the session-house or the church is to
be given them no longer. At the Synod in May 1842 Mr Rutherford comes
more distinctly into view in certain reasons of dissent he tabled against a
Statement of Errors to be issued by the Supreme Court for the guidance of
those under their inspection. These errors he had come to look on as
"the very essence of gospel truth," identifying himself with Mr Morison
throughout. The Synod instead of taking up these utterances for them
selves remitted them to be dealt with by Falkirk Presbytery. On 5th July
his brethren were about to appoint a committee to confer with Mr Rutherford,
but he told them he would meet with no committee, and, as the result, he was
suspended from the exercise of his office. His people had ranged them
selves into two parties before this. In the session two elders kept by the
minister, and seven were against him. On the other hand, 485 members
petitioned the Presbytery in favour of Mr Rutherford, and 108 sent in a
memorial to the opposite effect. These numbers may be taken to represent
the comparative strength of the conflicting elements at this time. The
minority's paper, however, was intercepted by the way. When the com
missioner presented it to the session for transmission the Moderator put
it in his pocket, and said he would not give it up unless by order of the
sheriff.
As the weary months went past confusion got worse confounded. The
seven elders who kept by the Presbytery were asked to resign, and when
they failed to do so the dominant majority in the congregation set them
aside from attending to the plate, a decision which led to a double set of
collections at the church door. In October some of the elders protested
against Mr Rutherford's right to act as Moderator while under suspension.
He thereupon asked those who recognised his authority to repair with
him to the vestry, and his two devoted followers obeyed. Next Sabbath
a minute of their proceedings was read at both diets of worship, from which
it appeared that they had deposed the other seven for sowing dissension
in the congregation and stirring up members to seek baptism elsewhere.
The Presbytery in their turn summoned Mr Rutherford and his two coad
jutors to appear before them and answer for their conduct, but he alone
came forward. The offence being acknowledged it carried to depose him
from the ministry. Then prayer was offered, but when he was called on to
receive sentence they found that he was gone.
Since last meeting of Synod Mr Rutherford and his party had again and
660 HISTORY OF U.P. CONGREGATIONS
again betaken themselves to the law courts. In June a congregational
meeting was held for the purpose of having the title-deeds of the property
altered and the church placed at the disposal of a majority of the members.
Following this up they raised an action before the Court of Session to-
compel the trustees to denude themselves of office and to have the trust
invested in the persons named in the summons. It was also alleged that
£250 had been added to the debt during the last few months and that
something would have to be done by the Presbytery if the congregation
were to be preserved in existence. Interdicts were also called in to play
their part. Thus when Mr Gilfillan of Stirling appeared at Falkirk on
Saturday, 26th November, to intimate the sentence of deposition passed
on Mr Rutherford and preach the church vacant he was confronted with
an interdict from the Court of Session. It forbade him and certain other
members of Presbytery, and also the seven dethroned elders, from entering
the meeting-house to interfere with the Rev. A. C. Rutherford in conducting
the services. A less costly contrivance served the same purpose some
months before, when Mr Stewart of Stirling came to announce the sentence
of suspension. Mr Rutherford, according to newspaper report, preached
both times that day, protected by nine men placed on the bench before
the pulpit.
The case with all its confused ups and downs was opened out at the
Synod in May 1843 — Mr Rutherford's conduct in assisting Mr Morison
at Kilmarnock, in writing fiery letters to the newspapers, and in issuing
pamphlets from the press, characterised, as George Gilfillan said of his
after productions, by " extravagances of statement and excesses of vitu
perative eloquence." At last a motion to confirm the Presbytery's sentence
of suspension was carried by 72 votes against 71 for the appointment of a
committee to deal with Mr Rutherford, and report. A protest against the
sentence, with reservation of all his rights, was answered by a declaration
that he was no longer a minister or member of the United Secession Church.
This was on the evening of Friday, 5th May, and on Sabbath morning Mr
Ronald of Saltcoats being refused access to the pulpit read the Synod's
decision at the church gate. The place of worship passed into the posses
sion of the minority on their agreeing to take over the debt of .£900 which
rested on it, besides paying the law expenses on both sides, which were
pitched to the tune of over ,£300. The erratic course pursued by the
majority will form an introduction to the history of St James Church,
Falkirk.
Fifth Minister. — ANDREW M'FARLANE, translated from Livery Street,
Bathgate, after a stay there of ten months, and inducted to Falkirk, I3th
March 1844. The call was signed by 218 members and 70 adherents, a
larger number than might have been looked for, and the stipend was to
be .£125, with sacramental expenses. In the course of a year the debt on
the property was reduced ^600 with the aid of ^230 from the Liquidation
Board, and in 1851 and 1852 there was a further reduction of ^300. In
1854 Mr M'Farlane obtained the degree of D.D. from Union College, New
York, and on ist P^ebruary 1859 he accepted a call to Nicholson Street,
Greenock (now Trinity Church). The congregation then called Mr William
Boyd, who accepted Milnathort. The stipend was now ^170, with no manse.
Sixth Minister. — WILLIAM MlLLER, from Crieff (North). When ready
to announce his acceptance of the call to Falkirk Mr Miller received notice
of another from Selkirk (West), which prompted a pause, but nothing more,
and he was ordained, 6th November 1860. On 7th April 1874 Mr Miller
was loosed from Falkirk on accepting a call to Lenzie.
Seventh Minister. — JAMES AITCHISON, M.A., from Wellington Street
PRESBYTERY OF FALKIRK 66 1
Glasgow. Ordained, igth January 1875, after declining Eaglesham. The
funds had much improved under Mr Miller, so that they furnished a stipend
of ^210, with manse and garden. During the first ten years of Mr
Aitchison's ministry the membership increased by about 100, and a sum of
over £i i oo was raised for missionary purposes. In 1890 he published his
" Signa Christi," a forcible presentation of the Christian evidences as they
centre in the person and work of Christ. At the Union Erskine Church had
a communion roll of almost exactly 600, and gave a stipend of ^300, with
manse and garden as before.
FALKIRK (ANTIBURGHER — LIFTERS)
AT the Breach of 1747 the bulk of Falkirk Associate congregation adhered
to their minister, the Rev. Henry Erskine, who took the Burgher side along
with his father and uncle. The families who broke away would have to seek
gospel ordinances at Dennyloanhead, five miles distant, or at Craigmailen,
as convenience might dictate. Their origin as a distinct community Dr
George Brown places as early as 1752, but it is doubtful whether they can
have had more than occasional sermon at that time. We only reach cer
tainty with the ordination of the first minister. The church they built had
surely been either of frail construction or slight dimensions, for so early as
1771 their minister insisted on the erection of another, and at the expense of
much wrangling carried his point in the end.
First Minister. — JOSIAH HUNTER, son of the Rev. John Hunter, More-
battle, known as the first licentiate of the Associate Presbytery. This was
an unexpected discovery. It was first found that one Josiah Hunter was
served heir to his father, the above Mr Hunter, in 1766. The uncommon-
ness of the name suggested the question : Can this have been the Antiburgher
minister of Falkirk? Some time after an entry in the Synod treasurer's
accounts for 1749 placed the matter beyond dispute. A small sum was
marked there as given to Mr Josiah Hunter, son of the late Rev. John
Hunter, Morebattle, though he did not enter the Hall till five years later.
He was ordained at Falkirk, 28th February 1758. It is unlikely that the
cause had much strength, being dwarfed by the Burgher congregation, and
accordingly we find that in 1772 they applied for aid to Perth (North), and
received a gift of ,£2, IDS., but this may have been to aid with the new
church. A spirit of hostility was now waking up between the minister and
a party in the congregation, which wrought on for eight years, and cul
minated in disruption. There had been slight stirrings of the same kind at
an earlier time, in which enough comes out to satisfy us that Mr Hunter
was not always careful to shun reproach. But in 1773 the case took shape
in a complaint he brought against certain members for traducing his
doctrine. From that time complaints and appeals from Falkirk came up
at almost every meeting of Synod till August 1780, when Mr Hunter was
placed under suspension. The malcontents alleged that they were levelled
at, and he wished several of them cleared out, being confident that they were
as incapable of profiting by his preaching as the arch-enemy in human
likeness was. He even refused a member of his church baptism to his
child because he was in the same Praying Society with the three principal
complainers.
The Synod tried various expedients to have the flame extinguished and
peace restored, but always after a brief pause the strife burst forth anew.
Though manifestly much to blame Mr Hunter must have had the majority
of the congregation on his side, as on one occasion no fewer than 1 1 5 (male)
662 HISTORY OF U.P. CONGREGATIONS
members, headed by the preses, struck in with a paper addressed to the
Presbytery, in which heavy charges were advanced specially against three
dissatisfied elders. It was in vain that the Synod again and again enjoined
both parties to bury their animosities and study the things that make for
peace. Wearied at last with baffled endeavours they rebuked Mr Hunter,
with whom they believed the major part of the blame to rest, and enjoined on
him submission to a former decision of theirs, enforcing terms of reconcilia
tion. The censure he declared to be not only null and void but " scandalous,
partial, and injurious to truth." He was left till next Synod to bethink him
self, and then, refusing to yield, and telling them besides that a prevailing
party wished to have him cast out by hook or crook, he was laid aside from
office. The whole time the sentence was being pronounced he endeavoured
to interrupt the Moderator by speaking, or by reading a paper, the burden
of which was that they were not a lawful and rightly-constituted court of
Jesus Christ. Deposition followed in May 1781, and as it would be vain
to expect access to the pulpit a member of Synod was to make due intima
tion within the bounds. From this time Mr Hunter and those of his people
who adhered to him remained in a state of complete estrangement from the
Synod till his death, more than thirty years after.
But five years before his deposition, and when the strife was running
high, Mr Hunter published a pamphlet on "The Scriptural Order of dis
pensing the Lord's Supper," in which he argued resolutely for the lifting of
the elements before the consecration prayer. To "take" the bread and the
cup after the Saviour's example he held to be essential to the right
observance. It was a point on which old Mr Smyton of Kilmaurs felt even
more strongly than he did, and finding the Synod resolute in decreeing for
bearance he renounced their authority, and was suspended from office.
This was in May 1783, and the two being thoroughly at one on the "lifter"
question it was natural that they should enter into ministerial fellowship,
From a pamphlet written before the end of the year we know that Mr
Hunter, with some of his friends, went through to Kilmaurs, where a con
gregational meeting was held, and at the close the two reverend brethren
completed their union. This was the origin of a Presbytery which went
actively to work for a number of years — licensing students, ordaining
ministers, and at last quarrelling among themselves. Two years afterwards
they were joined by the Rev. John Proudfoot of Leith, a less reputable
brother than either, but he did not very long survive. Thus Mr Hunter,
after his eight years of turmoil, found himself in the midst of ecclesiastical
fellowship again. Nor was he a loser in other respects. Though a party in
his congregation kept by the Synod and broke off from his ministry to form
what became Falkirk, South, others came in from neighbouring congrega
tions to supply their places. Dennyloanhead suffered at that time, and
Cumbernauld (Antiburgher) was nearly destroyed. In the Memoir of Dr
Stark of Uennyloanhead we have a picture of the boy one wintry Sabbath
walking in his father's footsteps through the snow on his way from Cumber
nauld to Falkirk. Andrew Stark was one of eight who withdrew from
Cumbernauld session at that time and placed themselves under Mr Hunter's
ministry. Fortunately, all came right with that family in the end.
There was a doctrinal point, however, on which Mr Hunter entertained
peculiar views, to which he gave expression in a pamphlet so early as 1779.
He contended for what he called a Federal or Double Sonship. The precise
meaning is difficult to get hold of, belonging as it does to the metaphysics
of theology. His contention seems to have been that the eternal relation
ship between the Father and the Son, considered in itself, afforded no basis
for a Redemption Covenant, and that to secure this it is necessary to assume
PRESBYTERY OF FALKIRK 663
a kind of Mediatorial Sonship. Adam Gib interposed with his pen, and
pronounced these speculations " reveries," and, of course, much warmth was
imported into the discussion. In Dr M'Kelvie's Annals it is stated that Mr
Hunter's suspension was for error on this subject, the truth being that the
Synod allowed the contest thus far to go on unnoticed and uncared for.
But in the Lifter Presbytery prominence was given to this new dogma, much
to the annoyance of one of their number, the Rev. John Gemmell of Dairy,
who published a pamphlet in 1791, in which he voiced forth complaints
against his brethren on this and other matters. They were lax, he alleged,
in the licensing of preachers and in their adherence to Antiburgher principles,
besides swerving from truth on the doctrine of the Eternal Sonship. He
also brought up that Mr Smyton always opposed Mr Hunter on this point,
and that he was once present at Falkirk on a sacramental occasion when
the two debated the question the greater part of the night, and, as Mr
Hunter afterwards told him, he was on the point of telling his aged coadjutor
to go home, as he wished to have no more connection with him. Mr
Gemmell in this pamphlet declined the authority of the Lifter Presbytery,
and it soon after broke into fragments. Dr Jamieson of Edinburgh stated
in 1799 that only one small congregation survived, but this is incorrect, as
there was one in Falkirk and another in Dairy, but the two ministers stood
sternly apart from each other.
Mr Hunter and his people are lost sight of till August 1812, when a petition
for occasional supply, owing to their minister's great frailty, was laid before
the Constitutional Presbytery from the Lifter congregation of Falkirk. The
paper was not subscribed by Mr Hunter himself, "because he was not able
to write." The cause was delayed, but at a meeting in November Mr
Chalmers of Haddington was appointed to preach a Sabbath at Falkirk and
converse with the people. On 24th February 1813 Mr Hunter died, in the
eighty-fifth year of his age and fifty-fifth of his ministry. The congregation,
however, did not at once disperse, as has been stated. They were formally
received under the inspection of the Constitutional Presbytery in August
following, but not till it was ascertained that they did not mean to make the
mode of observing the Lord's Supper a term of communion, though they
expressed the wish for uniformity. After this they received supply about
once a month, as the Presbytery could afford it. The name appeared on
the list of vacancies till 1827, the year of the Union with the Protestors, and
it then dropped. The church may still be seen at the east end of the town,
but it has been turned into outhouses.
FALKIRK, GRAHAM'S ROAD (ANTIBURGHER)
MR HUNTER having been suspended from office by the Synod in April
1780 the Presbytery of Stirling kept up sermon to the opposing party as
they could afford it. At first there was only one acting elder, but two
others who had been lying aside owing to the turmoil were soon afterwards
restored to office with the sanction of the Presbytery. In May of the follow
ing year Mr Hunter was deposed, and after this supply of sermon was
obtained about once a month. In 1782 a place of worship was built.
First Minister. — JOHN STUART, from Kinkell. Called also to Path-
struie, but the Synod appointed him to Falkirk, assigning as the reason
"the peculiar trials that congregation had undergone, with the prospect of
recovering several who had gone astray from the Lord's cause." The call
was signed by 35 (male) members and 13 adherents. Mr Stuart was or
dained, loth December 1783. In 1797 he was sent by the Synod on a
664 HISTORY OF U.P. CONGREGATIONS
mission to Orkney, and on his homeward voyage the vessel was captured by
a French privateer. Mr Stuart had been in bad health before, and his
experiences at this time aggravated his ailments. On 5th September of that
year he came to Edinburgh for medical advice, and returned home two days
after. Having reached his own door he expired as they were assisting him
from the conveyance. The Christian Magazine in relating this added :
"We scarcely know any minister who was more sincerely loved by his
people." At his death he was in the fortieth year of his age and fourteenth
of his ministry. His widow, a daughter of Professor Moncrieff of Alloa,
died in 1812 at Dennyloanhead, where the minister, the Rev. James Stark,
was her brother-in-law.
Second Minister. — JAMES BROWNLEE, from Strathaven (First). The
Synod having preferred Falkirk to Saltcoats and Stewarton Mr Brownlee
was ordained there, 22nd May 1799. In 1806 the second church was built
at a cost of ,£850, with 580 sittings. The stipend in 1812 was ,£100, with
manse and garden, and the Presbytery ascertained that measures were being
taken for a considerable increase. On Sabbath, 2oth May 1821, at his
monthly evening service Mr Brownlee's voice faltered in the opening prayer.
After attempting again and again to finish the sentence he sank back in
the pulpit, and had to be removed to the manse. Hopes of his recovery
were entertained at first, but he died on Thursday, the 24th, in the twenty-
third year of his ministry and aged fifty. During the vacancy which
followed this startling event the congregation called Mr David Duncan, but
the Synod in 1822 appointed him to Sunderland, and Mr John Newlands,
whom they appointed to Perth (Wilson Church) a year after.
Third Minister.— WILLIAM STEEL, M.A., from Clerk's Lane, Kilmar-
nock. Ordained, I4th January 1824. In 1838 Mr Steel reported the com
municants at not less than 420, of whom about 20 families were from Larbert
parish, and half that number from Polmont, with a few from Bothkennar and
Airth. The stipend was ^145, with manse and garden, and there was a
debt of ^500 on the property. In 1857 the congregation proceeded to pro
vide Mr Steel with a colleague, the senior minister to retain the manse and
garden, with ^100 of stipend, and the junior to have an equal sum, with £i i
for sacramental expenses.
Fourth Minister. — JAMES MUIR, from Abbey Close, Paisley. Ordained,
2ist April 1857. In the beginning of 1859, when Mr Steel was placed as an
annuitant on the Aged and Infirm Ministers' Fund, his allowance from the
congregation was reduced ^50, and an equal sum added to Mr Muir's
stipend. Mr Steel died, 29th June thereafter, in the sixtieth year of his age.
Mr Muir remained in Falkirk till 2ist November 1865, when he accepted a
call to Egremont, Liverpool. After thirty years' labour there he obtained
the Rev. Armstrong Black from Kilcreggan for his colleague, whose place
fell vacant on 2gth May 1899 on his accepting a call to St Andrew's Church,
Toronto. To make way for a successor Mr Muir retired to the position of
minister-emeritus on ist December 1899, the day of the Rev. James G.
Goold's induction.
Fifth Minister. — PETER RUTHERFORD, from Edinburgh (Rose Street),
but a native of Leslie. Ordained, i8th September 1866. The stipend was
now ,£165, and the call was signed by 171 members. Mr Rutherford ac
cepted a call to Bristol, 7th November 1871, from which he was loosed in
April 1879 to be inducted into Kelvingrove, Glasgow.
Sixth Minister. — DUNCAN OGILVIE, D.D., translated from Portsburgh,
Edinburgh, and admitted, i8th June 1872. The stipend was as before. A
new church was opened by Professor Cairns on 3rd July 1879, with sittings
for 500. The cost was .£3500, and through the liberality of the people and
PRESBYTERY OF FALKIRK 665
the successful exertions of the minister, aided by a grant of .£350 from the
Home Board, it was cleared of debt within four years. On 5th April 1887
Dr Ogilvie, feeling the encroachments of age, retired from the pastorate,
retaining the status of senior minister, and removed soon after to Portobello.
Instead of an annual allowance the congregation paid him the sum of ,£400,
the mode of arrangement favoured by himself. He died, 1st October 1893,
in the forty-ninth year of his ministry and seventy-seventh of his age, having
been born, 24th May 1817. Dr Ogilvie remained a member of the Distribu
tion Committee to the end, an office which he held for twenty-six years, and
the duties of which he discharged with unremitting care and efficiency.
Seventh Minister. — THOMAS TAYLOR, translated from Banchory, where
he had been ordained eight years before. Inducted, 7th February 1888. At
the recent Union there was a membership of about 470, and the stipend was
^240, with the manse.
FALKIRK, WEST (RELIEF)
AT a meeting of the yet undivided Presbytery of Relief on 26th October
1767 two leading men, the one from the town and the other from the neigh
bourhood of Falkirk, laid before them a petition for sermon. It is not
correct to say that this movement was owing to an obnoxious settlement,
as the parish minister had at that time been ten years among them. But
from the explanations given it appeared to the Presbytery that the religious
situation entitled them to be favourably dealt with, and that they had good
reason for wishing to build a meeting-house and provide a minister for
themselves. Taken under the inspection of the Presbytery they next year
proceeded with the building of a church to accommodate 1000 people. An
old paper bears that the sittings were arranged in four divisions of 250 each,
to let at 2s. 6d. a year, 2s., is. 6d., and is. respectively. At that low figure
the whole return, though every sitting had been let, would have only been
,£87, los.
First Minister. — MICHAEL BOSTON, son of the Rev. Thomas Boston of
Jedburgh. He had been ordained over a Protestant congregation at
Alnwick on 2gth October 1765, when he was just entering on his twenty-
first year. In 1767 he was called to Duns, but some cloud had come
between him and the Relief Presbytery, and on that account he expressed
unwillingness to accept. Hence when he was afterwards called to succeed
his father in Jedburgh the Presbytery summarily refused either to sustain or
concur in the call. But there had been a change in their feeling towards
each other since then, and he was inducted to Falkirk in November 1770.
The stipend for the first year at least, as appears from a congregational
note-book, was only ^80. On 2ist January 1771 two elders, the one from
the parish church of Falkirk and the other from that of Polmont, were
constituted into a session, the membership at this time being only 65, and on
3<Dth March other seven were ordained. But from small beginnings the
congregation progressed till in course of time it outgrew the dimensions of
the large building in which they met. Mr Boston died, 5th February 1785,
in the fortieth year of his age and twentieth of his ministry, the last male
representative of the Boston family. A volume of his sermons, with a
Memoir, was published in 1787, and a tablet to his memory runs thus :
"The distinguishing peculiarities of the scholar, the gentleman, and the
Christian met in him and formed his character." It is also recorded else
where that " he fell asleep in the hope of glory." A half year after his death
the congregation called the Rev. G. Halliburton Nicolson to be his sucr
666 HISTORY OF U.P. CONGREGATIONS
cessor, but he declined to exchange Wamphray for Falkirk. Then Mr
James Bonnar became the choice of the majority, but the Presbytery of
St Ninians were doubtful what to do, and they referred the call to the
Synod, by whom it was set aside owing to the want of harmony.
Second Minister. — JOHN BROWN, who had been six years in Auchter-
arder (South). Inducted, ijth May 1787. In 1800 larger accommodation
was needed, and a new church was built on the old site at a cost of over
^1400, with 1230 sittings. This was partly owing to an unpopular settle
ment in Larbert parish five years before, which, though it did not run the
gauntlet of the Church courts, drove a large body of the parishioners into
Falkirk to the Relief Church. On Sabbath, i4th January 1821, Mr Brown
was assisting his son-in-law at Bellshill communion. He preached on
Saturday, and after hearing the action sermon on Sabbath he went away to
the manse to meditate on the subject of his communion address, but when
within a few yards of the door he fell down and expired. It is added :
"His modest worth secured him general respect." He was in the sixty-
seventh year of his age and forty-first of his ministry. A volume of his
sermons was published in 1822, and reviewed in the Christian Monitor soon
after, seemingly by his neighbour, the Rev. Henry Belfrage. The notice is
appreciative, though it contains some strictures on Relief modes of action
which might have been spared.
Third Minister. — WILLIAM WELSH, from Bridgeton, Glasgow. Or
dained, 6th February 1822, the stipend to be ^170, with manse and garden.
In 1836 the communicants numbered upwards of 1000. Of those under
Mr Welsh's pastoral care, young and old, Larbert still contributed no fewer
than 485, while Polmont gave 174, and Bothkennar 72. Of the families
connected 163 came from more than two miles. Mr Welsh resigned on
5th February 1856 owing to advancing infirmities. Commissioners from the
congregation intimated acquiescence and a retiring allowance of ,£50 a year,
which was to be made up to ,£75 by individual subscribers. He died under
softening of the brain, 8th September 1862, in the sixty-seventh year of his
age and forty-first of his ministry.
Fourth Minister. — GEORGE WADE, from Irvine (now Trinity Church).
Mr Wade was exceptionally popular when a preacher, and calls came in
close on each other from St Andrews, Strathaven (West), and Falkirk (West).
One of his sermons, preached in St Andrews from the text : " If thou hast
run with the footmen and they have wearied thee, how canst thou contend
with horses," etc., I still recall, with something of the effect it produced..
Having preferred Falkirk he was ordained there, 4th November 1856. But
there was a gradual dropping away ere now from the extremities of the
congregation, so that by the year 1870, instead of having 731 members and
adherents in the parishes of Larbert, Polmont, and Bothkennar, there were
not, as Mr Wade stated, more than 50. Still, the congregation, notwith
standing the narrowing in, kept large and flourishing. On Sabbath, i7thi
July 1892, Mr Wade conducted the two services in his own church, and died
next Sabbath at Melrose, in the sixtieth year of his age and thirty-sixth of his
ministry. Two years before he took a voyage to Australia for his health,
expecting also to visit a married daughter there, but on landing it was to
find that the death curtain had come between. It was a blow from which he
never quite recovered.
Fifth Minister. — JAMES AITKEN, translated from St Paul's, Aberdeen,
where he had been five years, and inducted, I2th January 1893. The com
munion roll at this time numbered 480. Between that and the Union
it made a slight increase, and the stipend was ,£300, with the manse.
PRESBYTERY OF FALKIRK 667
FALKIRK, ST JAMES (UNITED PRESBYTERIAN)
THIS congregation with its minister came over from the Congregationalists,
and was received by the Synod in May 1898. Its history links itself with
the disruption in Erskine Church, when the Rev. A. C. Rutherford ceased
connection with the United Secession Church. He and his large body of
followers having given up the old property to the minority, according to
agreement, built a church for themselves in Bank Street, which without
galleries accommodated 1000 people. For years there were large attend
ances, numbers coming in from four or five miles around, as if to hail the
morning of a new dispensation. But in February 1847, as we find from a
newspaper file, the congregation called the Rev. Alexander Duncanson of
the E.U. Church, Alloa, to be colleague to Mr Rutherford, or at least to give
him fuller scope for his exuberant activities. He was now to give most of
his time to the building up of an E.U. church in Greenock, and with this
view he was presented with a farewell gift of a gold watch at a congrega
tional meeting on the evening of 29th March. He was, however, to retain
a good part of his stipend and exchange with Mr Uuncanson a Sabbath
each month. A rupture came before long over a case of discipline, and
from the head of the communion table Mr Rutherford invited those who
were on his side to follow him into an adjoining room. The majority
adhered to Mr Duncanson, and the other party had to separate. The Rev.
James Morison having been called in to pronounce on the merits of the
dispute his decision was favourable to his companion-in-arms, the Rev.
A. C. Rutherford, whose pastorate at Falkirk none the less was brought to
an end. He remained in Greenock till 1850, and then passed to Dundee.
In 1856 he was admitted to the ministry of the U.P. Church.
Mr Duncanson was now master of the field, but his situation was
anomalous. He was one of the nine students who had been expelled from
the Independent Hall for broad views, on the Influences of the Spirit in
particular, and though now alienated from Mr Morison and his friends he
could not well seek back to his former connection. Accordingly the con
gregation remained on middle ground till he left for America in 1852, and
after that they were formally admitted to the Congregational Union. As for
the E.U. cause, so strong in Falkirk at its beginnings, it now disappeared,
and was not revived till 1872. Mr Duncanson after crossing the Atlantic
settled down in Boston at first, but after several shiftings turned to medicine.
He finally removed to California, where he died, 23rd November 1887.
The congregation in Bank Street after having several ministers in succes
sion had Mr John D. Buchan ordained over them in May 1888, and on ist
February 1898 he wrote the clerk of Falkirk U.P. Presbytery mentioning
that his congregation had a suggestion before them to connect themselves
with the U.P. Church, and a resolution to that effect was unanimously
adopted by them on the 2ist of that month. It was also stated that they
had a membership of 105, and that the place of worship in Bank Street was
recently sold for .£1300, and that they proposed erecting a new church in a
more populous locality. Their minister's stipend was .£120. The Presby
tery welcomed the application, as promising a favourable opportunity for
Church Extension in Falkirk, and agreed to forward it with strong recom
mendation to the Synod. Mr Buchan explained that he had passed through
a university course of four years at Edinburgh, and had studied theology
four sessions at the New College, London, or at the Congregational Hall,
Edinburgh. The Synod in May remitted to the Presbytery of Falkirk to
receive into the Church the Rev. John I). Buchan and his congregation.
668 HISTORY OF U.P. CONGREGATIONS
Accordingly on 7th June 1898 the questions of the Formula were put to
Mr Buchan, and these having been satisfactorily answered he was received
to the status of a minister of the U.P. Church.
Steps were taken soon after with the view of erecting a church in Thorn-
hill Road, a growing part of the town. The cost was estimated at fully
^4000, and the sittings were to be 450, which could be increased to 650 by
the. erection of galleries. A grant of .£500 was to be obtained from the
Extension Fund, and the congregation expected to take possession of the
hall by the middle of September 1899. By the additional aid 'of a bazaar
which was held shortly before the Union a sum of .£1000 was raised, which
reduced the debt to ^1600. The membership at this time was 129, but
owing to heavy liabilities otherwise the stipend from the people was only
^100.
CRAIGMAILEN (ANTIBURGHUt)
THE session records of this congregation open with P'ast Day services on
I5th November 1739, in which three ministers took part — Mr Thomson of
Burntisland, and the two Erskines. A sum of over ^5 was collected, and a
session was constituted, eleven elders being present. Help was dealt out to
parties in the parishes of Linlithgow, Kirkliston, Whitburn, Queensferry,
and Falkirk. At a subsequent meeting the names of Bo'ness, Bathgate,
Torphichen, and Carriden come up, and later on Cambusnethan, Shotts,' and
the three Calders. Within the same period additions were made to the
session till the members numbered eighteen. Craigmailen, or The Knock,
gradually came to be fixed on as the regular place of worship — a solitary spot
about three miles distant from Linlithgow on the north and Bathgate on
the south. The site is still marked by a stone, with an inscription telling
that it was there Mr John Hunter preached from a certain text on the third
Sabbath of January 1739. This, it will be seen, was nearly a year before a
regular session was formed.
First Minister. — JOHN CLARKSON, of whose antecedents we only know
that he was one of the Old Dissenters or Cameronians, and that he published
a little volume in 1731, entitled "Plain Reasons for leaving an Erastian
Establishment." But Mr M'Millan, whose follower he was, stood alone,
and could neither grant licence nor confer ordination. After continuing
year after year outside the gate of entrance to sacred functions Mr Clarkson
cast in his lot with the Associate Presbytery, and after attending the prelec
tions of Mr Wilson for one session he was taken on trials for licence along
with Mr John Hunter, but objections to going forward cropped up on the
ground of his anti-Government principles, Peter Walker, with whose name
we are otherwise familiar, being his chief accuser. The matter was thoroughly
gone into, and Mr Clarkson acknowledged that he had difficulty in praying
for "our sovereign the king," as George II. claimed to be supreme over all
causes, religious as well as civil, in the British Empire. It was explained to
him that the king might be recognised as " our sovereign," and prayed for
without this involving an acknowledgment of his claims throughout. Mr
Clarkson yielded, but not till after a delay of two years was he sent forth by
the Associate Presbytery to preach the gospel. On the moderation day at
Craigmailen other two preachers were named, but when the vote was taken
almost the whole assembly lifted their hands for Mr Clarkson. Those on
the negative side were asked to remove, but they turned out to be only seven
in number. The ordination took place, I7th June 1741. The extent of
territory Mr Clarkson's labours embraced is illustrated by an accession given
PRESBYTERY OF FALKIRK 669
in that day from Carstairs and the moorland of Carnwath, the wish being to
receive gospel ordinances at his hands until in providence they might enjoy
a fixed ministry nearer home.
The session minutes throw light on the workings of the Secession cause.
We find, for example, all the elders inquired at whether they kept family
worship twice a day, catechised their families, and visited the sick, and in
each case a satisfactory answer was given. There is also reference to the
employment of a student to keep school and precent, a very common
arrangement, and for his services to the congregation he was to receive £i.
Accessions came in from time to time, the parties entering their names in a
book, but no woman was suffered to subscribe, only they had their names
placed on the examination roll. The session once complained that the
Lord's Day was profaned by worldly discourse during the interval, and also
in walking to and from the place of worship, and they set themselves to put
down the evil. Some time after Mr Clarkson's ordination differences arose
about the location of the place of worship, but the Presbytery's intervention
put matters to rights. The spirit of love and meekness prevailed, and
mutual confessions followed that they had been wronging each other. In
July 1743 it is recorded that the fabric of the kirk was finished, with accom
modation, it is believed, for 1000 people.
After twenty years of heavy ministerial work Mr Clarkson, who must
have been rather beyond th'e prime of life when ordained, found his health
giving way, and in November 1760 he applied to Stirling Presbytery for
assistance, as he was unable to preach through distress. It was the be
ginning of the end, as he died, ist December 1761, in the twenty-first year
of his ministry and about the age of seventy. Mr Clarkson had two sons,
John and James, who entered the Hall together seven years after their
father's death. The former became the first Antiburgher minister of Ayr,
and the latter was missioned to Pennsylvania in 1772. Having been
ordained before leaving he was inducted to Muddy Creek, York County, in
August 1773, and retired under infirmity in March 1808. The congregation
ministered to his support till his death on 3oth October 1811, when he was
in the thirty-ninth year of his ministry and the seventy-third of his age.
Second Minister. — ALEXANDER OLIVER, from the parish of Linton, Rox
burghshire, and the congregation of Morebattle. Craigmailen was now in
a breaking-up state, and during the vacancy it suffered the loss of two large
and important branches of its membership by new formations at Bo'ness and
Mid-Calder, as is stated under the proper headings. The Synod having
given Craigmailen the advantage over Jedburgh (Castle Street) Mr Oliver
was ordained there, loth May 1763. The call was concurred in by 50
members in and about Linlithgow on condition that they were to be allowed
"day about" with Craigmailen, a requirement which was not agreed to.
Mr Oliver has been described as " a character," which may be explained by
what the Christian Magazine said of him after his death — that " possessing
an uncommon flow of animal spirits, there was a vivacity and innocent
pleasantry in his conversation, which made him an agreeable companion at
all times." But Professor Bruce complains of him for having on a com
munion Monday at Whitburn introduced a new element of bitterness into
the Lifter Controversy. The Synod had decided in favour of forbearance,
but Mr Oliver in his discourse struck out against what had been done at
the consecration of the elements the day before. He characterised the
lifting as a human addition to a divine institution, and saw in the common
practice "popish elevators pretending to sanctify the elements with their
holy hands." Were that the case, said the Professor, lifting or non-lifting
ought not to be made a matter of forbearance. Mr Oliver was going to the
670 HISTORY OF U.P. CONGREGATIONS
opposite extreme from Mr Smyton, and his language was inconsistent with
the position taken up by Mr Gib of Edinburgh, the advocate of freedom.
On 22nd July 1806 a complaint came up to Edinburgh Presbytery from
Bo'ness, that part of Craigmailen congregation were intending to build a
place of worship at Linlithgow, a measure which threatened to be very
injurious to them. It was the Antiburgher families in the county town
declining to travel three miles each Sabbath to Craigmailen, as they had
been doing for upwards of sixty years. The pressure was now too strong to
be resisted, and on 6th August permission was given to remove to the larger
and better centre, while those on the other side were left to provide gospel
ordinances for themselves at Bathgate. Thus was the old building at
Craigmailen abandoned, and what followed belongs to the history of Lin
lithgow, East, and Bathgate (Antiburgher).
CUMBERNAULD (BURGHER)
THE first time the name of Cumbernauld occurs in the minutes of the
Associate Presbytery is on I2th October 1737. That day accessions were
given in from Praying Societies in the parishes of Larbert, Dunipace,
Cumbernauld, Kilsyth, Slamannan, Falkirk, and East Monkland. They
announced their separation from the judicatories of the Established Church,
and petitioned for a day of fasting among them. The date agrees with what
Dr M'Kelvie states, that the movement was brought to a point by the action
of some of their ministers in reading the Porteous Act, which was ordered to
be done from the pulpit on the first Sabbath of every month for a whole year,
beginning in the preceding August. We read afterwards of a petition from
Larbert and the dissenters in the five neighbouring parishes for an eldership
and a hearing of Mr Hunter, their first probationer, but it was not till the
fourth Sabbath of September 1738 that he preached to them, and this seems
to have been the first time they had Sabbath supply. Falkirk speedily
became the eastern centre, but Monkland, at the other extremity, was
favoured with preachers now and again. In the beginning of 1743 that
place was superseded by Cumbernauld, as more convenient for most of those
residing in the western division of the correspondence, and there the church
was built soon after. On 3rd April 1744 a moderation was applied for.
First Minister. — ANDREW BLACK, of whose antecedents we only know
that he received ^5 from the student fund in April 1742 and that he got
licence on 22nd September 1743. Ordained, 7th November 1744, when he
was at least two or three years over forty. At the Breach of 1 747 he went
with the Burghers, but took no prominent part in the dispute. In October
of next year a call was brought up to Mr Black from Killenny or Boardmills,
Ireland, which the Presbytery after some delay referred to the Synod, and
on 4th May 1749 it carried unanimously to transport, "except two who did
not vote." He was admitted to his new charge on 22nd June, and died there,
6th July 1782, in the eighty-second year of his age and thirty-eighth of his
ministry. After Mr Black's removal Cumbernauld passed through a period
of trying fortunes, and was long in attempting to secure another minister, so
much so that the Presbytery appointed two of their number to observe a
Fast at Cumbernauld ;'on account of that people's supine neglect in
not using due pains to obtain the means of grace among them." The people
on their part complained of their broken condition owing to the little supply
they got and the frequent disappointments they had met with. In August
1760 they needed assistance to repair their meeting-house, and the Presby
tery granted a collection in the several congregations. Then, alive to " their
PRESBYTERY OF FALKIRK 671
melancholy situation through want of gospel ordinances in a fixed way," they
pleaded for a hearing of young men to ripen them for a moderation. In
reply, a preacher of great promise, Mr John Johnston, was sent to be with
them for nearly two months, and in the early part of 1761 they called him,
apparently with much warmth. Ecclefechan, however, came in, and
Cumbernauld sustained a disappointment. After this they were worse than
ever, and even "wanted sermon for a long time," but they gathered up
courage, and in December 1762 called Mr Johnston anew, but the transla
tion was vetoed by the Synod. We now hear of them lamenting their
desolate circumstances, and their wish to obtain the invaluable blessing of
a fixed ministry. In this state they entered into competition with the
mighty but much divided congregation of Stirling for the services of
Mr Robert Campbell, which entailed another disappointment.
Second Minister. — JAMES Mom, a licentiate of Perth and Dunfermline
Presbytery. Cumbernauld was now preferred by the Synod to D unbar,
Lochgelly, and Tough, and Mr Moir was ordained, gth September 1766, and
called to Cambusnethan in 1769, but the translation was not granted. They
had a minister of acknowledged talent at last, but the difficulties of Cumber
nauld congregation were not surmounted, and in September 1774 Mr Moir
tendered the demission of his charge. They had failed, he said, to give him
worldly support suitable to his character as a minister, and his creditors were
looking for payment which it was not in his power to give them. He could
not think the people were inclined to be at the expense of maintaining a
fixed ministry among them, for while some were very willing to contribute
others who had the means held back, though by doing far more than they
did their temporal interests would not suffer in the slightest degree. He had
sought to do his duty among them, but he felt dispirited by the treatment he
was receiving, and he wished the Presbytery to declare the church vacant.
The resignation was not accepted, but having preached at West Linton on
their recommendation some time before, he received a divided call to that
congregation in the beginning of 1775. Had all been right this would have
freed both Mr Moir and the Presbytery from their present difficulties, but
owing to strong opposition the call had to be set aside. In this uneasy
state matters continued at Cumbernauld till 28th July 1778, when Mr
Moir was loosed from his charge in answer to a call from Tarbolton. The
arrears of stipend amounted to ,£79.
Third Minister. — GEORGE HlLL, from Shotts. Ordained, i6th May 1782.
A fortnight before this he was called to the collegiate charge of Perth (Wilson
Church), but the Presbytery went straight on. Next year he was invited to
Old Kilpatrick, but his brethren decided against the removal. At the second
meeting of the Original Burgher Presbytery Mr Hill took his seat as a
member. This was on 2oth November 1 799 ; the elder from Cumbernauld
had given in a paper of declinature to Stirling Presbytery eight days before.
Mr Hill's former brethren wrote him about a friendly conference, hoping
that this might remove his difficulties, but he replied that he saw no end this
could serve, and on 8th January 1800 his name was dropped from the roll.
From this point we give a rapid outline of the congregation's history.
Mr Hill was chosen Professor of Divinity to the Original Burgher Synod in
1803, and died, 25th June 1818, in the sixty-eighth year of his age and thirty-
seventh of his ministry. Of three published discourses of his we only men
tion the title of a sermon preached at the opening of the Synod in 1807,
•" Christian Magistrates Nursing-Fathers to the Church." He was succeeded
by Mr Peter Currie, who was ordained, 7th December 1819, and translated
to East Campbell Street, Glasgow, in 1835. At this time the membership
was over 250, and it was proposed to give the next minister .£100, with the
672 HISTORY OF U.P. CONGREGATIONS
manse. The church had been rebuilt in 1825 at the cost of ^1000, of which
slightly more than one-half rested as debt on the property. The next
minister was the Rev. John Cochrane, from Kennoway, under whom the
congregation joined the Church of Scotland in 1839. Since the Disruption
it has formed part of the Free Church.
CUMBERNAULD (ANTIBURGHER;
A NUMBER of Mr Black's families must have seceded at the Breach, weaken
ing a weak congregation, and involving themselves in a wearisome struggle
for the enjoyment of Christian ordinances. For the first twelve years they
cannot have had more than occasional sermon at Cumbernauld, and the
common resource would be attendance at Dennyloanhead, four miles
distant. Their first appearance in the records of the Church is at the
Antiburgher Synod in October 1759, when they complained that Glasgow
Presbytery in fixing the bounds between them and Denny had done them
injustice. The wrong was righted by a declaration that the territories of
Denny were not to go farther than midway to Cumbernauld. It is clear
from this that the congregation had been but recently organised. In June
1760 they wished a moderation, and Stirling Presbytery, to which they
now belonged, though doubtful whether they had ability to support the
gospel, after hearing the commissioners " could not but acquiesce, consider
ing their present circumstances." The first church was built about this time,
with sittings for 216.
First Minister. — WALTER LEITHHEAD, from Kirkgate, Leith. Ordained,
2nd September 1760. The call was signed by 60 (male) members and
adhered to by 8 others. The stipend must have been very limited, since
the people could only promise ^40 to their second minister, and off this
he had to provide himself with a house. In 1773 matters were in a very
unsatisfactory state. The stipend was not paid up, and the managers com
plained to the Presbytery that some of the members contributed little, and
that very irregularly, while others gave nothing at all. Among the defaulters
were several of the elders, and it was scarcely possible to get a regular
meeting of session owing to remissness in attendance. After the districts
of the congregation had been gone over it was reported that some had
made up their deficiencies, but still there were others who gave nothing,
and the Presbytery were of opinion that to keep up the gospel standard
such persons ought not to be admitted to sealing ordinances. Mr Leithhead
died in 1783, in the fifty-eighth year of his age and twenty-fourth of his
ministry. He was present at the Synod on 2nd September, and his death
was reported to the Presbytery on the 3oth. Then followed a vacancy of
nearly seven years, during which the examinable persons were given at 170
and the communicants at 93, of whom 37 were males and 56 females.
Second Minister. — JAMES BOUCHER, from Auchtermuchty (North), but
formerly of Ceres, from which the family were disjoined when Auchter
muchty was formed. Licensed by Stirling Presbytery in 1786, and ordained
at Cumbernauld, 28th July 1790. As only 26 (male) members signed the
call the Presbytery had doubts about going forward, but it was explained
that they had suffered "several breaking dispensations," and that some had
not subscribed from doubts of the people's ability to support the gospel.
But they were attached to Mr Boucher, who had preached to them three
years before, and the existence of the congregation seemed to depend on
what the Presbytery might do. Under Mr Boucher's ministry there was
increase, the membership in 1820 being about 130, but the congregation
PRESBYTERY OF FALKIRK 673
was still in straits. Two years before this the stipend was .£54 in arrears,
and as time passed the pressure increased. At last, in April 1826, rinding
himself unable to occupy the pulpit, he offered the demission of his charge,
though willing to remain, if that seemed desirable. The congregation
expressed their attachment to their minister, but found themselves unable
to give him the support he needed, and at the same time defray the expense
of supporting the gospel. On i2th December Mr Boucher pressed the
acceptance of his demission as necessary to the existence of the congrega
tion, and they on their part agreed to pay him £20 annually, which the
Presbytery believed to be as much as their circumstances could afford, and
appreciating the spirit displayed on both sides, they agreed to dissolve the
pastoral tie and declare the pulpit vacant. The Synod in May 1827 granted
Mr Boucher a yearly allowance of .£24 from the fund, but this was not long-
required. He died, 28th June 1828, in the thirty-eighth year of his ministry.
His age was given at the time as seventy-seven. He published a volume of
sermons in 1822, which I have never happened to meet with.
The congregation a year before this called Mr William M'Kerrow, but
at the following meeting they asked liberty to withdraw their call, as Mr
M'Kerrow had written informing them that he preferred Manchester.
Third Minister. — ROBERT CAIRNS, from Glasgow (now St Vincent
Street). Ordained, 22nd April 1828. The call was signed by 82 members,
and Mr Boucher, who still dwelt at Cumbernauld, wrote approving of the
choice. A favourable tide now set in, and the stipend of ,£70, with a house,
was raised by-and-by other £10. But on 8th December 1835 ^r Cairns was
loosed from his charge on accepting a call to the Laigh Church, Paisley.
Soon after he left it was reported that the communicants had risen during
the last five years from 90 to 129. Of the families in connection nearly one-
third were from the parishes of Kilsyth, New Monkland, Cadder, and
Kirkintilloch, of whom 13 came from more than four miles. Four shillings
a year was the lowest sum which had been received for seat rents, and they'
ranged as high as twelve shillings, the people giving what they pleased.
Within the next two years the congregation called Mr Robert Sedgewick,
who preferred Aberdeen (Belmont Street) ; Mr Alexander Sorley, who pre
ferred Arbroath (now Erskine Church) ; and Mr D. L. Scott, who preferred
Dumfries (Loreburn Street).
Fourth Minister. — HUGH BAIRD, from Cumnock. Ordained, 5th
December 1837. The call was signed by 95 members and 25 adherents,
and the stipend was to be ,£90, with a manse. In 1845 '* was announced
that the debt of ,£184 resting on the property had been cleared away with
the help of ^84 from the Liquidation Board. In 1856 Mr Baird published
" Words in Season," a series of short discourses for every Sabbath morning
and evening in the year, and this was widened out in 1862 by a similar
volume, entitled " Beaten Oil for the Light of Life," being daily thoughts
on Bible texts. In 1860 the present church, with 350 sittings, was built at a
cost of ,£1000. Two years afterwards the Liquidation Board granted ^80
to aid in removing the debt of ^800 which remained on the building. As a
sign that he felt himself among the evening shadows Mr Baird in the early
part of 1878 resigned the office of Presbytery clerk, which he had held for
twenty-five years, and the congregation in a few months proceeded to pro
vide him with a colleague. His retiring allowance was to be ^50 a year,
with the occupancy of the manse, and the junior minister was to have ^80
from the congregation, which they hoped would be made up to ,£200 by
supplement and surplus.
Fifth Minister. — ALEXANDER BORLAND, from Stewarton. At the
moderation all was unanimity and heartiness, and the call was eventually
2 u
674 HISTORY OF U.P. CONGREGATIONS
signed by 120 out of a membership of 135, but the day came to a mournful
close. As one of the elders was driving Mr Jerdan of Dennyloanhead home
after the service he was thrown from the conveyance and killed on the spot.
This was Mr Thomas Chalmers, whose son, the Rev. James Chalmers, be
came minister at Kilmaurs. Mr Borland, who had declined Renfrew some
time before, was ordained, 2nd July 1878. Mr Baird died, loth September
1879, in the seventieth year of his age and forty-second of his ministry. His
son, Mr Wilson Baird, who was then nearing the commencement of his
theological course, will come before us as minister of Mauchline. On 5th
May 1 88 1 Mr Borland accepted Larkhall, and was loosed from Cum-
bernauld.
Sixth Minister. — ROBERT PRIMROSE, from Ibrox, Glasgow. Ordained,
1 5th November 1881. There was a membership now of over 1 60, and the
stipend from the people was ,£120. A new manse was resolved on about
this time, which cost when finished ^800, besides the money received for the
old manse, the Board granting ^316. Mr Primrose was called to East
Dulwich, London, in June 1886, but remained in Scotland, and accepted
a call to St Andrew's Square, Greenock, on 7th December following.
Seventh Minister. — JOHN CAMPBELL, from Graham's Road, Falkirk.
Ordained, 5th January 1888, and was loosed, 24th November 1891, on ac
cepting a call to St Margaret's Church, Dunfermline.
Eighth Minister. — HUGH MORTON, from Newmilns. Ordained, i6th
June 1892. At the close of 1899 there was a membership of 213, and the
stipend from the people was .£160, with the manse.
DENNYLOANHEAD (ANTIBURGHER)
THIS congregation originated in persistent opposition to the law of patronage.
•At the moderation in a call for one to supply the vacancy which had oc
curred in Denny parish in 1733, Mr Stirling, the patron's nominee, was
supported by 52 heritors, and Mr Penman, the popular candidate, by 72
heritors, the whole eldership, and 138 heads of families. The Synod upheld
the rights of the people, but the Commission of Assembly in 1736 ordered
the settlement of Mr Stirling to proceed. The Presbytery, however, the
majority of whom were strongly against patronage, refused compliance, and
twice disobeyed the orders of the Assembly itself to the same effect. A
special committee was then appointed to meet at Edinburgh to take
Mr Stirling on trials for ordination, but he died before the day arrived.
At next moderation the patron's claims prevailed through what was reckoned
an unworthy artifice, and on 22nd August 1738 Mr William Bennet was
ordained to the parish of Denny in the face of a protest by heritors, elders,
and heads of families to the number of 117. Prior to this Praying Societies
in parishes around had acceded to the Associate Presbytery, and now on
1 3th December 1738 these accessions were augmented by a paper of
.adherence from 70 persons in the parish of Denny, and others followed
three months after.
The village of Bonnybridge, about three miles from Denny, was one of
the places where sermon was kept up in that wide district for a number
of years, but in June 1742 the Presbytery had to compose differences which
had arisen in the correspondence. The question was whether there should
only be a place of worship at Falkirk for the acceders within these bounds,
and it was decided that, if the people in the western division were to have
a second meeting-house at Bonnybridge, it would require to be as part of the
same congregation, and if they were not agreeable for this they would have
PRESBYTERY OF FALKIRK
675
to wait till another way of relief cast up in providence/-' In the case of
the people of Denny there was one drawback: though waiting on the
ministrations of the Seceding ministers or preachers the larger number had
never acceded to the Act and Testimony, but in September 1746 Glasgow
Presbytery reported to the Synod that the people of that parish had come
forward at last to the number of 122. Commissioners at the same time
appeared asking to have them recognised as a distinct community from
Palkirk, which was agreed to, and this dates the origin of Dennyloanhead
congregation. At the Breach of 1747 this congregation went to the Anti-
burgher side, parting company with their brethren in Falkirk. The minority
in either case would have to pass from the one place of worship to the
other.
In 174? the congregation called Mr Robert Miller, who had acceded
formally to the Associate Presbytery along with the two Moncrieffs and two
other theological students in 1743. In Dr M'Kelvie's student list he is
entered as a probationer who never obtained a charge. This is true, but
it ought to be stated that he obtained one of the worst of records instead
This is the "Robbie Miller" to whom John Brown of Haddington referred
as one of his arch-accusers when he was suspected of having acquired his
learning from Satanic sources, and he follows this up by reference to the
vile offences which brought him into utter disgrace. Mr Miller got licence
in June 1747, and was called to Dennyloanhead in the following November
At the Synod in April 1748 Glasgow Presbytery asked to have him sent
through to their territories with a view to ordination, but demands from
Ireland were urgent, and he was sent thither instead. This brought him
two other calls, and at the Synod in January 1749, after commissioners from
the three places were heard, it was decided to let the decision lie over
till another meeting. In those days there was no eagerness to hasten on a
settlement, the impression being, Better a prolonged vacancy than a
preacher taken from the roll of inadequate supply. At the meeting in April
something had emerged which required a private sederunt, and barred
further procedure as to the competing calls, \fama was abroad seriously
affecting Mr Miller's moral character, and Glasgow Presbytery were in
structed to make inquiries and report at next meeting. Passing over
intermediate details, it is enough to state that sundry acts of gross im
morality were brought home to the accused, partly by letters in his own
handwriting. Deposition from the status of a preacher was bound to
follow, and exclusion from Church fellowship. The last time we see him
he is before the Presbytery of Perth and Dunfermline applying to be restored
to Christian privileges, but the result we have no means of learning. Such
is the place which the "Robbie Miller" of John Brown's Autobiography
holds in early Secession annals. The shipwreck he made of faith and a
good conscience must have been a sore discouragement to the Antiburghers
of Dennyloanhead.
First Minister.— JOHN WALKER, from Abernethy, like the object of
their former choice, but a man of a very different stamp. Ordained, 25th
July 1751. The first twenty-two years were attended by prosperity and
progress, since in June 1773 the congregation reported to the Presbytery
that, their place of worship being insufficient, some were for repairing it
where it stood, and others were for removing to Denny, on the northern
outskirts of the parish, one and a half miles off. To deal with this dispute
the Presbytery met at Dennyloanhead a fortnight after, when the two parties
were to bring forward their views with all possible calmness and conciseness.
It was the North -versus the South, only those beyond Carron were against
removing to Denny, though it would be more convenient for them. The
676 HISTORY OF U.P. CONGREGATIONS
Presbytery, to subdue animosities, adopted a motion to the effect that the
congregation repair the present church, so that they may meet in it with
safety for a year or two till the present flame shall have subsided, and when
they have come to a calmer mood let them remove to Denny, if it appear to
be for edification and can be done with general harmony. This motion
having been submitted to the meeting, and a vote taken, a great many hands
were held up in its favour, and none against it, so that the strife seemed
terminated for the time. A year later there was a movement among those
on the north side to have a second church built at Denny, sermon to be kept
up at both places, but Presbytery and Synod alike decided against any such
division of Mr Walker's labours. The sequel is given under the history of
Denny congregation.
Second Minister. — JAMES STARK, from Cumbernauld (now U.P.). Had
a call to Kinross (East), which he would have preferred, perhaps, to avoid
the collegiate element, but was appointed by the Synod to Dennyloanhead.
Ordained, 23rd August 1797. Though the congregation must have been
weakened within the last twenty years by the new formation at Denny the
call was signed by 134 male members, or rather, we believe, male heads of
families, but the money arrangements are not given. Mr Walker died, nth
October 1802, in the seventy-ninth year of his age and fifty-second of his
ministry, leaving a son-in-law a prominent member of the Antiburgher
Synod, the Rev. Alexander Allan of Coupar- Angus. In 1815 the present
church was built on the old site. In 1818 Mr Stark published a volume of
sermons, and in 1823 he had the degree of D.D. conferred upon him by the
College of Princeton, New Jersey. But for particulars of his life and work
gracefully given we need only refer to the Memoir prefixed to a posthumous
volume of his discourses, from the pen of his former colleague, Mr Edmond.
The extent of the congregation in Dr Stark's days was such that it embraced
no fewer than twenty-five districts for diets of visitation, an important de
partment of pastoral work in the estimation of our fathers, of which full and
vivid particulars are given in connection with the subject of this Memoir.
Of Dr Stark's sermons George Gilfillan has said that, "although massive
and able, they are undoubtedly heavy, and want that glow and sparkle
which are necessary nowadays to popular effect." The Doctor was twice
married — first to a daughter of the Rev. William Moncrieff of Alloa, and
second to a daughter of the Rev. John Heugh of Stirling. A daughter of
his own, who died in her nineteenth year, has her name embalmed in one of
Mr Jameson of Methven's tender, rainbow-tinted Letters to Afflicted
Friends. Another daughter was the wife of the Rev. William Steven of
Largs.
In 1838 Dennyloanhead had a membership of 512, and the stipend, in
cluding expenses, was ,£180, 125., with manse and garden. Nearly one-fourth
of the families were from within the boundaries of Falkirk parish, and fully
12 from Dunipace. The debt at this time was ,£310. In 1841 a movement
suddenly took shape, with Dr Stark's approbation, for the appointment of a
colleague. The arrangement was that the senior minister should occupy
the manse and retain his entire stipend, the junior colleague to receive,
meanwhile, ^120.
Third Minister. — JOHN EDMOND, from Holm of Balfron. Called first
to Lasswade, and then after a time to Alva, Berwick (Church Street), and a
second time to Lasswade, but Dennyloanhead got forward in time, and
obtained the man on whom their hearts had been fixed from the very first.
Ordained, 28th December 1841, and for nearly the whole time of the
collegiateship the two ministers divided the work between them. In 1845
the congregation, having liquidated the debt on their property amounting to
PRESBYTERY OF FALKIRK 677
.£360, presented their junior pastor with ,£130. That year the contributions,
besides meeting the ordinary demands for stipend and working expenses,
amounted to upwards of ^600. In 1848 Mr Edmond was called to Regent
Place, Glasgow, and again in 1849, but in both cases he firmly declined.
That congregation having failed to obtain Mr Andrew Morton, who preferred
Greenock (Sir Michael Street), returned to Mr Edmond, and after much
anxiety he decided in favour of acceptance. He was loosed from Denny-
loanhead, igth March 1850. Bodily ailments were now bearing Dr Stark
down to the grave, and he died on 24th May, in the seventy-fifth year of his
age and fifty-third of his ministry.
Fourth Minister.— JAMES STEVENSON, from Princes Street, Kilmarnock,
and from a family which had already given two sons to the ministry. Had
calls in the following order : — Linlithgow (West), Canal Street, Paisley,
(much divided) ; and Potterrow, Edinburgh. Haddington (West), and
Dennyloanhead closed the list, and the latter of these was accepted. Or
dained, igth November 1850, the stipend being ,£180, with manse, garden,
and ^12, I2s. for expenses. The call was signed by 316 members and 68
adherents. On 2o.th May 1866 Mr Stevenson accepted a call to the recently-
formed congregation in Dublin, with the certainty of having to face uphill
work on unfamiliar ground. The people worshipped at that time in the
Rotunda, but removed soon after to a hall in Lower Abbey Street, where
they remained till 4th April 1869, when their new church was opened by
Dr Eadie of Glasgow. It cost about ,£5500, the whole of which was paid
within a very few years. Mr Stevenson remained in Dublin till 1882, when
he was translated to North Leith, having declined a call to Clune Park
Port-Glasgow, a considerable time before. On his removal to Dublin
Dennyloanhead called Mr George Robson, who chose Inverness instead.
Fifth Minister. — CHARLES JERDAN, M.A., LL.B., from Dalkeith (now
Buccleuch Street). Had a call first to Dunbar (East), which would be put
aside with little ceremony, and then another from Dennyloanhead, where he
was ordained, igth February 1867. The call was subscribed by 240
members and 55 adherents, numbers which accord with what must have been
an inevitable narrowing in. But the stipend was on a higher level than at a
former period, being ^200 in all, with manse and garden. After ten years
in Dennyloanhead Mr Jerdan declined an invitation to succeed Dr Cairns
in Wallace Green, Berwick, but on 3rd December 1878 he accepted a call to
be colleague to Dr M 'Gavin, Tay Square, Dundee, with the burden of the
whole work.
Sixth Minister. — DAVID KEIR, M.A, frome Scone, the oldest of three
brothers who passed through our Theological Hall, the second of whom is
now our minister in Lauder, and the third in the E.P. church, Bellingham.
Ordained, ist July 1879. The stipend was ^250, with manse and garden,
and the membership at the end of that year was 380. It has since increased
to fully 450, partly through evangelistic work at Bonnybridge, and the
stipend is as before.
TORPHICHEN (BURGHER)
THIS parish had been favoured for more than fifty years with the ministra
tions of the Rev. John Bonar, one of the twelve Marrow men, and the father
of a long line of evangelical ministers which has reached down even to our
own times. At his death in August 1747 patronage came in with a rod of
iron. Lord Torphichen, it is true, who claimed the right to present, gave
the people a leet of five to choose from, but he was careful to exclude the
678 HISTORY OF U.P. CONGREGATIONS
man whom they were bent on obtaining. On the moderation day their
choice was limited by the minute of Presbytery to Lord Torphichen's five
nominees, and Mr James Watson carried, his call being signed by 24
heritors, of whom 20 were non-resident, but by no elders or heads of families.
A paper, on the other hand, in favour of Mr James Turnbull was subscribed
by 30 heritors, 7 feuars, 4 out of the 5 members of session, and 139 heads
of families, which was within a few units of the whole number, but the claims
of the patron were upheld by the General Assembly on two successive years.
The Presbytery procrastinated from one meeting to another, pleading in
their defence that the flame \vas likely to spread from Torphichen into their
own parishes, and if they took an active part in the settlement it would
" render them in a great measure useless as ministers of Christ." But on
3oth May 1751 Mr James Watson was ordained by "a riding committee,"
Robertson of Gladsmuir, afterwards Principal Robertson, the great Moderate
leader, preaching on the occasion. It was the last time that such an ex
pedient was resorted to in cases of intrusion, the deposition of Thomas
Gillespie at next Assembly teaching rebellious Presbyteries to obey the
orders of their superiors. It may be added that by the favour of Lord
Torphichen Mr Watson was transferred after some years to Mid-Calder,
and as for Mr Turnbull, the popular candidate, he found his field of labour
in Denny.
Though the parish church at Torphichen must now have been left nearly
empty no petition for sermon and no paper of accession was given in to
either the Burgher or Antiburgher Presbytery of the bounds. At the Breach
of 1747, when the minister of Craigmailen and the majority of his people
went with the Antiburghers, a party among them, including "a plurality of
the session," adhered to the Burghers, and for a number of years had occa
sional sermon at Linlithgow, Kirkliston, Bathgate, and other less-known
places. But now Torphichen was fixed on as the ordinary place of meeting,
and the Burgher congregation of West Lothian became more specifically
known by the name of the parish in which they found their centre. In 1754
they called Mr David Forrest, who tells that he had a favour for the place,
but the call not being quite harmonious he put it out of the calculation and
became minister at Inverkeithing. Next year they called the Rev. David
Telfar, but the Synod continued him at Bridge of Teith. In 1757 they were
again disappointed, their call to Mr Andrew Moir being set aside in favour
of another from Selkirk. It was similar in 1758, when Mr Alexander Dick
was appointed to Aberdeen in preference to Torphichen.
First Minister. — ARCHIBALD HALL, from the Penicuik branch of West
Linton congregation. Ordained, I3th February 1760. The tendency to
draw away from its rural centre began early to assert itself in West Lothian
congregation. The Synod in October 1763 were troubled with a protest
from Torphichen against a decision of Edinburgh Presbytery determining
that Bathgate should be the place of worship on alternate Sabbaths. They
found it a matter hard to deal with, and the decision was delayed for a year,
the alternate system to go on for the time, and both parties were exhorted to
manifest regard to the comfort of their minister by regular attendance in
whichever place ordinances were dispensed. At the Synod in May 1765,
when a committee was to report on the merits of the case, a call from
London was brought up to Mr Hall, who may have been very willing to get
out of the turmoil. The translation was agreed to, and Torphichen people
found time to adjust their differences during the long vacancy which followed.
It was arranged that Mr Hall's induction services should be conducted in
Bristo Church, Edinburgh, commissioners from London to be in attendance
to welcome him in name of the congregation. In his new position he laid
PRESBYTERY OF FALKIRK 679
the foundations of a flourishing church in Wells Street, beginning the work
which, under his successor, Dr Waugh, expanded into massive proportions.
The inscription on his tombstone in Bunhill Fields runs thus: "The Rev.
Archibald Hall, after fourteen years of eminently useful labour in his study
and in the pulpit at Wells Street, died full of faith and hope on 6th May
1778, in the forty-third year of his age." It was the nineteenth of his
ministry. As a divine, Mr Hall is said to have had few superiors in his own
day. As a writer, he published his " Constitution of the Gospel Church" in
1769, and his "Gospel Worship" in the following year. In 1771 his
"Impartial Survey" appeared, in which he gives a clear, succinct view of
the Burgess Oath Controversy in its history and demerits, a service for
which he was assailed by the Rev. Adam Gib, the great Antiburgher
champion, with abounding vehemence. We have also his " Treatise on the
Faith and Influence of the Gospel," a posthumous volume which Dr
Chalmers honoured by making it the subject of one of his Introductory
Essays.
Second Minister. — ANDREW DICK, who acceded to the membership of
Bathgate congregation (Livery Street) in 1768, when a divinity student, from
which he passed into the Burgher Hall. Mr Dick seems to have held back
with his trial discourses, as if unwilling to be ordained at Torphichen, and
no wonder. There was the thinness of the population, and by the disjunc
tion of the Bathgate families the right arm of the congregation's strength
was cut away. By the formation of Linlithgow (West) there was a further
weakening on the other side. The prospects were such now that the Pres
bytery before granting a moderation took the advice of the Synod. After a
delay often months and a vacancy of ten years Mr Dick was ordained, i ith
April 1775. Within three and a half years the door opened to something
better, and the young minister was called to the newly-formed congregation
of Queensferry. The Synod, in the interests of Torphichen, twice refused to
translate, but persistency, backed by the fitness of things, prevailed, and on
8th September 1779 he was loosed from his charge.
Third Minister. — JAMES RUSSELL, from the district of Mearns and the
congregation of Pollokshaws. The call was signed by 1 1 1 members and 20
adherents, and the ordination took place, 2nd May 1782. On I4th Nov
ember 1787 Mr Russell laid his demission on the Presbytery's table, and
the commissioners from the congregation acquiesced. It was vain, they said,
to think of keeping up a fixed ministry among them. A committee was
appointed to visit Torphichen, but they gave in no report, and on nth
December the resignation was accepted by the Moderator's casting vote.
Then it carried without a contradictory voice to " discontinue," and the
members were recommended to connect themselves with sister congregations
adjoining. In April 1789 the session of Bathgate conversed with one of the
old Torphichen elders, and they were all invited to take their seats as con
stituent members at next meeting. It is to be hoped that in this way the best
proportion of the office-bearers and members, numbering about 30 families,
were conserved for the denomination. On leaving Torphichen Mr Russell
returned to the probationer list, but was not successful in obtaining another
church. In 1799 he published a sermon on the Perseverance of the Saints,
in which he expressed his objections to the proposed modification of the
Formula, a subject which was then convulsing many Burgher congregations,
and particularly those within the bounds of Glasgow Presbytery. He early
identified himself with the Old Light party, and at the first meeting of the
new Presbytery he formally joined them, and proved useful in supplying
their stations or vacancies. But his views after a time underwent a change,
and in November 1808 he petitioned the New Light Presbytery of Glasgow
680 HISTORY OF U.P. CONGREGATIONS
to be received into ministerial communion with them. He explained that on
mature consideration he felt satisfied that the Preamble to the Formula ex
pressed nothing unfriendly either to the system of divine truth or to the
principles of the Secession. He had prior to this been in membership with
them, and he was now received into ministerial communion. Mr Russell
resided on a small property of his own in the parish of Mearns during the
latter part of his life. He died, 26th September 1817.
BO'NESS (ANTIBURGHER)
THE Antiburgher Synod on 2nd September 1762 had a protest before them
from Bo'ness and Carriden against a decision of Craigmailen session refus
ing to concur with them in a petition to the Presbytery for a disjunction from
that congregation. Mr Clarkson, the first minister of Craigmailen, died in
December 1761, and that was deemed a fit time to break away and secure
sermon at Bo'ness. The Synod granted the disjunction, and the people at a
meeting three weeks afterwards desired the Praying Societies among them
"to hold diets for prayer and thanksgiving to the Lord for all His goodness
to them." They also arranged to petition Edinburgh Presbytery for a
minister to observe a Fast at Bo'ness, and constitute the session, which
seems to have consisted at first of 4 members disjoined from Craigmailen.
Public worship was conducted at first in a barn, but there was a deserted
church in the place, which had been used by the Episcopalians, and this they
proposed to purchase if the titles were sufficient and the price reasonable.
It belonged to parties described as the " Sea-Box Society," and they were
well content to pay the £20 asked for, but it is entered that the sale could
not be done legally till a meeting of the sailors at Candlemas 1764. None
the less the bargain was struck, and the work went on, " the meeting-house
to be built at full length within the two gables, which are to stand, and the
breadth to be contracted." This was to be known as " The Easter Meeting
house" of Bo'ness, part of the ground being turned into a burying-place.
Before the end of 1763 concern was expressed about getting the barn in
which they had been meeting taken off their hands, as it was falling into
ruin, but the object was gained by the payment of a half-year's rent, and
155. to put it into the same condition as they found it in. In those
days money for Church purposes was both drawn in and given out in
homoeopathic measure.
So early as May 1763 the congregation, with only the barn to meet in,
brought out a call to Mr James Russell, but it was set aside by the Presby
tery because he had only preached to them one Sabbath and given a sermon
on a week-day. A further hearing was wished, but nothing followed, and
next year he was ordained at Milnathort. The call on this occasion was
signed by 56 (male) members, which indicates a probable membership of not
less than 150. There was a pause now till December 1764, and then came
in a thought of securing a popular minister of nine years' standing, the Rev.
Richard Jerment, and they were prepared to go forward if there were any
probability of the Synod allowing him to be loosed from his charge at
Peebles. The call came out in March 1765, when reasons for transportation
were drawn up, and commissioners appointed to deal warmly with the Pres
bytery to sustain it. This call, along with three others, went to the Synod
m April of that year, but, as the church records put it, "The Synod did not
think proper to transport Mr Jerment." Had he been removed to Bo'ness
the Antiburgher congregation in that place might have had another history
PRESBYTERY OF FALKIRK 681
and much better fortunes. The stipend promised at this time was ^50 a year,
that being the sum which it was calculated the sittings would bring if fully
let. The highest sum charged seems to have been 35. a year, a great part
being not more than 2s. 6d., so that to reach the figure named scarcely
less than 400 sittings would be required. A curious arrangement was at
tempted at first in the letting of the seats— a single member was to take the
whole pew, and assume the responsibility of providing the proper number of
•occupants.
First Minister.— THOMAS CLELAND, from Edinburgh (Nicolson Street).
Ordained, I3th August 1766. In the records we find preparations making
for that great occasion by the erecting of a platform five feet long by four
feet wide. A fixed ministry was secured now, but whatever amount of
prosperity this may have brought was soon blighted by imprudence on the
part of Mr Cleland. In December 1770 a paper from 11 members of the
congregation was laid before the Presbytery complaining that their minister
had involved himself in a double courtship, and that he had made bad
worse by prevarication, dissimulation, and denial. There was also a petition
read from the elders setting forth that, owing to this report, "the Lord's
cause is greatly suffering in that corner, and their congregation in a broken
situation." It led to committee workings, when certain acknowledgments
and expressions of regret were followed by rebuke and admonition, a state
ment of what the Presbytery had done to be intimated to the congregation
from the pulpit. Thus early was the Antiburgher cause discredited in
Bo'ness and its progress arrested. Mr Cleland, however, held on for two
dozen years, but the stipend, instead of rising with the demands of the times,
•came down to ^40, and when repairs on the church were needed £6 had to
come from the Synod, and ^6, los. was received from the sister congregation
of Dennyloanhead. Soon after this two of their number were to inform their
pastor that, to save an application to the Presbytery, he had better demit
his charge. It came to this, that on loth November 1794 the bond was
dissolved, the congregation having volunteered to pay Mr Cleland ,£40 as
a donation if that were done, but adding that they could give him no
annuity. He died at Bo'ness on 26th November 1797 of a lingering and
painful illness, leaving a widow and numerous family unprovided for. After
a vacancy of two years a call was issued to Mr William Broadfoot, and a
stipend of ,£70 was to be made up by subscription in addition to the
ordinary funds ; but Bo'ness had no place in competition with Kirkwall, to
which Mr Broadfoot was appointed by the Synod.
Second Minister. — JAMES CARMICHAEL, from Abernethy. The call was
signed by 34 men, and the stipend promised was down to ^60, the Presby
tery undertaking for a house meanwhile. The Synod advised the sustaining
of the call, but acceptance was not to be urged. Ordained, 29th August
1799, the service being conducted in the open air. Having had little en
couragement to persevere, Mr Carmichael resigned, and was loosed from his
charge on 6th May 1806, but there was nothing said at this time about
adopting Independent views. He had, however, when a preacher, showed
unsteadfastness in his adherence to his witnessing profession, and the
Synod in May 1807 had his case before them by reference from Edinburgh
Presbytery. The charge against him was that " he had for some time
worshipped with those of the Tabernacle communion/' and in a letter to the
clerk he stated that " he cannot any longer acknowledge their authority or
hold Church fellowship with them. The churches planted by the Apostles
were Independent and Congregational, and all Christian churches should be
of that description." Being summoned to their bar, he did not appear, and
on 6th May he was unanimously deposed from the office of the ministry.
682 HISTORY OF U.P. CONGREGATIONS
He died at Edinburgh, 24th October 1818, in or about his fifty-first year.
His widow survived till January 1861.
The prospects of the congregation were worse than ever now. Craig-
mailen people were on the point of removing to Linlithgow, three miles
distant, and though an appeal was made to the Presbytery to arrest this
movement, as fitted to inflict serious injury on them, the building of the place
of worship at this new centre was sanctioned. It was decreed, however, that
the boundaries between the two congregations should be the same as
formerly, which means that members of Bo;ness Church within, perhaps, a
mile of Linlithgow would have still to travel fully two miles to their old place
of worship unless permission were obtained from the Presbytery. Natural
fitness would not submit very long to be thwarted in that way.
Third Minister. — JAMES THOMSON, son of the Rev. Andrew Thomson
of Sanquhar. Ordained, 2oth April 1808, and loosed from his charge by the
Synod on 5th April 1812. The attempt to build up the Antiburgher cause
at Bo'ness he felt to be hopeless, and so did they. Within a few months he
was inducted to Holm of Balfron, where he lived and laboured to an ad
vanced old age.
The Presbytery after a trial of a few months wished to know whether
regular supply were still wanted with a view to the settlement of another
minister, but the resolve was merely to keep together as long as practicable,
and see what Providence might do for them. On I5th August 1814 seventeen
of their members were disjoined from Bo'ness and annexed to Linlithgow at
their own request, which would reduce the communion roll by probably not
less than one-fourth. Next year the Presbytery understood that the Rev.
Thomas Wood, formerly of Rattray, but now residing in the neighbourhood
of Bathgate, was preaching pretty regularly at Bo'ness, and they hoped he
would do so as frequently as his circumstances permitted, and report to them
with respect to the audience. In this enfeebled state the congregation con
tinued till the Union of 1820, and in December of that year steps were taken
by the session of the other church to have an amalgamation effected. It is
entered in their minutes that, as nearly all the members attended their place
of worship, the elders among them should be solicited to accept office, which
three of their number signified their willingness to do, "provided it was
agreeable to the congregation at large." At their request due intimation
was made from the pulpit, and, no objections being offered, the three took
their seats in the session, whereby an important end was gained. A fourth,
and apparently the last, declined for the time, but was cordially received in
1823. Thus without any formal basis of union the two congregations were
virtually merged into one.
BO'NESS (BURGHER)
THOUGH later in getting possession of the ground than the Antiburghers by
thirty years, the Burghers had the ascendency in Bo'ness and its neighbour
hood all along. In 1795 tne Old Statistical History put the numbers, young
and old, of Burghers in the parish at 153, and those of Antiburghers at 103.
We may say in a general way that there were 30 families of the one and 20
of the other. The church the Burghers originally attended was at Tor-
phichen, seven miles off, but for over twenty years it had been at Linlithgow,
nearer by fully one-half. But the time had come for securing gospel ordin
ances for themselves, and with this view 83 persons in and about Bo'ness
not in connection with the Secession were put into the front of the battle.
This was on igth November 1793, and, that the rights of the neighbouring
PRESBYTERY OF FALKIRK 683
congregation might be conserved, the Presbytery sent down the petition for
sermon to Linlithgow session for consideration. As usual in such cases
there was an earnest attempt from that quarter to block the way. It was
pleaded that a new erection at Bo'ness would render both congregations
"weak and contemptible, and unable to support the gospel honourably." It
was proposed instead that the petitioners should join Linlithgow Church, and
then, along with the members of that congregation residing in Bo'ness,
should receive supply of sermon once a fortnight at least in winter, either
by the minister of Linlithgow or by a preacher, it being understood that his
own pulpit would be regularly supplied. A committee of Presbytery was
appointed to secure the concurrence of parties, and by dint of persuasion the
majority of the petitioners declared that, though they would rather have ser
mon at once as a distinct congregation, they would agree to receive it mean
while in the way suggested. All was well thus far, but the compromise was
too clumsy and one-sided to last.
The branch of Linlithgow congregation in Bo'ness had already shown
that they were prepared to make common cause with the petitioners, and
insist on being formed along with them into a separate congregation. Ac
cordingly in April 1794 they applied to Linlithgow session for a disjunction,
the paper being signed by 205 persons, members and adherents. The
petition being refused the case was carried to the Presbytery, who referred
it to the Synod for decision. Though the appeal was dismissed victory for
Bo'ness was only a question of time. Already the arrangement between the
two places had broken down. Mr Jack, the Linlithgow minister, was com
plaining that the petitioners had not taken sittings in his church, and did
not attend there when they wanted sermon. On a recent Sabbath they had
even provided supply for themselves, ignoring his session entirely. In the
midst of this confusion Mr Jack was called to Greenock, and the Synod in
September of that year decided for the translation. The opposition now
abated, and next May 65 members were disjoined from Linlithgow by the
Synod, and, along with the people who had been receiving sermon at
intervals already, were formed into the Burgher congregation of Bo'ness.
Two of their number had been elders in Linlithgow, and other two were
ordained soon after, so that a session was constituted, the names of the
members being Ebenezer Thomson and James Buchan, James Morton and
Henry Stark.
First Minister. — ARCHIBALD HARPER, from Penicuik, a nephew of the
Rev. Archibald Hall of London. Ordained, 24th August 1796. The call
was signed by 1 1 1 members, and the stipend was to be ,£60, with a free
house. Mr Harper had been taken on trials for ordination by Edinburgh
Presbytery on the understanding that he was to go to Nova Scotia, but
when the call from Bo'ness was laid before the Synod they loosed him from
his engagement. The church was to be ready in time for the ordination, but
through some fault, for which the builder was blamed, it was not finished till
after October. There is reference in the congregational records to a malt
barn being occupied till then. From the very first there was liberality on
the part of the people, judging by the standard of the times, the church-door
collections averaging nearly £i each Sabbath. In 1806 the stipend was
^80, in 1813 it was ,£90, and in 1821 it was ,£105. The church when finished
cost nearly ^500, of which about one-half remained for many years a burden
on the property, but it was gradually reduced, though in 1820 it was still
over ,£200. At the outset ,£126 was raised by subscription, one lady giving
^20, two members 12 guineas each, and one 10 guineas. In the end of
December 1833 Mr- Harper was entirely laid aside from ministerial duty by
a paralytic affection, and, as there was no hope that he would ever be able
684 HISTORY OF U.P. CONGREGATIONS
for work again, a colleague was arranged for, the stipend to be ^120 in all.
The moderation \vas to be on Tuesday, 8th April 1834, but Mr Harper died
on the preceding Saturday, aged sixty-five, as the tombstone bears, and in
the thirty-eighth year of his ministry. The call to be his successor came out
for the Rev. George Hill, formerly of Warrington, but he preferred Mussel-
burgh (Bridge Street). The membership at this time was 157, of whom 22
families were from Carriden parish.
From a sketch of Mr Harper's life by his kinsman, the Rev. James
Harper of Leith, in the U.S. Magazine for 1834, we gather that he was
an instructive rather than a popular preacher, that his discourses were pre
pared with unfailing care, and that by his general character and bearing he
secured the esteem of his people and the respect of the community at
large. But his closing years were clouded by the death of his only son, a
medical student, who had come in from Freethinking ways to be a confirmed
Christian, and then by the death of his only daughter, followed soon after
by that of their stepmother. These successive strokes, coupled with the
mental labour he had undergone during his whole ministry, may have pre
pared the way for the disabling ailment which broke him down, when he was
a good way under threescore and ten.
Second Minister. — DAVID CONNEL, from Perth (Wilson Church). Or
dained, 1 3th January 1835. Two years after this the church was furnished
with galleries, increasing the sittings to 500. In 1840 there was a member
ship of 200, and the stipend was raised to ,£120 in 1846. This was followed
in 1859 by the building of a new manse, which cost ^800, of which ^100 was
received from the Ferguson Fund. On Sabbath, i6th November 1873, Mr
Connel was suddenly struck down in the vestry, when robed and ready for
the forenoon service, and died about one o'clock next morning. He was in
the sixty-sixth year of his age and thirty-ninth of his ministry. The dis
course he intended to give his people that day was afterwards printed, along
with the sermon he preached on the first Sabbath of his ministry. Mr Connel
by his first marriage was a son-in-law of the Rev. Archibald Browning of
Tillicoultry, and his son, the Rev. Archibald Browning Connel, is our minister
in Lochee. The second Mrs Connel was a niece of Mr John Henderson of
Park, Bo'ness being the cradle of that outstanding and widely-ramified
family in the U.P. Church.
Third Minister.— SAMUEL SLEATH, admitted by Lancashire Presbytery,
with the sanction of the Synod, as a U.P. probationer on nth July 1871.
Mr Sleath had been trained, and got licence, among the Independents in
England, and ministered for a time to a congregation in that connection near
Chester. Ordained at Bo'ness, 23rd June 1874. At the close of the following
year the members numbered 237, and the stipend, with allowances, was ,£207
ios., and ten years later it was advanced other ^50. The present church, built
at a cost of ^4000, and seated for about 620, was opened on Saturday, iyth
January 1885, by Dr Drummond, Belhaven Church, Glasgow, and within
three years it was clear of debt, the end being partly gained by the proceeds
of a bazaar which yielded between ,£700 and j£8oo. The recess provided
for an organ is now befittingly filled up. The membership at the close of
1899 was 391, and the stipend ,£295, with a manse.
KILSYTH (RELIEF)
ON 2$th June 1767 the Established Presbytery of Glasgow met at Eagles-
ham for the ordination of Mr Thomas Clark, by order of the General
Assembly. Of all the ministers in that large Presbytery Mr John Telfer
PRESBYTERY OF FALKIRK
685
of Kilsyth was the only one who put in an appearance, the sederunt con
sisting, besides, of the Principal of Glasgow University, one of the theological
professors, and a solitary elder. On Mr Telfer's action on this occasion
Scott's Fasti makes the following comment :— " By doing his duty as a
member of Presbytery, and joining in the ordination service of an unpopular
presentee at Eaglesham in 1767, he so offended his elders and others as to
lead to the rise of a congregation of Relief in the parish." The settlement at
Eaglesham thus referred to was carried out in the face of riotous hostility,
as will be shown at the proper place. The call was signed only by the
patron's agent, and concurred in by a single householder. The Presbytery
after the presentee's trials were all sustained declined fixing the day of
ordination. At last the Assembly fixed the day for them, and the minister
of Kilsyth, whose heart was believed to be in the work, appeared punctually
at his post, "faithful among the faithless." This was followed up on 2nd
March 1768 by a petition for sermon to the Relief Presbytery of Glasgow
from the people of Kilsyth and neighbourhood. On i6th June the peti
tioners represented that they were groaning under oppression, and the
Presbytery found that they had sufficient reason for taking them under their
inspection. The building of the church has been assigned to 1770, but the
following notice, which appeared in the Evening Courant for 22nd October
1768, puts this right :— " From Kilsyth we hear that some masons employed
in building a church of Relief in that parish, being on a scaffold which was
not sufficiently supported, it gave way, by which one man lost his life, and
two others are in a very dangerous case." In their first two ministers the
congregation was very unfortunate.
First Minister.— JAMES GRAHAME, of whose early days we gather from
the minutes of Colinsburgh session that he taught a school in that place
when a student. In the Life of Dr Bogue of Gosport there is a letter of
1 7th April 1771, in which Grahame's appearance before the Presbytery of
Relief, when on trials for licence, is described by a fellow-student, but may
have to be taken with some abatements. " He showed neither imagination,
judgment, nor taste. Old-fashioned words and Calvinism were his chief
excellences. He seems to have a large memory, well calculated to retain
such coarse and unrefined rhapsodies." He also credits him with " a clumsy
manner and shocking pronunciation." But he took hold of Kilsyth people,
and was ordained among them in the earlier part of 1772, as appears from
his name being entered in the sederunt of the Relief Synod in May of that
year. But there was not to be permanence, and in February 1775 the
congregation complained to the Presbytery that their funds were unable
to meet the necessary expenditure. The case being referred to the Synod,
Mr Grahame's demission of his charge was accepted on 23rd May of that
year. He was preaching at Irvine in July 1776, and in a history of the
Relief congregation there it is stated that he was rather popular in the
pulpit, but "undignified in the extreme in his intercourse with the people,"
and that they became "disgusted with his childish conduct in the private
walks of life." The last glimpse we have of him is in a recent history of
Kilsyth by the parish minister, the Rev. Peter Anton, from which it appears
that he became a teacher at Bo'ness, but got into trouble, and was banished
forth of Stirlingshire. Any further information bears that he was afterwards
in very reduced circumstances.
Second Minister.— ALLAN CORNFOOT, a licentiate from Edinburgh Presby
tery. Ordained at Kilsyth, i6th April 1778, but his ministry was soon
wound up. From circumstances connected with his marriage he was de
posed, 4th January 1779. On ist March 1780 he petitioned Glasgow Presby
tery to restore him to office, and the petition was unanimously granted. He
686 HISTORY OF U.P. CONGREGATIONS
continued preaching within the bounds till March 1783, when he applied for,
and received, an extract of licence. His name next appears in the minutes of
the Newcastle Class of I5th February 1785, when the High Bridge con
gregation petitioned for admission and supply. A paper was at the same
time given in, signed by Allan Cornfoot, their late pastor, with a receipt
for ,£20, as the condition on which he had retired, together with a statement
of the grounds on which the separation had taken place. We meet with
him for the last time in the records of Edinburgh Relief Presbytery of
2nd February 1792, where he is described as the Rev. Allan Cornfoot,
Dissenting Presbyterian minister at Gateshead. He was applying to be
received back into the Relief communion, but the Presbytery, considering
the peculiar nature of Mr Cornfoot's case and the vast importance of the
utmost caution in receiving ministers and preachers from other denomina
tions, referred the application to the Synod. The matter went no further,
and we hear nothing more of Mr Cornfoot.
Third Minister. — JAMES DUN, a young man who had been brought up
in the congregation, but was a native of Dunblane. Ordained, gth August
1780. That forenoon Mr Kerr of Bellshill preached by appointment of
Presbytery, and held a Fast with the congregation owing to the distressing
providences that had befallen them, " but the Presbytery declared that this
is not to be a precedent, and that no congregation that is not tried with
similar melancholy circumstances is to plead it." But Kilsyth was now to
be highly favoured for the next twelve years. Dr Struthers has spoken of
Mr Dun as having laboured with increasing acceptability and usefulness
during that period, and has remarked that "in him more than in any other
Relief minister there was a happy union of solemnity and affection." But
on 7th August 1792 he accepted a call to East Campbell Street, Glasgow.
To fill his place a call was brought up two months after to the Rev. John
Reston of Biggar, but it was better, perhaps, for themselves that it did not
succeed. •
Fourth Minister. — JOHN ANDERSON, from Falkirk (West). He was also
called to Dysart and Cupar-Fife (now Boston Church), but though these
were accompanied with the promise of a considerably higher income
Kilsyth was accepted. Ordained, i2th September 1793, stipend to be ,£83,
with manse, garden, and a park worth £6. The Secession, as we find from
the Old Statistical History, had a larger hold of Kilsyth parish than the
Relief, their adherents young and old numbering 270 against 207, most of
whom attended the Burgher or Antiburgher church of Cumbernauld.
There was even an attempt begun in 1822 to have a Secession church set up
in the village. On I2th February of that year a petition with 67 male signa
tures was presented from Kilsyth to the Secession Presbytery of Glasgow
for sermon. A station was opened forthwith, and kept up for some years in
a feeble way. The Presbytery wished to encourage them, and in April 1823
appearances were reported to be favourable. A house to accommodate 400
had been built, and the people being unable to seat it the Synod aided them
to the extent of ,£10. It was opened by Mr Marshall of Kirkintilloch on
the second Sabbath of August. Next year, in view of forming a regular
congregation, 36 persons were admitted to membership, but it comes out in
a few months that the building was only rented, and on gth February 1825,
owing to a misunderstanding between the proprietor and the people, it was
resolved that sermon be discontinued. Anything else would have involved
overchurching, with its attendant evils, and these were to come soon enough.
In 1836 the communicants in the Relief church were 400, and the stipend
was ^40 higher than it had been when Mr Anderson's ministry began.
About seven-eighths of the families resided within the parish, the others
PRESBYTERY OF FALKIRK 687
being drawn chiefly from Kirkintilloch and Cumbernauld. There was not
quite ,£100 of debt on the property, and everything looked well. It was not
till other ten years had passed and Mr Anderson was beyond his jubilee
that troubles arose. Towards the close of 1846 Kilsyth congregation re
quested Glasgow Presbytery to appoint three probationers named, one
being Mr Robert Anderson, their minister's son, and another Mr Alexander
Banks, who obtained Braehead soon after, to complete their number of
days, as they wished to proceed with the election of a colleague. A modera
tion took place in February, when the voting between the two was close,
and the result was a call to Mr Anderson subscribed by 157 members
and 73 adherents. At the same time a petition with 198 names was laid on
the table craving that the election be declared null and void. This was
refused, the objections being reckoned frivolous, but the case was carried by
appeal to the Synod. In Secession Presbyteries calls so largely opposed
were liable to be set aside, but the Church courts of the Relief stood up more
rigidly for the rights of a majority however small. Accordingly, at the
Synod, Dr French moved that this principle be adhered to and the appeal
dismissed, which carried without contradiction.
Fifth Minister.— ROBERT ANDERSON. Ordained as colleague to his
father, 27th July 1847, having previously declined St Paul's Street, Aberdeen.
Mr Anderson was also called some months before to the Secession church,
Braehead, and though the Union was not yet effected that slight barrier
was got over, and the call sustained, but without effect. Mr Anderson was
no sooner ordained than the opposition party set about the formation of an
Independent church. There had been one of the same connection in
Kilsyth ten years before, but it became E.U., and though it had a minister
for a short time it never prospered, and now the new cause had the scattered
remnants to work on. For ten years this congregation was for the most
part dependent on the services of students, but since that they have had a
succession of ministers, and are still going on. One effect must have been
to weaken the resources of the mother church, so that for a course of years
the junior minister had a stipend of only ^80, and his father ^40, the latter
sum being helped by an annuity of ,£50 from the Aged Ministers' Fund after
1857. Mr John Anderson remained fresh and vigorous till he was over
fourscore and ten. His son from John Street, Glasgow, told that, visiting
him a year and a half before his death, he found him hoeing in the garden,
" his mind still clear as a brass bell — ready to depart, but willing, if the Lord
will, to live a little longer, and see what comes of the Pope." His long and
useful life closed on 2nd February 1862, in the ninety-third year of his age
and sixty-ninth of his ministry. Besides the two sons already mentioned he
left a third, the Rev. David Anderson of Ceres.
The congregation seems never to have recovered its old strength, but as
the Augmentation Scheme widened out the stipend of ,£137, IDS. from the
people was raised to nearly ^200, besides the manse, the membership
approximating sometimes to 200. In July 1889 Mr Robert Anderson inti
mated his desire to be relieved of active duty. He was to vacate the manse,
and the congregation, instead of paying him an annual allowance, were to
purchase for him an annuity of ^20, and he was to have his name placed on
the Aged and Infirm Ministers' list. He has since resided at Cumnock,
where the minister, the Rev. Alexander Macdonald, is married to a niece
of his.
Sixth Minister. — JOHN S. GOODALL, from Milnathort, a brother of the
Rev. W. S. Goodall, Greyfriars, Glasgow. Ordained, 26th February 1890.
The population of the parish increased by about one-fourth within the next
ten years, and for a time the young minister appeared to carry everything
688 HISTORY OF U.P. CONGREGATIONS
before him. A new church, w.ith 650 sittings, was opened on igth January
1893 on a more commanding site, and a new manse was built close by. The
expense of both was put down in round numbers at ^5500, of which ^3300
was paid within three and a half years. An effort was then made to clear
off the remainder, a liberal and wealthy office-bearer who had come from
Dennyloanhead Church sixteen years before having bequeathed a sum equal
to half their indebtedness on condition that the congregation raised the other
half within a twelvemonth after his decease. To secure this end a bazaar
was resorted to, which cleared upwards of ^1000, and the Board having
made up the ,£108 still required, before the end of 1896 the congregation
was completely free of debt. This was bright and encouraging, but trial
and displacement were at hand, not, perhaps, without premonitions of what
was coming.
On 2nd February 1897 the Rev. Robert Leckie of Airth felt necessity laid
on him to resign his charge, and to volunteer a statement big with bearings
on Kilsyth. A committee of investigation was appointed by Falkirk Presby
tery, but Mr Goodall took high ground, a man being proverbially bold when
he is innocent ! But inquiry refused to be stifled, and precognitions were
gathered in from various quarters, forming a many-coloured garment when
pieced together. Invited to appear before the committee and make any
statement he might wish relative to the case, he replied that he had raised
actions for slander and defamation against two of the witnesses. However,
when he faced the committee a week later he lowered his flag, and was willing
to give in his resignation, pledging himself to go abroad that he might
" begin work afresh in another land." Next day the Presbytery allowed the
resignation to lie over, and proceeded with the case on one of its minor
counts, relating to money transactions, which was unanimously found
proven, and Mr Goodall protested and appealed to the Synod. At the
evening sederunt a winding-up was arrived at, the accused agreeing to
resign his status as a minister of the gospel, to ask no certificate of minis
terial character, and to proceed no further with his protest. A minute to
that effect was drawn up, and received his signature as correct. It was
notified to the Synod that on 7th April 1897 John S. Goodall, Kilsyth, had
been loosed from his charge and declared no longer a minister of Christ.
Whether a Presbytery is justified in allowing a case of discipline to terminate
in this way may be questioned. Mr Goodall now resided for some time
in Edinburgh, and his name appeared in the directory in connection with a
medical agency.
The membership of Kilsyth congregation was given in as 339 at the
beginning of that year, but dependence cannot always be placed on the con
tents of statistical schedules. Whatever may have been the cause the
numbers were down to 272 at the next return. Without due delay a modera
tion was proceeded with, when six candidates were proposed, which showed
that the step was premature. At the last vote the Rev. John L. M'Gregor,
Berwick, was carried over Mr George Stirling, afterwards of Kilwinning, by
50 to 46, but the call was only subscribed by 62 persons, and on a requisition
signed by 170 members and 40 adherents the Presbytery decided that it be
not sustained. Unanimity was arrived at within a few weeks.
Seventh Minister. — JOHN WEIR, M.A., from Clydebank. The call was
signed by 162 members and 57 adherents, and he was ordained, 23rd
November 1897. The membership at the close of 1899 was 306, and the
stipend ^200, with the manse.
PRESBYTERY OF FALKIRK 689
LINLITHGOW, WEST (BURGHER)
AT the first meeting of the Burgher Synod after the Breach a representation
and petition was laid on their table from a majority of the Craigmailen
elders. Their minister, Mr Clarkson, had gone to the Antiburgher side, and
they designated themselves " the plurality of Linlithgow session." Sermon
was supplied to them as Edinburgh Presbytery could afford it, but in 1749
and 1750 the appointments were portioned out between Linlithgow, Kirk
liston, and Cathlaw, a place within the Bathgate bounds. In October of
the latter year the people in and near Linlithgow petitioned that their town
should be made the place of worship. At the Synod in April 1752 Edinburgh
Presbytery brought up the question of granting a moderation to the northern
part of West Lothian congregation in and about Linlithgow. They had
delayed the matter, as the southern part about Bathgate had not been dis
joined, and were hostile to the proposal. At next meeting, in October, it was
stated that means had been used, but to no effect, for the coalescence of the
two sections, probably by building a place of worship about midway between,
and a disjunction was agreed to by a great majority. The Presbytery was
also empowered to grant a moderation to either congregation, or both, as
they should see cause. It was now as if Linlithgow had been about to
become the seat of a Secession church at last, but difficulties must have
intervened, and the Burgher families in the town and neighbourhood merged
in the newly-formed congregation of Torphichen, a place four miles off, wrTere
they attended ordinances for other eighteen years. The date at which they
were disjoined from Torphichen cannot be ascertained, but their meeting
house is found to have been built in 1772, and the fact that the name of
Mr Learmonth was prominent among them at that time confirms the
tradition that they met in his lanyard at least two years before this.
First Minister.— ALEXANDER PIRIE, from Aberdeen (Nether Kirkgate).
At the Synod in April 1774 Mr Pirie was appointed to Bathgate in preference
to Linlithgow, but after delivering part of his trials for ordination he refused
to proceed further. Bathgate was in a state of unrest at the time, and it
was uncertain to what extent it was about to be weakened by the formation
of a Burgher church at Longridge. In the circumstances the Presbytery
were of opinion that a settlement could not be effected to the edification of
those concerned, and the Synod at next meeting set the call aside. The
way was now cleared for Linlithgow coming forward anew, and Mr Pirie
was ordained there on I2th April 1775. The extent of his success in his first
charge we cannot ascertain, but his gifts were amply recognised by his
transference to Glasgow (now Greyfriars), one of the highest positions in the
Church. Called to the collegiate charge there, he was loosed from Linlithgow
by the Synod in May 1782.
Second Minister.— ROBERT JACK, from Greyfriars, Glasgow. Ordained,
26th November 1782. Though Mr Jack's eloquence was "mellifluous," and
he has been described as " silver-tongued," he remained in Linlithgow nearly
twelve years. Kirkgate, Leith, called him in 1788, and Portsburgh, Edin
burgh, once and again in 1792, but the Synod each time forbade his removal.
A call to build up a promising cause in Greenock had better success two
years after, and in September 1794 the Synod loosed him from Linlithgow.
The congregation there had been for some time in a state of agitation owing
to the families about Bo'ness insisting on being disjoined that they might
have sermon for themselves, and it may have been thought kindness to Mr
Jack to have him transferred to another field of labour. But before six
months had expired Linlithgow people invited him back, as if under the
impression that his comfort had not been promoted by the change, but he
2X
690 HISTORY OF U.P. CONGREGATIONS
did not avail himself of the offer. At this point we get a slight view of the
numbers and resources of the congregation. This call was signed by 214
members, and though the large branch from Bo'ness should be cut off they
were to make the stipend £70.
Third Minister. — DAVID WATSON, from Haddington (East). Mr
Watson's trials for ordination at Whitby were delivered before this call
came out, with the signatures of 230 members. The Synod put the last
first, and Mr Watson was ordained at Linlithgow, 3rd November 1795. Of
his long and seemingly peaceful ministry there is nothing special to record.
He died, 23rd May 1831, in the fifty-ninth year of his age and thirty-sixth
of his ministry. He was a son-in-law of the Rev. John Henderson, Dunbar,
and his son, the Procurator-Fiscal of West Lothian, was long a pillar in
what had been his father's congregation.
Fourth Minister. — WILLIAM S. SMART, son of the Rev. William Smart,
Abbey Close, Paisley, and nephew of the Rev. Dr Smart, Stirling, whose
son-in-law he also became. Ordained, 27th June 1832. In 1834 the con
gregation felt inspirited enough to undertake the building of a new church,
with 546 sittings, of which the cost was ,£1150. In 1838 the stipend was
,£140 in all, and the communicants were slightly over 300. About a score
of families came from other parishes — Ecclesmachan in particular — and
some of them from a distance of four miles. The debt on the property at
this time was at least ,£600, and the congregation was raising about ^40 a
year for missionary purposes. Mr Smart died suddenly on Sabbath, I4th
January 1849, in the forty-third year of his age and seventeenth of his
ministry. After the usual services he felt exhausted, but was on his way to
conduct an evening service in the Independent chapel when he was observed
to fall forward. Rising up, he ran for a short space in a stooping posture,
and fell a second time. When carried into the vestry he breathed heavily,
and in a few minutes expired. A remarkably interesting sketch of Mr
Smart appeared in the denominational magazine a few months after his
death, partly from the pen of his old fellow-student, the Rev. John M'Farlane,
then of Glasgow. Mr Smart himself, in the year 1838, wrote the Memoir of
his father, which is prefixed to a volume of his sermons which he edited.
Fifth Minister. — JOHN DOBIE, son of the Rev. John Dobie of Langholm
(North). Ordained, 6th August 1851, having previously declined Albion
Chapel, London. During the vacancy the congregation had called Mr
Robert Selkirk Scott and Mr James Stevenson ; but both were in demand
for other places, and Mr Scott was ordained at Manchester and Mr
Stevenson at Dennyloanhead. About this time the congregation bought a
manse, the first they possessed, and the stipend was .£150, including
expenses. In 1857 Mr Dobie declined Potterrow, Edinburgh, but on ist
April 1862 he was invited to choose between Everton, Liverpool, and
Shamrock Street, Glasgow, when he preferred the latter, and was loosed
from Linlithgow.
Sixth Minister.— JAMES BUCHANAN, from Edinburgh (Lothian Road).
Called to South Shields (Mile End Road), but declined, and was ordained
at Linlithgow, 8th September 1863. The stipend was ^200, including ex
penses, with the manse. Mr Buchanan accepted a call to Greyfriars, Glas
gow, 6th April 1869.
Seventh Minister. — JOHN L. MUNRO, B.D., from Hutchesontown,
Glasgow. Ordained, i2th January 1870. Mr Munro was both talented and
scholarly, but he saw reason to demit his charge after twenty-two years'
service, and the demission was accepted, I4th February 1892. He then
crossed over to America, but after sojourning there for some time he re
turned to his native land, and, though his name never appeared on the
PRESBYTERY OF FALKIRK 691
probationer list again, he was employed as supply for ministers' pulpits, and
resided in Edinburgh. He removed at last to Middlesborough, to take up
his abode with his brother, a medical man there. On the afternoon of 2ist
August 1899 he retired to his bedroom, as if feeling unwell, and when his
brother returned from his professional rounds it was to find that the death
curtain had come between. His age was about fifty-six, and he was in the
thirtieth year of his ministerial life.
Eighth Minister.— JAMES C. BUCHANAN, M.A., son of the Rev. James
Buchanan, Foreign Mission Secretary, who was also his predecessor in the
same church. Ordained, 3rd November 1892. The membership at the
beginning of the Union year was 230, and the stipend ,£200, with a manse.
LINLITHGOW, EAST (ANTIBURGHER)
THE old congregation of Craigmailen was now to be represented mainly by
Linlithgow (East), and partially by Bathgate (Antiburgher). The minister
went with the majority to Linlithgow, where a church was built in 1806, with
sittings for 480. Mr Oliver died on New Year's Day, 1812, in the eighty-
second year of his age and forty-ninth of his ministry. ' Of the students who
attended the Antiburgher Hall at Abernethy he was the last survivor.
Second Minister.— JOHN MILLER, from Cumbernauld, but attested to the
Hall by Mr Muter of Glasgow. In May 1813 calls to Mr Miller came up
to the Synod from Rothesay, Sanday, and Linlithgow, and on the second
vote Linlithgow was preferred to Sanday by a majority of 2. Ordained, I7th
August 1813. The stipend promised at first was ,£100, with a house or ^15
instead, but other £10 was added, and a horse was to be provided when
required. The congregation does not seem to have made up as yet for the
losses sustained by the transition from Craigmailen, as the call was signed
by only 44 (male) members. Of Mr Miller we have this testimony from
Professor Morison of the Evangelical Union, that he was "a rich, practical
preacher, and so good a Hebrew scholar that he could read as fluently as in
English the whole Hebrew Bible ad apperturam" an attestation which
means much, though it may have been too strongly expressed. After a
lingering illness Mr Miller died, 2nd March 1831, in the forty-third year of
his age and eighteenth of his ministry.
Third Minister.— GEORGE HuTTON, from Lilliesleaf. Called also to
Alyth,but when the competition came before the Synod he expressed a decided
preference for Linlithgow, to which he was accordingly appointed without
a vote. The call was signed by 177 members and 61 adherents, which
marks considerable progress under the ministry of his predecessor. Or
dained, 3 ist July 1832. Within the next six years fully a third was
added, making the entire number of communicants 333, of whom about
one-third came from other parishes, chiefly Muiravonside, Carriden, Aber-
corn, and Ecclesmachan. There was a debt on the property of ^75, and the
stipend was ^110, with a valuable manse. On 2nd June 1863 Mr Hutton,
feeling that his work was done, retired from active service. The Presbytery
wished the congregation to grant him an allowance of ,£20 a year, but
strongly objecting to outside aid, they only undertook half that sum. Mr
Hutton now made way for another by giving up the manse and removing to
Greenock, where he spent the last five years of his life, entirely laid aside
from ministerial work. The congregation first called Mr William Munsie,
who preferred Barrack Street, Glasgow.
Fourth Minister. — ANDREW W. CARMICHAEL, from St James Place,
Edinburgh. Having set aside a call to Towlaw Mr Carmichael was or-
692 HISTORY OF U.P. CONGREGATIONS
dained, 2ist June 1864. The stipend was to be ,£130, with the manse. The
collegiate relation ended with Mr Hutton's death, 4th May 1868, in the
sixty-sixth year of his age and thirty-sixth of his ministry. Of Mr Hutton's
pulpit appearances the writer has a distinct remembrance, recalling in
particular a sermon on a communion evening from the text : " Curse ye
Meroz, saith the angel of the Lord, curse ye bitterly the inhabitants
thereof," etc. In student days he sat under Dr Henderson's ministry at
Galashiels, whom he resembled in his polished style of composition, though
there was more vivacity in his delivery. Mr Carmichael, on whom the whole
duties had devolved from the first, accepted a call to Oxendon Church,
London, on 3rd December 1872, where a new church was built for him at
Haverstock Hill at a cost of about ,£6000, a like sum having been obtained
for the old building. He remained in London till 1883, when he accepted
a call to Motherwell. The manse at Linlithgow had been repaired three
years before he left at a cost of ^120 to the people and ^80 to the Board.
Fifth Minister. — JAMES CONWAY, from Troon. Ordained, 2ist October
1873, and loosed, i6th January 1877, on accepting a call to Bell Street,
Dundee.
Sixth Minister. — DAVID BURNS, from John Street, Montrose. Ordained,
3ist July 1877, and loosed, 7th August 1883, on accepting a call to St Paul's,
Aberdeen. The congregation now called Mr W. B. Y. Davidson, who
preferred Campsie. They next called Mr John Cairns, who accepted, but
Dumfries (Buccleuch Street), where he was assistant, having interposed to
retain him permanently, he withdrew his acceptance, and was relieved by
Linlithgow congregation.
Seventh Minister. — ROBERT WILSON, from East Kilbride. Ordained,
28th October 1884. The membership at the recent Union was 210, and
the stipend .£200, with the manse, as before. It is interesting to know that
Mrs Wilson is a granddaughter of Mr Miller, the second minister of the
congregation, linking thus far the present with the past.
DENNY (BURGHER)
THIS was originally an offshoot from the Antiburgher congregation of
Dennyloanhead. The church there requiring to undergo extensive repairs
in 1773, a large number of members on the north side insisted that a new
church should be built in the town of Denny, and that the congregation
should remove thither. This proposal being resisted by those on the south
side, the party who favoured the change presented a paper to the Presbytery,
bearing that they were about to erect a place of worship in Denny, and
asking to have the services of Mr Walker, their minister, divided between
the two places. The case being referred to the Synod, it was decided that
the proposed church should not be built, nor a division of Mr Walker's
labours sanctioned. This put back the movement for fourteen years, and
it then was carried through in another form. It happened that Mr Hunter
of Falkirk was the only member of Presbytery who had advocated the trans
ference from Loanhead to Denny, and he had now been excluded from the
Antiburgher Synod. Along with one or two other ministers, who like him
self were out of all ecclesiastical connection, he took part in forming the
" Lifter" Presbytery. Here was a door opened for having a church in Denny
under a new name. Accordingly, as appears from the title-deeds, ground
was secured, and a meeting-house built in 1787 or 1788. The new Presby
tery proved a failure. Their distinctive principle was the lifting of the
communion elements before the consecration prayer,, but this was too
PRESBYTERY OF FALKIRK 693
narrow to form the basis of a denomination. About the year 1793 the
congregation of Denny, which is understood to have had a minister of its
own for a short time, was virtually broken up.
It was now that several Burgher families residing in the district made
common cause with the families of the dispersion, and led the way in an
application to the Burgher Presbytery of Stirling for sermon. This was on
8th October 1793, and the petition was supported by two commissioners, the
one a member of the Burgher congregation of Stirling, and the other a
member of the Burgher congregation of Falkirk. The station was opened
in its new connection by Mr Gilfillan of Dunblane on the first Sabbath of
November, and it was afterwards reported that the audiences on that and
subsequent Sabbaths were numerous and respectable. At next meeting
certain petitioners not previously of the Burgher communion were taken
under the Presbytery's inspection, and for several years sermon was regularly
applied for, though owing to scarcity of preachers the supply did not average
more than two Sabbaths out of five. In May 1795 tne property was bought
from the original trustees for ,£210, and in January 1797 three elders were
ordained and one inducted. This was Robert Kirkwood, who had been
an elder in Loanhead at an earlier time, and was the maternal grandfather
of Dr Robertson of Irvine and the other members of the Greenhill family.
In July following Denny people came up to the Presbytery for a moderation,
the stipend promised being ^60, with a house and sacramental expenses.
The Presbytery wished them to drive the minister's coal in addition, and
to provide him with a horse when he went to assist at communions or was
attending meetings of Presbytery or Synod, but the congregation, instead
of undertaking these engagements, agreed to give other ^5 a year. The
call, signed by 75 members and adhered to by 73 ordinary hearers, was ad
dressed to Mr James Mather, but after most of his trial discourses were
given in notice came of a competing call from Maybole, which, after a delay
of several months, was preferred by the Synod to that from Denny.
First Minister. — JAMES HARROWER, from the parish of Lecropt and the
congregation of Dunblane (West). This call was signed by 86 members,
and the Synod having preferred it to another from Pitcairn, Mr Harrower
was ordained, I5th January 1799. In April previous the congregation had
obtained a grant of ^10 to aid them in fitting up the church with galleries,
a movement which betokened good progress and brightening prospects.
But before Mr Harrower had been two years in Denny the congregation
was in danger of being thrown vacant by a call from Kirkintilloch, backed
by a stipend of ,£80, but, happily for them, the translation was vetoed by the
Synod. Under Mr Harrower the cause prospered, and the membership,
which was under 100 at his ordination, was above 320 in 1834, at which
time it began slightly to decline. Seventeen years before this the church
had been enlarged to accommodate 550 sitters, and this, with the building
of a manse and other improvements, cost about ^iioo. In January 1834
the minister experienced a severe family stroke by the death of his only
son, who had newly commenced as a medical man in Denny when he was
suddenly cut off by typhus fever in his twenty-third year. In 1838 the
stipend was reported at ,£107, with manse, garden, and a small park. There
was a debt at this time of nearly ,£600 on the property, but it was in course
of being reduced. Of the families connected with the church about one-fifth
were from the parish of Dunipace, and a few from St Ninians. But Mr
Harrower was now getting in among the drawbacks of age, and in 1843 he
expressed his wish for a colleague, and this was arranged for, on the under
standing that he was to have ^30 a year, with the manse, the stipend of the
colleague to be ^80 the first year and ,£90 afterwards.
694 HISTORY OF U.P. CONGREGATIONS
Second Minister. — ROBERT T. JEFFREY, M.D., from Le-itholm, but brought
up like his brother, Dr George Jeffrey, under the ministry of Dr Adam
Thomson of Coldstream. The call was signed by 265 members and 81
adherents, and Dr Jeffrey after declining Girvan was ordained at Denny,
22nd February 1844. In 1849 ne nad an invitation to the Yale of Leven,
as successor to the Rev. Alexander Wallace at Alexandria, but, though the
stipend there was ^65 in advance of what he had, he resolved to wait on
in Denny. On 6th April 1852 Mr Harrower died, in the eighty-third year
of his age and fifty-fourth of his ministry, having been incapacitated for
public work for some years. All that remained of what had been was the
brief, simple address when the communion came round. In the religious
instruction of the young Mr Harrower had been active all along, and the
only production of his pen we know of is a little text-book prepared for his
Bible classes on the basis of the Shorter Catechism. The week after Dr
Jeffrey became sole pastor through the death of his aged colleague the
Presbytery of Kilmarnock sustained a call addressed to him from Kilmaurs,
which he declined. Next year an offer came from the North Church, Perth,
a more likely place ; but harmony was much disturbed, and, though the
invitation was renewed under improved conditions some time later, Dr
Jeffrey set both calls aside, and remained in Denny. But his sojourn there
came to a close on ist April 1856, when he accepted a call to the newly-formed
congregation of Caledonia Road, Glasgow.
Third Minister. — PETER WHYTE, M.A, from Bristo Church, Edinburgh.
Licensed in 1853, and called in the early part of 1854 to Houghton-le-Spring,
and in 1855 to Sutton and Dry men, but waited on. Denny and Perth
(Wilson Church) followed almost abreast. The latter would probably have
been preferred, but some tumult arose, and Denny was accepted. Ordained,
7th February 1857. The call was signed by 159 members and 29 adherents,
and the stipend was to be ,£120, with the manse, but on the Presbytery's
recommendation ^8 or ^10 were added for sacramental and Synodical
expenses. Mr Whyte moved quietly on for twenty years, attending care
fully to his preparation for the pulpit, but on i5th October 1878 his resigna
tion was accepted. It was the second time he had urged his demission, and
the congregation explained that, having offered him a period of relief, and
expressed their willingness to bear with him in any way that might seem
desirable, but without effect, nothing remained for them but to acquiesce.
He now removed to Edinburgh, where he was largely employed as pulpit
supply, but in 1883, o\ving to failing strength, he was entered as an annuitant
on the Aged and Infirm Ministers' Fund. He died very unexpectedly on
22nd November 1890, in the sixty-fourth year of his age. During his resi
dence in Edinburgh Mr Whyte was a member of Morningside Church,
though his retiring habits kept him from mingling much in its affairs.
Fourth Minister. — GEORGE SMART, from Perth (North). Called also to
Savoch-of-Deer and Nairn. Ordained, i8th March 1879. The stipend was
now ^160, with the manse. On 3oth November 1886 Air Smart accepted a
call to School Wynd, Dundee. At the end of that year the membership of
Denny was 240.
Fifth Minister. — DUNCAN C. MACKELLAR, from Sydney Place, Glasgow.
Ordained, 7th September 1887. A few years ago Mr 'Mackellar was chosen
to the highest place in the Good Templar organisation, a position which
implies, besides zeal in the Temperance cause, tact, dignity, and administra
tive talent. The congregation had about 300 names on the communion roll
at the Union, and the stipend was ^210, with the manse.
PRESBYTERY OF FALKIRK 695
AVONBRIDGE (BURGHER)
IN March 1803 Mr William M'Call was presented to the parish of Muiravon-
side, and though he was not ordained till September a number of the
parishioners, along with others in Slamannan and Torphichen, applied for
sermon to the Burgher Presbytery of Stirling and Falkirk on 5th April of
that year. They had come before the Presbytery with a paper subscribed
by 59 persons in 1800, but after some reasoning the commissioners were
induced to withdraw it. The congregation of Bathgate was passing through
a crisis at this time, and the fear of doing harm there may help to explain
this back-going measure. Since then two members of Presbytery had
preached within the bounds, and tested the prospects of the place. Accord
ingly supply was now granted, the building of a church proceeded with near
the meeting-point of the three parishes above named, and in December two
elders were ordained. In March 1804 a moderation was applied for, but, as
only about one-fourth of the communicants were present at the meeting when
this was resolved on, the movement was reckoned premature. Next month
some members were without opposition disjoined from Bathgate and annexed
to Avonbridge. The application was now renewed under better auspices,
and the moderation granted.
First Minister. — JOHN CRAIG, from Dairy, Ayrshire. The call was signed
by 79 members and 33 adherents, and Mr Craig was ordained, 6th November
1804, the stipend promised being £70, with house and garden, or £10 till
these were provided. In the fourth year of his ministry, owing to his con
tinuous illness, Avonbridge pulpit had to be provided for from the Synod
Fund, and Mr Craig seems never to have had vigorous health. Still, there
must have been progress made, for in 1815 there is mention of debt having
been incurred by the erection of galleries, which raised the sittings to 308.
In 1834 Mr Craig published "The Sacred Monitor," a series of meditations
for every day in the year. It had been preceded by a smaller volume,
entitled " The Scripture Monitor," being meditations for each Sabbath of the
year. " Its excellent writer," said a reviewer, "debarred by bodily infirmity
from pursuing courses of utility on which his heart was set, has laboured suc
cessfully to be of service to his brethren by guiding them to a close walk
with God." About this time the membership was returned at 128, from the
three parishes originally named, and in not unequal proportions — from Muir-
avonside 54, from Torphichen 44, and from Slamannan 30. The stipend
was £67, with manse and garden, and the debt ^165, which was liquidated
in 1845, the Board allowing ^85. But prior to this date the congregation
had suffered through adverse influences emanating from Falkirk and Bath-
gate. In April 1843 Mr Craig wrote the Presbytery as follows :— " A good
many of our people have been drawn away by the preaching of Messrs
Morison and Rutherford. One of Mr Rutherford's people preaches every
Sabbath, and there are meetings during the week also." The brother
referred to was still a co-presbyter, but under suspension, and his case was
on its way to the Synod. A committee of Presbytery found on inquiry that
on one occasion, when preaching at Avonbridge, Mr Rutherford had en
lightened his hearers "on the soul-ruining doctrines of the Secession Church,
which were a bar in the way of men entering heaven." These things told,
and issued in the formation of an Evangelical Union church in that little
village before the year ended.
If the congregation were to be preserved it was now felt that, owing to Mr
Craig's infirm health, a supply of preachers was essential, a proposal which
was warmly gone into by all parties, with this understanding, that the meagre
stipend of the aged minister should suffer no reduction. A friend in Glasgow
696 HISTORY OF U.P. CONGREGATIONS
intervened at this time with an engagement to raise .£40 a year, which with
,£24 from the Mission Board and £16 from the Presbytery would make up
^80 for a colleague. In the early part of 1845 the congregation called Mr
William Hownam, who declined.* Before the end of the year they ventured
on proposing to Air Alexander Wallace, but Avonbridge was of little account
compared with Alexandria.
Second Minister. — ANDREW DODDS, from Lilliesleaf. Ordained, i8th
August 1846, the call being signed by 74 members and 29 adherents. Three
years later the communicants numbered 116. Mr Craig died, i8th July
1851, in the seventy-first year of his age and forty-seventh of his ministry.
While Mr Dodds went quietly on year after year the Evangelical Union
church in Avonbridge had less equable fortunes. It was eight years before
they emerged from a state of vacancy, and after that their ministers suc
ceeded each other at the rate of one every three or four years, and even yet
permanence has never been the rule. In 1867 the manse was renovated for
Mr Dodds at an expense of nearly ,£200, the Board contributing ^120.
The improvement in the minister's professional income became very marked
as the Augmentation Scheme developed, as appears from the following
contrast : — In 1854 Mr Dodds had in all ^95, and twenty years later he had
exactly double that sum, with the manse much improved besides. On 6th
June 1876 he died, in the sixty-eighth year of his age and thirtieth of his
ministry. His application to be admitted an annuitant on the Aged and
Infirm Ministers' Fund was before the Board, but at the close of the meeting
intimation of his death was received.
Third Minister. — HUGH L. M'MiLLAN, from Greyfriars, Glasgow.
Ordained, 25th September 1876. Mr M'Millan is certified to have carried
on his work with great earnestness, and we have a picture of him, mounted
on his shaggy pony, doing pastoral work in the hill country around, saintli-
ness attending him wherever he went. This continued till I3th February
1883, when he resigned his charge that he might undertake mission work in
Jamaica. Commissioners expressed the deep regret of the people at losing
his faithful services, and the Presbytery in dissolving the pastoral tie testified
their appreciation of his character and his special fitness for the sphere he
was to fill. In Jamaica he occupied for two years the mission stations of
Bellevue and Reid's Friendship, and was then transferred to Grand Cayman.
He came home in 1896 much exhausted, but on regaining strength he offered
himself for Calabar, and was welcomed by the Board as a suitable man to
engage in the training of a native ministry out there. The end came on
26th December 1898, preceded by five days of slow fever. He was in the
fifty-fourth year of his age and twenty-third of his ministry.
Fourth Minister. — JOHN L. ROBERTSON, B.D., from Forres. Ordained,
26th September 1883. The stipend from the people was ^100, with the
manse, and the membership at the close of the following year was 107. The
old church was now in a dilapidated and even unsafe condition, and required
to be superseded. In view of erecting another the people calculated on
raising ,£530, and the Board promised a grant of ^100, which was ultimately
doubled. The new church, with 260 sittings, was opened on Tuesday, 25th
February 1890, by the Rev. John Smith, Broughton Place, Edinburgh. The
cost was ,£1500, and the collections then and on the following Sabbath
reached ^110, by which the debt was entirely cleared away. But provision
Mr Hownam was from Berwick (now Wallace-Green). After being six years
on the preachers' list he was admitted to the Established Church as a probationer
in 1847. Ordained to Lowick, Northumberland, in that connection, 7th July 1848,
and died in 1867.
PRESBYTERY OF FALKIRK 697
for the mining population in the district had to be made by the erection of
mission premises soon after at a village two miles distant, and owing to this
Mr Robertson's Sabbath labours had to be divided, and were more trying
every way than those of the Avonbridge minister used to be in that quiet
corner. Amidst monitions of precarious health he deemed it prudent to
seek a change of sphere, and his demission was accepted, iyth April 1894.
He then removed to Canada, where he was admitted to the charge of
Morritton, Ontario, but finding his health re-established he set out for
Scotland in the end of 1899, fully attested, and was recognised at next Synod
as an ordained minister without a charge.
Fifth Minister.— JAMES B. G. ROUSE, from Alexandria. Ordained, i6th
October 1894. At the close of 1899 there was a membership of 154, in
cluding those at the mission station, and the people gave ^100 of the
stipend, with the manse.
AIRTH (BURGHER)
AIRTH was the parish in which Mr George Mair, whom Boston of Ettrick
so much respected, the father of Mr Thomas Mair of Orwell, began his
ministry. There also Mr Alexander Hamilton, afterwards of Stirling,
laboured for the first twenty-six years of the century. He figured as a
standard-bearer among the evangelical preachers of his day, and while he
was in Airth " the dispensation of the Lord's Supper was attended by
multitudes from every corner." It is also recorded that Ebenezer Erskine,
preaching there by request in the early years of the Secession, awed his
fierce opposers by the dignity of his appearance and the solemnity with
which he gave out the psalm : "Against me though an host encamp." In
keeping with these antecedents a Praying Society in Airth gave in their
accession to the Associate Presbytery on I7th August 1738, but when they
pleaded some months after for visitation and a day of fasting they were told
it was impossible to meet so many demands, and they were simply recom
mended " to abound in prayer and diligence and other Christian duties till
the Lord (should) send them relief on this head." Other adherences
followed, but it was impracticable to recognise Airth as a regular congrega
tion, and the people had to be joined in membership with their brethren in
Falkirk, five or six miles to the south. Matters continued in this state till
23rd March 1808, when a petition with 117 names was presented to the
Burgher Presbytery of Stirling and Falkirk to be formed into a congregation
by themselves. Most of them were Mr Belfrage's people, and he having
stated that his session had no objections the application was granted, the
station to be opened by Mr Gilfillan of Dunblane on the second Sabbath of
April. It has been further stated that the movement was strengthened by
parties from the Established Church, who were dissatisfied with the parish
minister. A church, with 250 sittings, was built in 1809.
First Minister. — JAMES PATERSON, from Dunblane. Ordained, 23rd
May 1810, the Synod having preferred Airth to Newbigging. The call was
signed by 118 members, and the stipend was to be ^100, with a house and
garden, " as he should have occasion for them." There is mention also of
sacramental expenses, and a horse when needed for Presbytery or Synod.
In 1814 the Synod allowed ,£25 for supply to Airth, as their minister was
unable to preach. He died, 21 st March 1815, in the forty-first year of his
age and fifth of his ministry. The Evangelical Magazine soon after summed
up his excellences as follows : — " He was a judicious, solid, and evangelical
preacher. His piety was modest and unaffected, and his manners meek
698 HISTORY OF U.P. CONGREGATIONS
and gentle. During his illness he was mild and calm and composed.
Sweetly resigned to the will of God, he placed his firm reliance on the divine
Redeemer."
Second Minister. — JAMES SOMMERVILLE, from Cambusnethan. Or
dained, 26th June 1816. The call was signed by 106 members and 23
adherents, and the stipend arrangements were nearly the same as before.
At the moderation the presiding minister, it is recorded, did not constitute
the session, that they might in their official capacity furnish a leet of candi
dates, and when one of their number proposed Mr Andrew Lawson, after
wards of Ecclefechan, he was regarded merely as a private member. It was
an inbreak on use and wont, but the Presbytery sustained the moderator's
conduct. When the vote was taken Mr Sommerville had a majority over
Mr Lawson notwithstanding his popular gifts and honoured name. In 1841
the families in Airth parish who attended "the meeting-house" were
numbered at 90, and the stipend was reckoned about .£100. In April 1864
Mr Sommerville intimated to the Presbytery that, owing to age and growing
infirmities, he intended to retire from the active duties of the ministry. With
this view the congregation agreed that he should retain the manse during
the remainder of his life, along with an allowance of ^10 a year, the col
league to have ^70.
Third Minister. — WILLIAM LEITH, from Coldstream (West). Ordained
as junior minister, 28th February 1865. Next year a manse was built at a
cost of ,£712, of which the people raised .£432, and the Board allowed
a grant of ,£280. Fearing that the damp locality might induce permanent
disease Mr Leith accepted the charge of Somerset (East) in South Africa,
and on 27th September 1869 he was loosed from Airth. This colonial con
gregation with its minister was admitted into fellowship with the U.P.
Presbytery of Kaffraria in 1875, but without acquiring any claim upon the
central funds of the denomination. Mr Leith, however, has extended his
labours among the native population, and for this service he has received
considerable allowances from year to year, and is still at work as before.
Fourth Minister. — WILLIAM ROSE, from Aberdeen (St Paul's). Ordained,
28th June 1870, as Mr Sommerville's second colleague. The senior minister
died, 2oth January 1873, in the eighty-third year of his age and fifty-seventh
of his ministry. The Rev. James Towers of Birkenhead, who was brought
up in Airth congregation, wrote of him as follows : — " Although Mr Som
merville was not in any way renowned as a preacher his life was one long
unspoken sermon." Mr Rose was loosed, igth January 1875, on accepting
a call to the young congregation of Victoria Street, Dundee.
Fifth Minister. — ROBERT LECKIE, from Hutchesontown, Glasgow.
Ordained, 2nd November 1875. Three years after this the debt on the
property was cleared off, and thus far things looked favourable. But on
24th June 1887 the manse at Airth became the scene of a heart-rending
tragedy. The minister was from home, and his wife is described as having
been out in the garden in the forenoon amusing her three little boys, the
oldest of them in his fifth year. After dinner, and without showing tokens of
anything wrong, she removed with them into the playroom, and some time
after mother and children were all found stretched in death on the floor
together. It prompts the question : What demon took possession of the
maternal bosom and presided over that scene of blood ? Only the oldest of
the family remained, and it was believed that he owed his escape to his
having left for school. The Presbytery, sympathising with Mr Leckie, gave
him a lengthened leave of absence, and the needed outlay was provided
for, but the wonder is that he ever preached again. He returned, however,
and went on for nearly ten years, but on 2nd February 1897 he tendered his
PRESBYTERY OF FALKIRK 699
resignation to the Presbytery. He also requested them to provide supply
for his pulpit from that date, though it does not seem to have been dismal
recollections ten years back which had wakened up and unnerved him. On
2nd March a committee which had met with parties at Airth reported that
they found Mr Leckie decided on adhering to his demission, no matter what
opinion to the contrary session or congregation might express. But all were
acquiescent, only there were statements made as to " the downward course "
financial affairs had been taking. There was reason to complain, for the
returns show that the total income for the year had fallen from ^,107 to ^81,
and the funds only afforded .£60 of stipend instead of ,£85. That day the
pastoral bond was dissolved, and a month later Mr Leckie's connection with
the Presbytery took end, with an engagement not to seek a place on the
preachers' list for at least nine months. Since then he has resided in
Glasgow, and though he applied both in 1899 and in 1900 to be recognised
as a probationer the Synod did not see fit to grant his request.
Now was the opportunity for a union between Airth congregation and
the Free Church station in the place, the membership of each being set down
at 55. But there was a Free Church preacher in location, and instead of
clearing the ground by ending that engagement, and then coalescing on
equal terms, a compromise was attempted by appointing the Free Church
probationer to supply the U.P. pulpit in the forenoons for two months. It
came to this that union could not be consummated with satisfaction, and
Airth congregation got impatient for a moderation, which was granted in
October. The stipend promised was ^70, with the manse, of which .£20
was to come from friends for the first three years.
Sixtli Minister. — JAMES H. MILLER, from Carluke. Ordained, nth
January 1898. The votes, though few, were not unequally divided between
two candidates, but the call was harmoniously signed. The membership
at the close of the following year was 70, and the stipend from the people
£72.
GRANGEMOUTH (UNITED PRESBYTERIAN)
THIS congregation took shape in a petition for sermon from 59 persons in
Grangemouth and its neighbourhood laid before the Presbytery of Falkirk
on 4th October 1853. Up till then U.P. families in the place had been
accustomed attending at Falkirk, three miles west by south, but as the
population of Grangemouth was increasing it seemed time to think of obtain
ing gospel ordinances for themselves. A preaching station was accordingly
opened, the expenses to be defrayed from local sources. On 25th July 1854
a petition to be formed into a congregation was presented from 23 members
and 51 adherents, 13 of the former group certified from the West church,
Falkirk, 8 from the East, and 2 from the South. Some delay followed, but
on 5th December the petition was granted.
First Minister. — JOHN M. LAMBIE, from Glasgow (now Woodlands
Road). Having been already located at Grangemouth for six months he
had his way well prepared for regular work there, and on i6th October 1855
he was ordained. The call was signed by 42 members and 68 adherents,
and the stipend was to begin at ^100, exclusive of sacramental and travelling
expenses. Mr Lambie had declined a call to Swalwell three years before.
In 1858 the hall in which the people had hitherto worshipped was exchanged
for a new church, with 500 sittings, built at a cost of ,£1900. But Grangemouth
was a growing place, and in the twentieth year of his ministry Mr Lambie
reported a membership of 243, with a stipend of ,£180, which was supple
mented up to ^200. A manse had also been built in 1870 at a cost of
700 HISTORY OF U.P. CONGREGATIONS
,£1050, of which the people raised ^770, and the Board granted ,£280. In a
few years more the congregation became independent of supplement. Mr
Lambie died, igth March 1892, in the sixty-ninth year of his age and thirty-
seventh of his ministry.
Second Minister. — ROBERT HAMILTON, originally from Riccarton
Parish Church, but when he came to years he joined the membership of
Princes Street U.P. Church, Kilmarnock. Ordained, 22nd December 1892.
The membership suffered a serious reduction at this time, but it had risen
at the close of 1899 from 276 to 450, and the stipend was ,£250, with the
GRANGEMOUTH, DUNDAS (UNITED PRESBYTERIAN)
WHEN the call to Mr Robert Hamilton was brought up to the Presbytery
on 4th October 1892 it was clear that the congregation had not been ripe for
a moderation. It was stated that the motion to proceed had been carried
by only a small majority, and at the voting Mr Hamilton had 99 supporters,
and Mr Peter C. Bryce, now of Inverkeithing, 51. The call was signed by
158 members and 51 adherents, but three of the elders who had subscribed
wished their names withdrawn. At the same time 50 members and five
elders had a petition forward against the sustaining. The Presbytery in
the circumstances delayed procedure, and appointed a committee to con
sider meanwhile the grounds of dissatisfaction and confer with Mr Hamilton.
However, on i4th November the call was sustained and accepted. The
consequence was that the minority petitioned at next meeting for sermon
with the view of forming a second congregation in Grangemouth, the petition
being signed by 78 members and 19 adherents. The population of the town,
which in 1861 was only 2000, had been more than tripled since then, and,
looking on this cleavage as furnishing a door for Church Extension, the
Presbytery on 22nd December granted the request, and on Sabbath, I2th
February 1893, a congregation of 83 members was declared to be formed.
On i6th March five elders who had taken a leading part in the movement
were inducted and constituted into a session, and on 4th April liberty of
moderation was granted, the stipend promised being ,£200. Looking for
ward to the erection of a new church, the people next secured the promise of
,£200 from the Extension Fund.
First Minister. — JOHN SANDERSON, B.A., from Auchterarder (South).
Mr Sanderson was engaged for a year at the time the congregation was
erected, but after a trial of his gifts for two months the people set about
having the pastoral bond formed between him and them. He was ordained,
25th May 1893, the call being signed by 88 members and 18 adherents. The
new church was opened on Thursday, 6th September 1894, by Dr Oliver of
Glasgow, the Moderator of Synod, when the collection amounted to ,£235.
The cost was ,£4000, which private benefactions reduced to ^3300. The
place of worship has accommodation for 450. At the Union in October 1900
there was a membership of 200, and the stipend for a number of years had
been ^225.
CARRON (UNITED PRESBYTERIAN)
THE village of Carron lies two miles north of Falkirk, and is at a similar
distance to the east of the Established and Free churches in Larbert, the
parish to which it belongs. On 2nd April 1878 the U.P. Presbytery of
Falkirk appointed a committee to consider the propriety of commencing
PRESBYTERY OF FALKIRK 70I
mission operations there, the population being about 300, and no supply of
religious ordinances nearer than the distances already given There were
also large ironworks in the neighbourhood, so that the field seemed both
ample and necessitous. Accordingly Sabbath evening services were beoun
on 9th June in a school granted rent free by Carron Company. Next month
Mr John Yellowlees, who had newly completed his Hall course, was engaged
to labour in the district, and on the first Sabbath of September there was
a forenoon service begun with an attendance of between 60 and 100 and
a Sabbath school with 266 scholars. It was next ascertained that about so
United Presbyterians connected with the Falkirk churches were willing to
unite in forming a congregation at Carron as one result of Mr Yellow-fees'
earnest and successful labours," and on 24th December, after sermon by
Mr Aitchison of Falkirk, 61 certified members were declared to be con
gregated. On 26th January 1879 four elders were inducted into office of
whom two had been members of session in Falkirk (West), one in Ersk'ine
Church, and one in the South (now Graham's Road). A moderation was
speedily applied for, the young congregation, with a membership of 7i
promising ^100, which was to be supplemented by an allowance of /->sO
from the Board, to be spread over three years.
First Mi?nster.~ JOHN YELLOWLEES, from Viewfield, Stirling Ordained
on a unanimous call, i;th April 1879. The new church, with sittings for
540, was opened free of debt by Principal Cairns on Friday, loth June 1881,
the collections on that occasion and on the following Sabbath amountino-
to ,£108. The cost of the building, after a suitable hall was superadded*
was ,£2500, of which ,£640 in addition to the opening collections was from
the congregation, ,£1174 from friends outside, and ,£500 from the Home
Board. There was now steady increase both in numbers and resources, so
that within ten years the point of self-support was reached, and the member
ship numbered 268. By the formation of the U.P. church at Larbert in 1898
the session gave off upwards of 40 members, including two of their own
number, but at the close of the following year there was a communion roll
of 420, and the stipend was ,£200, with ,£20 in lieu of a manse.
About the time of his ordination Mr Yellowlees edited "Memorials of
George S. Arnold," a fellow-student of marked ability, and prefixed a
Memoir, brief but suggestive. Mr Arnold was from Bridge of Allan, and
after passing through a period of struggle, not only with ill-health but with
doubts and difficulties, received licence as a U.P. preacher. Having acted
in this capacity for four months he had to lay the burden down, and in other
four months he passed away. This was on 5th September 1878, when he
was nearing the close of his twenty-seventh year. The essays which the
tastefully got-up volume contains evince a mastery of early English literature
such as few acquire, and keenness of philosophic insight besides, while the
short poems appended attest the author's possession of the gift of song.
WESTER PARDOVAN (UNITED PRESBYTERIAN)
EVANGELISTIC services were commenced in this district under, the Students'
Recess Scheme by Mr William R. Thomson, now of Caledonia Road,
Glasgow, in June 1885. Another stage was reached in October, when the
Presbytery of Falkirk had authority to enter in their minutes that the
proprietors of the oilworks at Philipstoun, near by, had granted a free site
for a hall at Pardovan, and by December the little place of worship was
approaching completion. On I5th February 1886 a congregation was
formed, that sealing ordinances might be enjoyed, but the number of names
702 HISTORY OF U.P. CONGREGATIONS
on the communion roll when it was first made up is not given. To meet
building demands ^100 had been allowed by the Extension Committee, and
^100 had been raised within the bounds, the workmen subscribing liberally,
and a third ,£100 had come from the Evangelistic Fund to aid with initial
expenses.
First Minister. — THOMAS D. MACNEE, who had been fully two years
in Burray, Orkney, and was not averse to come south. Inducted, 6th
September 1887. In May following the erection of a manse entailed a debt
of ,£400, and at the close of Mr MacNee's second year it (vas felt that
the stipend of ,£100 promised by the people would have to be reduced to
j£8o, showing that the movement had spent its force now that the novelty
was over. Other two years passed, and a further reduction of £10 was
applied for, and soon afterwards Mr MacNee was appointed to the Jamaica
Mission, and resigned. In view of important work for him abroad the
congregation acquiesced in the severance, and he was loosed from Pardovan,
2nd February 1892. On Sabbath week thereafter dedication services were
conducted in Graham's Road Church, Falkirk, and on reaching Jamaica he
settled down at Montego Bay, where he still labours. Pardovan, now left
vacant, was not prepared to take immediate steps to obtain a second minister,
but a location was applied for instead. They were now in hopes of having
the manse cleared of its burden by means of a bazaar, and if ,£250 could
be obtained the Board would give the other ^i 50. They got what was aimed
at, and considerably more.
Second Minister. — ROBERT S. SMILLIE, who had resigned Elgin (South
Street) three years before owing to discordant elements, and returned to the
preachers' list. He entered on regular work at Pardovan in July 1892, and
in a very few months the people applied to have the pastoral relation formed
between him and them, promising ^90 of stipend, with the manse. The
call, which was signed by 52 members, very nearly the entire number,
having been accepted the induction took place on 8th December of that
year. Next April Mr Smillie announced to the Presbytery that the property
at Pardovan, on which ,£1400 in all had been expended, was free of debt,
the bazaar having yielded ,£450. At the close of 1899 there was a member
ship of 91, and the stipend from all sources was ^186, with the manse.
LARBERT (UNITED PRESBYTERIAN)
TOWARDS the end of 1896 Falkirk Presbytery had its attention drawn to a
large opening for Church Extension at Larbert. The population, including
Stenhousemuir and Carronshore, had increased over 3000 in fifteen years,
and the increase was still going on. In the interests of their congregation at
Stenhousemuir the Free Presbytery of Stirling was consulted, and the joint
committee agreed that a U.P. station should be opened, and the Free
Church of the locality enlarged. In April 1897 a hall to accommodate 250
was resolved on, to be followed by a church, with sittings for 600, the whole
cost being reckoned at ^4000. Next December a grant of ^500 was
announced from the Home Board, with a loan of ^300. On Sabbath, 5th
June 1898, the hall was opened, and services were commenced by Dr
Corbett of Glasgow, and for the first six months the station was wrought by
the Rev. J. W. Pringle, formerly of Jedburgh. On 3ist July of that year 80
members and 35 adherents were erected into a congregation, and by the end
of December there were 135 names on the communion roll.
First Minister. — COLIN M. GlBB, M.A., who had been labouring for nine
years in a narrow field at Morebattle and among a declining population.
PRESBYTERY OF FALKIRK
703
Inducted, 23rd February 1899. The outlay in connection with the hall came
U/PA° 4I5?°' -°f whlch the Presbytery's Extension Committee had raised
^568, which with the £800 from central funds left about ^140 which was
meant to receive immediate attention. The expense of the church is now
put at X>35po, and when the Union year began the communicants numbered
258, with the appearance of speedy increase. The stipend promised at the
outset by the people was ^80 for the first year, ^100 for the second, and
^120 for the third, with an additional £20 for house-rent. Supplement has
raised the minister's income to ,£220 in all.
APPENDICES
GAIRNEY BRIDGE AND THE BENNETS
GAIRNEY BRIDGE lies two miles south-east of Kinross, and consists of little
more than the steading of the farm and a number of houses straggling along-
each side of the Great North Road between Queensferry and Perth. Ralph
Erskine tells in his Diary that his brother came through from Stirling to
Dunfermline on Monday, 3rd December 1733, and that the two went next
day to this the place fixed on for weighty business. Thomas Mair has
similarly recorded that Messrs Wilson and Fisher called on him that winter
afternoon, and the three proceeded under cloud of night to Gairney Bridge.
Wednesday, the 5th, was occupied with prayer and religious conference,
and it was not till after midday on Thursday, the 6th, that the four sus
pended brethren, after some misgivings on Mr Wilson's part, constituted
themselves into a Presbytery. Then they adjourned till after dinner, and at
next sederunt they heard " the petitions of the poor people of Kinross and
Portmoak, and though they could not then dip into their affairs they gave
them such advice as was refreshing and comforting to them." Next day
they parted about twelve, and thus ended the eventful meeting at Gairney
Bridge.
The inquiry here arises : Why was this place chosen for proceedings so
important? It was outside the bounds of the Synod of Perth and Stirling,
to which the four ministers belonged. Yet of the first six meetings of the
Associate Presbytery two were held at Gairney Bridge, two at Dunfermline,
and one at Milnathort. Clearly these arrangements were not dictated by
local convenience. It may be explained, however, that within the bounds of
Dunfermline Presbytery matters were better matured for the Secession than
in any other part of Scotland. Of the twelve Marrow men four belonged
to that Presbytery, and a fifth was merely outside its borders. A recent
settlement at Kinross had also set forth patronage in its w7orst form, and
stirred feeling against the judicatories of the Church throughout the whole
country-side. Hence we can understand why the four brethren gave
marked attention to that district in the early stages of their progress. From
Ebenezer Erskine having been translated to Stirling, and having preached
his famous Synod sermon at Perth, the first four Seceding ministers were
drawn from outside these limits, but the second four were from the south
western division of the Synod of Fife. Nearly twenty years later the
Relief Church took origin within the same territory, as if to follow up the
beginning made at Gairney Bridge, and there accordingly the pillar of
commemoration stands.
In Mr Mair's Diary there are several entries which make us better
acquainted with Gairney Bridge. On 27th October 1727, as he was returning
on horseback from a meeting of Dunfermline Presbytery, the darkness came
704
APPENDICES 705
on, and he took quarters there for the night. Again, four months prior to
the formation of the Associate Presbytery, Mr Mair and several of his
co-presbyters, "panels before the Commission" for having disobeyed the
orders of the General Assembly in the Kinross Case, met at Gairney Bridge
on a Thursday to prepare their defences, and remained till Saturday, and
oftener than once we find him at the same place engaged with Mr Gib of
Cleish in prayer and conference.
The proprietor of the lands of Gairney Bridge at this time was James
Bennet, a young man, unmarried, and in his twenty-sixth year. The family
consisted of himself, three sisters, and their widowed mother. But though
indirectly linked with the Secession cause from the beginning, Mr Bennet
did not identify himself with it for a number of years. So late as 1741, as
appears from the parish register, he had a child baptised in the parish church
of Cleish. But the death of Mr Gib, the minister of his youth, in the
following summer may have cleared the way for a new departure. Certain
it is that Mr Bennet about this time joined Mr Mair's congregation in
Orwell, and also began to prepare for the work of the Secession ministry.
Of his University course we can say nothing, but his name appears on the
list of first-year students who attended the Theological Hall in Abernethy
in 1746. By this time he had been married ten years, and had reached the
age of thirty-nine. In 1748 Mr Bennet received licence, but though now
entering on life's afternoon he had four years of probation to pass through
before a door of usefulness opened. Then came his settlement at St
Andrews, with the further particulars entered in the history of that con
gregation.
In 1849 Dr M'Kelvie gave a circumstantial account of Gairney Bridge as
it was on 5th December 1733. The paper appeared in the Scottish Christian
Journal, and it has been reprinted since in a separate form, and is the
standard authority on the subject. The description reads well, but it is
little else than a fancy sketch, (i) James Bennet, the future minister of St
Andrews, he makes to have been then "a boy at school." Knowing that he
was ordained in 1752, and counting back eighteen years, the Doctor might well
believe himself entitled to draw this conclusion. (2) Mr Bennet's father he
makes proprietor at that time, and credits him with preparedness to co
operate with the Four Brethren in any measure .which they might adopt.
Two entries in the Diary of Mr Mair of Orwell set that matter at rest. The
first, of 2Qth March 1732, runs thus: "Stayed some time at Bridge of
Gairney, John Bennet being at the gates of death." Then five days after
wards : "About one went off to John Bennet's funeral at Bridge of Gairney."
(3) Dr M'Kelvie also states that the said John Bennet "had been an active
promoter of a call from Kinross to Mr Ebenezer Erskine," and also that he
was determinedly opposed to the settlement of Mr Stark, and had with
drawn from the church of his parish and attended the ministry either of
Mr Erskine in Dunfermline or that of Mr Mair in Milnathort. But Mr
Bennet belonged to Cleish parish, and had nothing to do with the election
of a minister at Kinross. With the church of their own parish the Bennets
were connected at that time and for years afterwards, and they had for their
minister Mr John Gib, a man of the pronounced Evangelical stamp. But
these corrections illustrate Dr M'Kelvie's tendency to make plausible con
jectures supply the place of ascertained facts, a tendency which comes out
here and there in the Annals, and also in his Life of Michael Bruce.
The hostess of the cottage in which the Four Brethren met on that
memorable day is represented as "The Laird's Sister," a lady in the prime
of life, but " verging to the side of old age." Here also the Doctor seems to go
a generation too far back. The Rev. James Bennet had a sister who after-
2 Y
7o6 HISTORY OF U.P. CONGREGATIONS
wards conducted the "hostelry" at Gairney Bridge, but she was only
twenty-eight when the Associate Presbytery was formed. At that time
there was, to all appearance, a close connection between the proprietor's
household and the quiet wayside inn, if such it could be called, with ample
up-putting for man and beast. An entry in Mr Mair's Diary like the follow
ing suggests social intercourse and a home circle : — "After some time spent
in reading and conversation and supper, wrote a while, then went about
family worship, and found some liberty in speaking from the Psalm, which
I hope was somewhat refreshing both to myself and others." Such was
the atmosphere of the dwelling within which the Secession Church was
cradled.
II
REV. JAMES BAINE AND THE EARLY HISTORY OF
THE RELIEF
DR STRUTHERS was of opinion that the Rev. James Baine, of College Street,
Edinburgh, was " in many respects the most remarkable person of all the
early fathers of the Relief Church." His metropolitan position, added to
his commanding gifts, gave him an influence in her counsels beyond that
of the Rev. Thomas Gillespie, and ultimately threw him into the background.
Altogether he did much to shape the course of the Relief denomination, and
we believe was largely responsible for the schism of 1771. For these and
other reasons we assign Mr Baine and College Street congregation a place
in the Appendix to this volume.
In the old records of College Street congregation there is the following
rule: — "The calling of ministers to said meeting-house shall for the first
time be by the major part of all the contributors of 205. to its erection, and
afterwards by the majority of the communicants who shall ordinarily attend
the ministry therein." This was the arrangement in Relief churches, the
first minister being generally called and ordained before a communion roll
was made up or a session constituted. Hence it was alleged that a money
qualification secured the right to take part in the election of a minister,
breaking down the distinction between the Church and the world. Care
was taken, however, to limit the suffrage to those in full communion when
once a beginning was made. In the Secession, on the other hand, and
especially among the Antiburghers, another order was deemed essential.
There had to be a congregation formed, however small, and elders ordained
before there could be ripeness for a moderation.
The session of College Street consisted at first of two elders who had
held office before, and who were constituted into a session by appointment
of Presbytery. They next assumed the power of adding to their number,
which was the system adopted for at least sixteen years in College Street,
the people being allowed opportunity to object. In 1772 it is recorded that
on the edict being served Mr William Alexander found fault with the mode
of election, the congregation having had no voice in the matter, but the
session declared that they had acted agreeably to the universal practice of
the Church of Scotland. Of the objector we have the following notice by
Carlyle of Inveresk in his Autobiography. Referring to the Relief, he says :
" This faction was supported for several years by a strange adventurer, a Mr
William Alexander, the second son of the provost of that name, who of all
the men I have known had the strongest propensity to plotting, with the
APPENDICES 707
finest talent for such a business." But whatever Alexander's motives may
have been there was weight in his present contention. The rule bearing on
this matter in the Established Church used to run thus : " The election of
elders belongs to the session, who look out for such as they deem fit to hold
office," and the Relief kept largely by this principle. The system contrasted
with that which prevailed universally in both branches of the Secession.
The nomination used to be committed to the Praying Societies, each for its
own district, then at a general meeting the names were read over, and the
election went on. The ground taken up by the first Seceders is brought out
in the Diary of Mr Mair of Orwell.
In May 1740 a Fast was intimated with a view to an election of elders.
He found that the method laid down "was hard of digestion with some who
still seemed inclined for the old way of the session choosing the new elders
after a private inquiry into the minds of the people," but the Associate
Presbytery having decided as to the people's right to choose their own
overseers he could not encourage a going backward in this matter. When
the appointed day came they had a very numerous meeting, and the session,
laying aside all leets previously drawn up, resolved to put it wholly on the
people to name the candidates. Then after sermon, prayer, and praise the
male communicants were asked to draw together before the tent, and the
election " was carried on with some measure of agreeable harmony, there
being fourteen chosen for elders and six for deacons." Mr Mair had pre
viously despaired of deacons being gone in for, though the neglect of keep
ing up that office in the church had been from time to time matter of
heaviness to him. This suggests an inquiry as to the duties and privileges
of deacons in early Secession times, but that subject cannot here be
entered on.
A few words now on the first minister of College Street. There does not
appear to have been much in the special reason Mr Baine assigned for
leaving the Established Church. In Paisley there was a general session
which superintended the spiritual interests of both congregations, but Mr
Baine applied for a session of his own, and when the courts of the Church,
including the General Assembly, decided against him he felt aggrieved,
and spoke as if he had been denied the assistance of elders altogether. But
he was on commanding ground when he pleaded the wrongdoings of the
Church judicatories, evinced specially in the treatment awarded to Mr
Gillespie, and in removing to College Street he breathed the air of freedom,
and was out into a large place. That he was a man of catholic sentiments
is amply attested without accepting the story that at the half-yearly com
munion after he came to Edinburgh he went over to New Greyfriars
Church at the head of his congregation and joined in communion with Dr
John Erskine and his people. If this had been done we should have expected
it to be brought up in some of the sectarian pamphlets of the day.
Of Mr Baine's family a son of the same name took licence from the
Established Presbytery of Edinburgh six years after his father joined the
Relief. He never obtained a living in that connection, but it is stated in
Kay's Portraits that he held a chaplaincy in one of our distant colonies. In
1813, when he was sixty-five years of age, he became incumbent of the
Episcopal Church, Alloa. In 1815 he obtained the degree of LL.D. from
Aberdeen, and died, 29th September 1823, at Livelands, in St Ninians
parish. His mother was a daughter of the Rev. Michael Potter, Professor
of Divinity in Glasgow, and in her right the family succeeded to that pro
perty. But ecclesiastical attachment does not run in the blood.
yo8 HISTORY OF U.P. CONGREGATIONS
III
DIVISION OF 1771 IN THE RELIEF PRESBYTERY
THE Breach of 1747 in the Secession Synod we are familiar with in all its
details. It is otherwise with what almost deserves the same name in the
Relief Presbytery. In the latter case we have no authentic records to guide
us. There was no question raised like that of the Burgess Oath, and the
merits were scarcely more than those of a complicated and many-sided
personal quarrel. Blairlogie congregation were bent on having the Rev.
Alexander Pirie of Abernethy for their minister, but Mr Gillespie headed a
party in the Presbytery who were resolved not to receive him as a co-
presbyter. He held heretical opinions, they maintained, as was shown by
his published writings, and a man like that they were bound to refuse.
Others, stood as stoutly up for Pirie's essential soundness in the faith, and
insisted that the people of Blairlogie were not to be defrauded of the right to
call the man of their choice. At this time the Presbytery of Relief consisted
of eight clerical members — Messrs Gillespie of Dunfermline, Cruden of
Glasgow, Scott of Auchtermuchty, Baine of Edinburgh, Monteith of Duns,
Simpson of Bellshill, Bell of Jedburgh, and Pinkerton of Campbeltown.
The last, owing to distance, was generally absent from their meetings, and
Bell halted between two opinions on the point at issue. Of the other six the
first three were in fixed opposition to Pirie, and the other three stood up for
liberty of election at Blairlogie. Twice the congregation applied for a
moderation at large, but at the first meeting this was simply refused, and at
the second it was granted, with the proviso that Mr Alexander Pirie was not
to be eligible.
Mr Simpson of Bellshill gave in fierce reasons of dissent from the decision
of the majority. He tells how Bell of Jedburgh was one of the majority
when the moderation was refused, but in the interim he let it be known that
he wished the moderation at large to go on, so that had he been present at
the second meeting the opposite side would have carried. When Mr
Gillespie went to Blairlogie on the day appointed for the moderation the
people refused to proceed, and no doubt he was much chagrined, and,
according to Simpson, he even threatened to leave the Presbytery if the
congregation's wishes were acceded to. On this threat Simpson has the
following comment : — " Honest man he has been in a great many ways
already, and it would be a pity to let him stand alone again." It illustrates
the temper in which the dispute was carried on. But Blairlogie congregation
took the matter into their own hands, and Mr Pirie began his ministry
among them in August 1770 without ecclesiastical recognition. That ended
the quarrel in the Presbytery, but the ashes smouldered, and the wounds
were unhealed.
Colinsburgh now came in as the converse of Blairlogie, the parties
changing sides. James Cowan, an Established Church licentiate, was the
congregation's choice, but for some reason Baine of Edinburgh was bent on
preventing his admission, and after the moderation was granted he refused
to give an extract of the minute. The records of Colinsburgh Church are
full of the subject, telling that, nevertheless, the work went on, and that 430
signed. Concurrence was long delayed, but at last " some of the members
softened," and it was agreed to allow the young gentleman to occupy Colins
burgh pulpit meanwhile. At last, at a meeting of Presbytery, the commis
sioner from the congregation spoke in such a way that all concurred in the
call except Mr Baine and his elder. The ordination took place in July 1771,
APPENDICES 709
fifteen months after the call came out, but the only ministers present were
Mr Gillespie and two of his followers, Messrs Cruden and Scott. It seems
to have been about this time that the two parties began to meet separately,
and though there was no open rupture they formed separate Presbyteries.
Dr Struthers in his History of the Relief Church sees in Baine's antagonism
to James Cowan a proof of far-reaching sagacity. He ascribes it to Cowan
being opposed to the principle of free communion, and he certainly developed
strongly in that direction, but this might be very much owing to the treat
ment he received. It is certain that Gillespie, who declared for free com
munion all along, continued Cowan's friend to the end.
To bring the two Presbyteries into oneness again a consultative meeting
was held in May 1772, when the dregs of the Blairlogie Case made them
selves felt. Mr Cruden of Glasgow desired to know the mind of the meeting
with respect to holding ministerial and Christian communion with those of
the Episcopal and Independent persuasion, and with respect to those who
are unsound in the essentials of the Christian faith, particularly by their
publications to the world. The allusion to Alexander Pirie in the latter part
of the question was too obvious to be mistaken. The answer was thus far
unanimously in the negative, though the majority might deny the particular
application. With the former part of the inquiry it was different. Here it
carried that it was consistent to hold occasional communion with Episco
palians or Independents, assuming them to be by profession visible saints.
Mr Gillespie was not present either at that meeting or at the meeting in
May next year. Dr Struthers assigns as the reason that he could not travel,
and he quotes in this connection an extract from a letter of August 1770, in
which he spoke of having been seized with an illness which had been severe
upon him and had weakened him much, and "therefore," he said, "it is my
duty to avoid toil of preaching as much as possible till strength is recovered."
It is a narrow basis on which to rest a broad conclusion. Mr Gillespie
was able to travel to Colinsburgh, a much greater distance than Edinburgh,
to take part in Mr Cowan's ordination, a year after he was troubled with the
ailment complained of.
It has been persistently affirmed that Mr Gillespie got so utterly estranged
from the Relief cause that he was planning to have his meeting-house turned
into a Chapel of Ease, when death intervened. The treatment he received
from Simpson of Bellshill in particular could not but embitter a more placid
temper than his. His assailant expressed himself thus : "We are not to
forget the protection of the Lord Jesus Christ, that we may keep Mr Gillespie
at our head." " Parties," he said, "have been menaced with the supercilious
air of a pontiff at Rome, as though all the members were ciphers save one."
Mr Gillespie's feelings towards the majority of his brethren comes out in a
Fast Day sermon preached to his own people a year before his death. The
following extract, slightly improved in expression, is taken from one of his
note-books: — "Christ debars from His table erroneous, heterodox persons,
and those who use subtle devices by which they turn themselves into all
shapes, and pervert the order which the Lord God has appointed in His
Church, or in civil societies." He adds : "They turn their thoughts hither
and thither to cover their selfish ends, sinister purposes, base designs, to put
a fair show and specious appearance upon them." Then he is more pointed :
" They bring into societies, sacred, religious, or civil, persons of such prin
ciple and character as should be kept out by general rules, and by the rules
and constitution of the society in particular, and they keep out and shut the
door against persons who are to be received and admitted by every rule
which can be of weight in the case, or at least whom to exclude is unjust and
wrong." Though he had named Mr Pirie on the one hand, and Mr Cowan
yio HISTORY OF U.P. CONGREGATIONS
on the other, he could scarcely have made his meaning plainer, and such
being his opinion of the party headed by Messrs Baine and Simpson among
his former coadjutors, no wonder though he wished his people to seek into
other fellowship after his death.
Dr Struthers could not bring himself to admit the possible soundness of
this conclusion, and he had the declaration of Mr Gillespie's successor in
Dunfermline on his side. But, on the other hand, there is the admitted fact
that when a deputation from the Relief Synod went to Colinsburgh to deal
with the Rev. James Cowan as a rebel against their authority, he was through
at Dunfermline assisting Mr Gillespie at his communion, and remained away
till the visitors were gone. It is also well known that Cruden of Glasgow,
who had been Mr Gillespie's right-hand man while contending for the ex
clusion of Pirie and the admission of Cowan, left the Relief about the time
of Mr Gillespie's death, and got the large building in Albion Street turned
into a Chapel of Ease. These things favour the statement made by Dr John
Erskine in his preface to Gillespie's " Treatise on Temptation," and also the
statement which went current without contradiction in the public prints at
the time, that the intentions of the Rev. Thomas Gillespie at his death were
in the direction indicated above. Had he lived to see the workings of the
Chapel system even in Dunfermline it might have changed the purpose of
his mind.
IV
THE REV. JOHN REID OF DALRY AND BATHGATE
Two brief chapters in the life of the Rev. John Reid we have gone over,
under the headings of Dairy and Bathgate, with an interval of five years
between. But there are several things in Mr Reid's history besides which
we neither incline to pass over nor crush into a footnote. These shall now
be gone over in succession. A few months after his exclusion from the
United Secession Church in May 1833, in circumstances already narrated,
we find him ministering to an insignificant mission congregation in the
Cowgate of Edinburgh. Yet this is the man of whom Dr Hamilton testifies
in his History of the Presbyterian Church of Victoria : " His gifts in the
pulpit were very attractive ; his oratory was of a superior order ; and he was
well qualified to take a prominent position in the Church." When his
people applied for admission to the United Secession Church in 1834 the
petition was signed by only 64 members and 31 seatholders, along with a
number of hangers-on, and when the committee of Edinburgh Presbytery
examined 30 of the applicants they found 13 of their number comparatively
intelligent, 7 partially informed, and 10 of very limited knowledge. Their
obscure situation made it difficult for the committee to ascertain much about
the moral character of those in membership. Such was the material among"
which the Rev. John Reid was content to expend superior gifts while in a
state of denominational exclusion. Without income from some other source
it would not have gone on, for the funds of the congregation could yield him
next to nothing.
The wish to be admitted with his people to the fellowship of the United
Secession Church being thwarted, he seems to have continued preaching in
Mary's Chapel out of all ecclesiastical connection, but in 1835 he was trans
ferred to a place of worship in Heriot Bridge. He reported to the Com
missioners on Religious Instruction in 1836 that the congregation was
established eight years before by Nathaniel West, that it was called the
United Christian Church, that they met in what was formerly a shawl manu-
APPENDICES 711
factory, with sittings for 340, for which they paid an annual rent of ,£42.
This we understand to have been the large room up two flights of stairs now
occupied by Lauriston Place congregation as a mission hall. The stipend
was variable, but ,£50 was the sum named, and the minister considered his
position that of a missionary, with the lanes and closes of the Grassmarket for
his special field. On 22nd April 1837, as we read in the Caledonian Mercury,
"the congregation of Heriot Bridge, with their minister, the Rev. John Reid,
having dissolved connection with the United Christian Church, and having
met on Tuesday last to consider the propriety of union with the Old Light
Burghers, who are uniting with the Church of Scotland with a firm determina
tion to oppose her corruptions, after a good deal of discussion it was moved
that the congregation unite with them. It was also moved that they unite
with the Independents. On the vote being taken there were for the first
motion 94 and for the second 19." The result was that on 23rd January
1838 Mr Reid and his congregation were formally received into fellowship
with the Original Burgher Synod by the Presbytery of Edinburgh. In
exactly two years the congregation reported that " their present pastor, Mr
Reid, was about to leave them for a greater sphere of usefulness." This was
at Bathgate, and his fortunes there have been gone over at the proper place.
The union with the Established Church cleared the way for further
promotion to Mr Reid, who was inducted to the quoad sacra church, John-
stone, in 1841. The ten years' conflict was now drawing to a close, and the
pamphlet entitled "The Chaff and the Wheat" says: "He was a keen
opponent of patronage, and a general, though not a very constant or uniform,
supporter of the evangelical side. He was a member of Convocation, and
adhered to the first set of resolutions." These did not commit him to " come
out," and when the crisis arrived he was one of three Original Burgher
ministers who remained in the Establishment. In April 1845 he was trans
ferred from Johnstone to Oldham Street Church, Liverpool, and in 1852 he
left for Australia under medical advice. What follows is drawn partly from
Ur Hamilton's History, already referred to, and partly from information
furnished by Mr Reid's son, the ex-Premier of New South Wales. After a
brief stay in Melbourne Mr Reid accepted a call to Essendon, five miles
out, where a beautiful church and manse were built for him. In 1856 he
was called to North Melbourne, where he had a stipend of ^400, but having
taken strong ground against the system of indiscriminate endowments from
the public treasury, he resigned connection with the Synod of Victoria. He
then sought and obtained admission to the U.P. denomination, but having
met Dr Lang from Sydney, who was through advocating the claims of
Voluntaryism, unity of sentiment on this subject drew them together, and
induced Mr Reid to remove to Sydney to be the Doctor's colleague. "Some
years after he took up the spiritual welfare of the sailors, and laboured most
successfully as chaplain to the Bethel Union until 1867, when he died, at the
age of sixty-seven."
V
WOMAN'S VOTE IN THE SECESSION CHURCH
THIS is very much a reprint of an article contributed to the U.P. Magazine
in 1899. In 1736 the Associate Presbytery declared in their Testimony, and
next year they enacted, that ministers and other office-bearers are to be set
over congregations by the call and consent of the majority of the members
in full communion. This reads like a charter of woman's rights ; but when
Currie of Kinglassie pressed the question whether the Associate Presbytery
712 HISTORY OF U.P. CONGREGATIONS
meant by that enactment to give equal rights to men and women in the
election of ministers William Wilson of Perth made an entire surrender.
Though professing to consider it a matter of little moment, he made answer
that there was no difference of opinion between Mr Currie and the Associate
Presbytery upon that head. He also appealed to Morebattle, Stow, West
Linton, and other places for evidence that it was the uniform practice of
him and his brethren not to sustain females as electors. In keeping with
this, the call to Mr Wilson's successor at Perth, a few years afterwards, is
found to have been signed by male members only.
At that period even the advocates of popular rights had no tolerance for
the female vote. In a pamphlet by certain Protestors against the Act of
1732 it is argued that, since women are to keep silence in the church, they
are precluded from taking part in the election of ministers. Besides, since
they form the majority in many congregations, the writers were clear that,
if women were permitted to vote, elections might frequently be overruled
by them, "and thereby they would usurp authority over the men." They
also affirmed that such a thing was never heard of till 1790, when the right
to choose and nominate for vacancies being given to all Protestant heritors
it allowed women having landed interest to get in by a side door. In
another pamphlet of similar date, and on the same side, the right of election
is limited to male heads of families, and it is explained that wives and
children may take part therein "by influencing with religious and rational
arguments" their husbands and fathers in favour of one candidate rather
than another. At that period popular election, as we understand it, was
scarcely thought of. Ebenezer Erskine was ordained at Portmoak on a call
from the heritors and elders, " cheerfully acquiesced in by the whole popula
tion." When he was called to Tulliallan it was by " the heritors, elders, and
masters of families," the consent of the people being implied. When an
attempt was made to have him removed to Burntisland it was the heritors,
magistrates, and elders who were equally divided between him and another.
The translating call to Stirling "was subscribed by the magistrates and
Town Council and elders of the burgh and congregation, with the special
advice and unanimous consent of the whole community thereof." There was
also " a long paper subscribed by many heads of families." Such was the
method followed, and it explains the expression, the call and consent of those
in full communion. But the fathers of the Secession were out on open
ground when they enunciated the broad principle that the right of election
belongs to those "in full communion with the Church in all her sealing
ordinances." This may not have been designed to include the female vote,
but the logical application was sure to come, though in the Antiburgher
section it was long in coming.
The first trace of woman's vote in a Secession congregation is met with
at Kinclaven in May 1747, a fortnight after the Breach. The minutes of
session bear that, before going on with the moderation for Mr Blyth, the
names of those who were in accession to the Testimony were read, and
these were sustained as voters in the forthcoming election. The call was
subscribed by 159 members, though four years afterwards, with the con
gregation on the increase, the entire number was only 214. There had
been no distinction in this case between the rights of men and women.
But though there was no express legislation either way it came in a few
years to be understood that among the Burghers the female vote passed
unchallenged, while among the Antiburghers it was disallowed. The latter
part of this statement I would have deemed universally true were it not
that in a pamphlet by one of their preachers, James Watt, M.D., there is
something like opposing testimony. The writer says, as to those who have
APPENDICES 713
a right to vote, "our practice is not uniform ; in some places females are
excluded, in others they may be electors." Accordingly it comes out that
a call from Belford in 1 792 was subscribed by " 1 1 male and 8 female
members of the congregation, and by 14 male and 4 female adherents not
in communion ; and likewise an adherence to said call subscribed by 3 male
and 3 female members of the congregation who were not present on the day
of moderation, and by 5 1 adherents of both sexes not in communion." This
congregation, however, had come over from the Burghers not long before.
Ever and again there is evidence, in Presbytery minutes especially, that
among the Antiburghers the female vote was nowhere. On one occasion
it is entered that the minister who presided at a moderation, on closing the
service, requested all except male communicants to withdraw. Then, after
prayer, the work went on. In other cases a similar course must have been
followed. Thus, of a moderation at Whitehaven in 1772, it is stated that
the call was signed by all the members present except one ; but if so the
female part of the congregation must have retired, for the call lies before
me signed by male members only. On these occasions woman's presence
was dispensed with as well as woman's vote. It was the same sometimes
when steps were taken to have vacancies filled up. When Mearns people
were about to call Mr Hugh Stirling "the members present at the meeting
of the congregation which drew up the petition would be about 60 males"
That same day a call from Newarthill to the same preacher was brought up
to the Presbytery of Glasgow, " subscribed by 54 male members," and it
was intimated that, with one exception, all the members had subscribed,
which can only mean all who were entitled to exercise that function. These
things bring out the extent to which, in Antiburgher congregations, the
female part of the constituency was ignored.
In the signing of calls there were the same restrictions, and others
besides. First of all, only those who were present on the moderation day
had the privilege of ranking as subscribers. To this system the Anti-
burghers seem to have kept very rigidly all through. The call, with the
list of names appended, was the essential document, and, as a rule, this was
marked by the entire absence of female signatures. In the case of, perhaps,
one-half of these calls it is expressly stated that the subscribers were male
members of the congregation, and even where the limiting word is wanting
the shortcoming in numbers necessitates the same conclusion. Besides, I
happen to have seen several of these Antiburgher calls, such as one from
Lockerbie in 1762, another from Whitehaven in 1772, and a third from
Milnathort in 1806, and in each case the " undersubscribers," though
designated " elders and other members," are men without exception.
Along with the call there was generally a paper of concurrence from
members who were not forward on the moderation day, and at this point
concessions were occasionally made to the claims of female communicants.
At Cairneyhill, for example, in 1754 the adherence was signed by 12
members of the congregation, 6 of these being " women who were heads
of families." It might be felt hard that families consisting of widowed
mothers with their children should be treated as if they had neither part
nor lot in the choice of a minister. This may explain how it so often
happens that, while the call is stated in the Presbytery minutes to have
been signed by male communicants, there is no such limitation attached
to the paper of adherence. But there was often a third document brought
forward, with the signatures of ordinary hearers not in full communion, and
here the practice varied. I have before me two papers of " cheerful adher
ence" by non-communicants — the one from Urr in 1797, the other from
Moniaive in 1805 — and while the former is signed by 27 men and 17 women,
714 HISTORY OF U.P. CONGREGATIONS
the latter has male signatures only — 14 in number. About Perth Presbytery
and all north of the Tay the exclusive system appears to have been generally
adhered to at every point. Thus, as the outcome of a moderation at
Carnoustie, there emerged the three papers — first, the call, signed by
37 male communicants ; second, the special adherence, signed by
5 male communicants who were absent on the day of moderation ; and
third, the general adherence, signed by 13 males who were not in full
communion.
But in course of time the exclusion of the female vote at Antiburgher
moderations did not prevent female intervention in other ways. Of this we
find a marked specimen amidst the commotion which arose in Edinburgh
over the choice of a successor to Adam Gib. The party which afterwards
went oft" and formed Potterrow congregation, now Hope Park, succeeded at
the first election in carrying their man. But the entire session was on the
other side, and they were backed before Presbytery and Synod by two
petitions — the one from 108 men, the other from 214 women — pleading that
the call be not sustained, and if, as the Secession Testimony declared,
ministers were to be set over congregations by the call and consent of those
in full communion, it was right that non-consent on the part of female com
municants should find expression. The opposition prevailed, and the Synod
refused to translate. After the two parties separated the old congregation
called Mr Jamieson of Forfar, and again female membership made its
influence felt. The call itself carried only 103 names, but the special
adherence was signed by 115 in full communion, of whom 97 were women.
This betokened a working up towards equality. What view their old
minister, Mr Gib, would have taken of these innovations can only be con
jectured. In his " Display" he was at pains to explain from Nehemiah how
the Antiburghers allowed the anomaly of women as well as men subscribing
the bond of the Covenant.
As for the Burghers, there is evidence that they granted equal rights to
all communicants, male and female, almost from the first. So early as 1751
the call from Stirling to James Erskine, though a number held back, was
signed on the spot by about 826, and, large as the congregation was, this
number could scarcely have been reached under Antiburgher restrictions.
When Dunfermline commissioners in 1758 wished the Presbytery to declare
who were the legal voters in the election of a minister, they were referred to
the Act and Testimony, which gives the right to those in full communion.
In like manner, when Stirling people in 1764 craved the advice of the
Synod as to the qualification of electors, they were instructed to adhere to
the Secession Testimony, and it was only by taking the Testimony in a
non-natural sense that the suffrages of females could be disallowed. Ac
cordingly John Brown of Haddington, an honoured name among the
Burghers, in his "History of the Secession" and in his "Constitution of the
Christian Church," assigns the right of choice, without any reserve, to
"adult Church members free of scandal." In support of this contention he
quotes the text, that in Christ there is neither male nor female. It is also
remarkable that in the Burgher records of Presbyteries and Synods, ranging
from 1747 to 1820, often as calls are referred to and the number of signatures
given, the qualifying word, so far as I am aware, never once occurs. From
these considerations it may be taken for certain that in this section of the
Secession the right to vote in the election of ministers was recognised as
belonging to all in full communion.
The more open method which prevailed in Burgher congregations gave
their calls a mighty advantage in point of signatures. Thus a call from
Stirling in 1788 to Ebenezer Brown of Inverkeithing was supported by
APPENDICES 715
1229 names, and another from Glasgow in 1768 to a young minister in
Dundee by 1162. On the other hand, the North congregation of Perth,
though probably the largest in the Antiburgher connection, never came
up to 550. This arose mainly from the exclusion of woman's right to vote
or subscribe. The ill-judged restriction gave the calls from Antiburgher
churches of the weaker sort a very frost-bitten look. Greenock in 1808, for
example, though unanimous, brought up a call to the Presbytery " subscribed
by elders and other members of the congregation to the number of 18
persons," and the two usual papers of adherence had each 4 names
appended. It exaggerated the reduced state to which adverse experiences
had brought them. Arbroath before obtaining a fixed ministry had 70
communicants, but their first call only carried 26 names. At divided elec
tions there was a similar shrinking up in numbers. In Dundee Antiburgher
congregation, now Bell Street, when two parties measured strength against
each other in 1780, though the roll of baptisms indicates a membership of
at least 300, they only mustered for Mr Jamieson, afterwards of Forfar, 66 ;
and for Mr Allan, afterwards of Coupar- Angus, 36. This shortcoming was
mainly owing to the non-admission of the female vote. And in the case of
some Antiburgher calls the list of signatures is so contracted it tempts the
thought that in practice there may have been a further narrowing in from
male communicants to male heads of families, a limitation which used to
be largely contended for. In Dr Watt's pamphlet, already referred to, it
is mentioned that this restriction was sometimes imposed.
At the Union of 1820 the two points of practical detail on which Burghers
and Antiburghers differed were the use of Paraphrases in public worship
and allowing woman's vote at moderations. On the former point the United
Synod agreed at its first meeting " that preachers should not introduce the
singing of Paraphrases, Hymns, etc., in those congregations (whether settled
or vacant) which have not been in the practice of singing them." For a.
time the old distinction on the latter point continued to emerge, though in
waning measure. Of seven calls which came before the United Synod in
May 1822 addressed to Mr James Whyte, two bore the well-known Anti
burgher mark. Of these the one was from Coupar-Angus, " subscribed by
84 male members, and a paper of adherence by 17 males who were not
members of the congregation." But it was in the Presbytery of Wigtown
that the question of woman's vote was first raised in the United Church,
and after an interval of years decided. In 1821, when a call from what had
been the Burgher congregation of Stranraer, signed by communicants, male
and female, was sustained by that Presbytery, Mr Smith of Whithorn, a
minister of Antiburgher proclivities, craved to have it marked that though
he concurred in this, knowing that the practice had been allowed by the
Burgher Synod, "yet he could not help expressing his disapprobation of
female members of a congregation being admitted to vote and subscribe
a call, it being in his opinion contrary to the appointed rule, as well as to
the law of nature manifested in the constitution of human society." He
wished these sentiments of his put upon record, that if any attempt were
made to have this turned into a law of the United Church "he might take
the proper steps to resist it."
After this the question slumbered for fifteen years, and then woke up
anew in the same Presbytery and in the same town ; but in the interim
Mr Smith had died. It was the other congregation in Stranraer which was
vacant now, and it "had belonged to the Antiburgher side. On the modera
tion day the session, keeping by the old paths, produced a list of voters
consisting of male communicants only. This was objected to, but the pre
siding minister upheld the session's authority, and the election proceeded.
7x6 HISTORY OF U.P. CONGREGATIONS
The voting gave the successful candidate an absolute majority of 2, and
when the call came before the Presbytery it was subscribed, or adhered to,
by 45 male members, and resisted by 38 men and 63 women, all communi
cants. This forced the question to the front, Had the moderation been
conducted on a broad enough basis? Did it test the comparative strength
of the pros and cons in full communion ? So the Presbytery, instead of
setting aside the call, referred it to the Synod. When the case came up
for judgment it was moved : "To declare it to be a rule now observed in this
Church that females have the right equally with males to vote in the election
of a minister, and direct the Presbytery, in conducting future moderations,
to proceed according to this rule." The motion was lost by the Moderator's
casting vote, and another adopted to set aside the call, "as all parties had
acted irregularly." This I understand to have included the session, with
their list of male communicants, and also the minister, who went along with
the session's arrangement. Thus the end was gained. Prior to another
moderation in Ivy Place Church, Stranraer, it was announced from the
pulpit by authority of Presbytery that all members in full communion have
a right to vote in the election of office-bearers. This was in 1836, and it
was only saying in unambiguous terms what the Associate Presbytery had
said in their Act and Testimony exactly a century before : " That ministers
and other office-bearers are to be set over congregations by the call and
consent of the majority of the members in full communion with the Church
in her sealing ordinances."
Among the Original Seceders the exclusive system lingered much longer.
In 1842 successive calls from Ayr to Mr John Robertson, afterwards their
minister, were subscribed and adhered to by male members and male hearers
only. So late as May 1852, when the congregation of Dunnikier, Kirkcaldy,
met to decide on the proposal to unite with the Free Church, the motion
to acquiesce was carried by 40 to 6, " only male members voting, according
to custom." But in their congregations also the female vote, I am informed,
is now universally recognised.
INDEX
I.— CONGREGATIONS
Aberchirder, 127
Aberdeen —
Belmont Street (Anti
burgher), 4
Belmont Street (Relief), 9
Garden Place, 17
Charlotte Street, 18
Nelson Street, 20
Nether Kirkgate, i
Shiprow, 10
St Nicholas, 12
St Paul's, 15
Aberlady, 550
Airth, 697
Alexandria, 238
Alyth, 327
Annan —
Burgher, 57
Relief, 58
United, 60
Arbroath —
Erskine Church, 101
Princes Street, 98
St Paul's, 103
Archieston, 654
Auchtermuchty —
East, 161
North, 167
South, 169
West, 165
Avonbridge, 695
Ayton —
Springbank, 406
Summerhill, 409
United, 412
Balerno, 619
Balfron —
Burgher, 215
Relief, 214
Balgedie, 393
Balmullo, 191
Banchory, 40
Banff-
Relief, 123
Secession, 125
717
Bathgate —
Antiburgher, 602
Burgher, 597
Relief, 604
Blairgowrie, 315
Bonhill, 235
Bo'ness —
Antiburgher, 680
Burgher, 682
Brechin —
Bank Street, 96
City Road, 88
Maisondieu, 93
Droughty Ferry —
Queen Street, 344
Union, 342
Broxburn, 621
Buckie, 130
Burghead, 647
Burnhead, 265
Burn mouth, 412
Cabrach, 115
Cairneyhill, 360
Campbelltown, 656
Carnoustie, 104
Carron, 700
Carsphairn, 277
Castle-Douglas, 267
Ceres —
East, 157
West, 152
United, 160
Chapelknowe, 62
Chirnside, 422
Clola, 135
Clydebank, 241
Bank Street, 242
Coldingham —
Burgher, 421
Relief, 420
Cowdenbeath, 373
Craigdam, 21
Craigmailen, 668
Craigs, 220
Crossgates, 372
Cullen, 133
Cumbernauld —
Antiburgher, 672
Burgher, 670
Cupar-Fife —
Bonnygate, 184
Boston, 1 80
Provost Wynd, 187
Dalbeattie, 276
Dalkeith—
Back Street, 556
Buccleuch Street, 551
King's Park, 560
Dairy, Galloway, 273
Denny, 692
Dennyloanhead, 674
Downfield, 346
Drymen, 234
Dumbarrow, 65
Dumbarton —
Bridgend, 227
High Street, 230
Dumfries —
Buccleuch Street, 257
Loreburn Street, 252
Townhead, 254
Dunbar — East, 525
West, 529
Dundee —
Bell Street, 286
Butterburn, 309
Chapelshade, 294
Dudhope Road, 300
Hawkhill, 311
James Church, 305
Lochee Road,- 3 14
New Inn Entry, 297
Park Church, 313
Ryehill, 312
School Wynd, 278
Seagate, 299
Tay Square, 303
Victoria Street, 310
West Port, 295
Wishart Church, 306
7i8
HISTORY OF U.P. CONGREGATIONS
Dunfermline —
Ellon, 29
Chalmers Street, 354
Eye mouth, 424
Gillespie Church, 358
Maygate, 356
Fala, 578
Queen Anne Street, 347
Falkirk—
St Margaret's, 353
Erskine Church, 657
United, 360
Graham's Road, 663
Duns —
Lifters, 661
East, 398
St James, 667
South, 401
West, 665
West, 403
Ferry- Port-on-Craig, 337
United, 405
Fetterangus, 152
Dunscore, 270
Findochty, 131
Duntocher, 222
Ford —
Burgher, 582
East Calder, 611
Relief, 581
East Linton, 545
Forfar, 81
Ecclefechan, 44
Forgue, 143
Edenshead, 396
Forres, 635
Edinburgh —
Fraserburgh, 151
Abbeyhill, 482
Freuchie, 200
Argyle Place, 480
Arthur Street, 460
Gardenstown, 129
Braid, 493
Gorebridge, 585
Bristo, 430
Grange, 114
Broughton Place, 437
Grangemouth, 699
Canongate, 488
Dundas, 700
College Street, 434
Greenlaw, 415
Dean Street, 477
Guardbridge, 210
Eyre Place, 471
Fountainbridge, 494
Haddington —
Gilmore Place, 486
Antiburgher, 5J4
Gorgie, 493
Associate, 513
Grange Road, 474
East, 516
Greenbank, 494
Relief, 520
Haymarket, 489
West, 523
Henderson Church, 483
Helensburgh, 236
Hope Park, 444
Hightae, 270
Lauriston Place, 440
Holm of Balfron, 211
London Road, 490
Horndean, 418
Lothian Road, 464
Hovvford, 640
Mayfield, 468
Howgate, 567
Merchiston, 492
Huntly, in
Morningside, 478
Nicolson Street, 427
Inverkeithing, 362
N. Richmond Street, 475
Inverness —
United, 485
Queen Street, 644
Old Associate, 425
Union Street, 642
Palmerston Place, 456
Pleasance, 461
Johnshaven —
Rosehall, 491
Antiburgher, 75
Rose Street, 480
Burgher, 77
Roxburgh Place, 450
United Secession, 78
Roxburgh Terrace, 458
St James Place, 448
Keith —
Viewforth, 453
Antiburgher, 118
Elgin-
Burgher, 121
Moss Street, 625
Kelty, 398
South Street, 622
Kettle, 192
United, 628
Kilconquhar, 203
Kilmaronock, 217
Kilsyth, 684
Kincardine, 368
Kinross —
East, 390
West, 384
Kirkcudbright, 271
Kirriemuir —
Antiburgher, 319
Old Relief, 324
Relief (Bank Street), 325
Langholm —
North, 50
South, 52
Larbert, 702
Lasswade, 590
Lathones, 206
Leith—
Bonnington, 509
Dalmeny Street, 510
Ebenezer, 512
Junction Road, 507
Kirkgate, 495
North, 504
St Andrew Place, 502
Wardie, 511
Letham, 108
Liff, 330
Limekilns, 370
Linlithgow—
East, 691
West, 689
Loanhead, 593
Lochee, 338
Lochgelly, 366
Lochmaben, 268
Lockerbie, 42
Longridge, 605
Lossiemouth, 652
Lumsden, 37
Lynturk, 23
Mainsriddell —
Relief, 262
Secession, 264
Mid-Calder, 594
Midmar, 31
Milnathort —
Antiburgher, 378
Burgher, 373
Moffat, 48
Moniaive, 259
Monifieth, 346
Montrose —
John Street, 72
Knox's, 74
St Luke's, 68
Moyness, 628
Muckart, 380
Muirton, 85
Musselburgh —
Bridge Street, 532
Millhill, 536
Nairn, 637
iXewbigging, 333
New burgh-
Burgher, 195
Relief, 198
New Deer, 142
Newlands, 587
New Leeds, 149
Newport, 345
Newtyle, 340
Nigg, 630
North Berwick, 541
Old Kilpatrick, 232
Craigs, 220
Duntocher, 222
United, 224
Old Meldrum, 34
Pathstruie, 391
Peebles —
Antiburgher, 569
INDEX
Peebles —
Burgher, 573
Relief, 576
Penicuik, 584
Peterhead —
Antiburgher, 139
Burgher, 140
Pitlessie, 208
Portobello —
Regent Street, 549
Relief, 547
Secession, 546
Windsor Place, 548
Portsoy, 132
Queensferry, 608
Radnor Park, 241
Rathillet, 177
Renton —
Burgher, 225
United Presbyterian, 226
Rigg of Gretna, 63
Rosehearty, 148
Savoch of Deer, 144
719
Sanquhar —
North, 246
South, 243
Shiels, 26
Slateford, 613
St Andrews, 171
Stockbridge, 413
Stonehaven, 33
Strathkinnes, 205
Stewartfield, 146
Tain, 653
Thornhill, 261
Torphichen, 677
Tranent, 539
Turriff, 134
Urr, 247
Wamphray, 46
Waterbeck, 55
West Calder, 617
West Linton, 563
Wester Pardovan, 701
Whitehill, 136
Woodside, 41
II.— MINISTERS AND OTHERS
Adam, Rev. James A., 31
Adam, Rev. Thomas, 574
Adam, Rev. William (Dumfries), 255
Adam, Rev. William (Elgin), 625
Adamson, Rev. William, D.D. , 494
Aedie, Rev. Andrew, 82
Affleck, Rev. James, 382
Aikman, Rev. Alexander, 383
Aikman, Rev. John L., D.D., 256, 449
Aitchison, Rev. James, 660
Aitchison, Rev. Thomas, 498
Aitken, Rev. James, D.D., 268, 313, 467
Aitken, Rev. James (Falkirk), 17, 666
Aitken, Rev. James (Kirriemuir), 320
Aitken, Rev. John, 6, 290
Aitken, Rev. Thomas, 175
Aitken, Rev. William, 26
Aird, Rev. Hugh, D.D., 93
Aird, Rev. James, 317
Aird, Rev. John, 93
Alexander, Rev. Archibald, 57
Alexander, Rev. David B. , 252
Alexander, Rev. John, 143
Alexander, Rev. John P. , 546
Alexander, Rev. Robert, 353
Allan, Rev. John, 372
Allan, Rev. John T., 96
Allan, Rev. William (Arbroath), 104
Allan, Rev. William (Edinburgh), 483
Allison, Rev. David, 146
Allison, Rev. James, 184, 240
Anderson, Rev. Alexander, 70
Anderson, Rev. Andrew H., 503
Anderson, Rev. David, 629
Anderson, Rev. James, 531
A.nderson, Rev. John (Helensburgh), 236
Anderson, Rev. John (Kilsyth), 686
Anderson, Rev. Robert, 687
Anderson, Rev. Robert, D.D., 157, 380
Anderson, Rev. Thomas, 478
Anderson, Rev. William, D.D. , 16, 452
Andrew, Rev. James, 26
Angus, Rev. Henry, 13
Angus, Rev. Henry, D. D., 103
Angus, Rev. Robert, 576
Archer, Rev. Thomas, D.D. 591
Archibald, Rev. Robert, 513
Arniel, Rev. Wm. C., 546
Arnot, Rev. David (Blairgowrie), 319
Arnot, Rev. David (Kinnesswood), 440
720
HISTORY OF U.P. CONGREGATIONS
Arrot, Rev. Andrew, 65, 168
Arrot, Rev. David, 65
Arrot, Mr William, 319
Arthur, Rev. Michael, 4, 65, 570
Arthur, Rev. William, 441
Auld, Rev. William, 265
Auchincloss, Rev. John, 331
Auchterlonie, Rev. D. K., 23
B
Baine, Rev. James, 434, 706, 708
Baird, Rev. Archibald, 163
Baird, Rev. Hugh, 673
Balfour, Rev. William, 149, 151
Ballantyne, Rev. James, 462
Ballantyne, Rev. John, 33
Ballantyne, Rev. Thomas, 244
Ballantyne, Rev. William (Dundee), 281
Ballantyne, Rev. William (Langholm),
Si, 55
Banks, Rev. John, 428
Barclay, Rev. George, 271
Barclay, Rev. Peter, D.D., 192
Barlas, Rev. George (Dunfermline), 355,
356
Barlas, Rev. George (Musselburgh), 164,
539
Earlas, Rev. William (Dundee), 288
Barlas, Rev. William (Whitehill), 136
Barnett, Rev. T. R., 581
Barr, Rev. Hugh, 169, 195
Barr, Rev, John, 52
Barras, Rev. William, 130
Barrie, Rev. William, D.D., 32, 80
Bartholomew, Rev. George, 656
Baxter, Rev. John C., D.D., 308
Baxter, Rev. Thomas, 126
Bayne, Rev. Andrew, 527
Bayne, Rev. D. W., 250
Bayne, Rev. James, D.D. , 528
Beatt, Rev. David, D.D., 9
Beatt, Rev. James H., 150
Beattie, Rev. Alexander O., D.D., 368
Beattie, Rev. James, 192
Beattie, Rev. Matthew, 271
Beckett, Rev. William, 15
Begg, Rev. James, D. D., 474
Begg, Rev. Robert, 373
Belfrage, Rev. Henry, D.D., 658
Belfrage, Rev. John, 349, 657
Belfrage, Rev. John, M.D., 614
Bell, Rev. James, 170
Bell, Rev. John P., 33
Bennet, Rev. James, 171
Bennet, Mr John, 24
Bennet, Rev. Thomas, 154
Bennet, Rev. William, 633, 635
Best, Rev. Thomas F., 344
Beveridge, Rev. John W., 294
Beveridge, Rev. Thomas, 390
Biggar, Rev. James, 167, 248
Birrell, Rev. William, 131
Bisset, Rev. John (Aberdeen), i, 4
Bisset, Rev. John (Nairn), 639
Bissett, Rev. John, 314
Black, Rev. Alexander, 533
Black, Rev. Andrew, 670
Black, Rev. Armstrong, D.D. , 57, 458-
Black, Rev. Benoni, 518
Black, Rev. David, D.D., 355
Black, Rev. James, D.D., 176, 251
Black, Rev. James, 282
Blackadder, Rev. David, 94
Blackball, Rev. John, 282
Blackwood, Mr James Urquhart, 121
Blackwood, Rev. Robert, 125
Blackwood, Rev. William, 256
Blair, Rev. Adam, 337
Blair, Rev. George, 145
Blair, Rev. John, 234
Blair, Rev. John F., 130
Blair, Rev. Thomas, 361
Blyth, Rev. James (Fala), 579
Blyth, Rev. James (Urr), 249, 260
Boag, Rev. William, 206, 267
Bonnar, Rev. James, 166
Bonnar, Rev. Laurence, 180
Borland, Rev. Alexander, 673
Borland, Rev. David, 362
Berwick, Rev. James, 179
Borwick, Rev. Robert, 260
Berwick, Rev. W. B., 291
Boston, Rev. Michael, 665
Boston, Rev. Thomas (Ettrick), 243, 374
Boston, Rev. Thomas (Jedburgh), 401,631
Boucher, Rev. James, 672
Bowden, Rev. John D., 490
Bower, Rev. Alexander, 10, 15
Boyd, Rev. James, D. D., 229
Boyd, Rev. James, 90
Boyd, Rev. William, LL.D., 380
Brand, Rev. John, 293, 346
Brander, Rev. W. G., 39
Brash, Rev. John, 47
Breingan, Rev. William, 571
Brodie family, 638
Brodie, Rev. John, 10
Brodie, Rev. William C., 592
Broom, Rev. Andrew, 238
Brotherston, Rev. Alexander G., 541
Brown, Rev. Alexander, 506
Brown, Rev. Charles, D.D., 22
Brown, Rev. Ebenezer, 121, 140, 364,
Brown, Rev. George, D.D., 6, 12, 15.
27, 178, 282, 572
Brown, Rev. George, 543
Brown, Rev. Hugh, 214
Brown, Rev. James (Lasswade), 593
INDEX
721
Brown, Rev. James (Lochgelly), 368,
373, 479
Brown, Rev. John, D.D. , 438, 456
Brown, Rev. John (Falkirk), 666
Brown, Rev. John (Haddington), 516, 544
Brown, Rev. John (Longridge), 607
Brown, Rev. John C., LL.U., 8
Brown, Rev. John D., 198
Brown, Rev. Joseph, D.D., 555
Brown, Rev. Principal, 22, 322
Brown, Rev. Robert, 354
Brown, Rev. Thomas, D. D. , 554
Brown, Rev. Thomas, 20
Brown, Rev. Walter, 493
Brown, Rev. William, 6, 22, 26, 135
Brown, Rev. William, M.D., 517
Brown, Rev. William O., 242
Browning, Rev. David C. , 168
Browning, Rev. James, 167
Browning, Rev. Robert L. , 596
Brovvnlee, Rev. James, 664
Bruce, Rev. Archibald, 82, 288, 669
Bruce, Rev. John Kemp, 141
Bruce, Rev. William, D.D. , 469
Bruce, Rev. William, 230, 602
Brunton, Mr George, 156, 185. 337
Brunton, Rev. William, 2
Bryce, Rev. John, 9
Bryce, Rev. Peter C., 366
Buchan, Rev. John D. , 667
Buchanan, Rev. George, 205
Buchanan, Rev. James, 690
Buchanan, Rev. James C., 691
Buchanan, Rev. Patrick, 632, 641
Buchanan, Rev. Robert, 557
Buick, Rev. John, 86
Bunyan, Rev. Andrew, 568
Bunyan, Rev. James, 118
Bunyan, Rev. John, 137
Burgess, Rev. Alexander, 123
Burgess, Rev. Robert, 576
Burgess, Rev. William, 250
Burnet, Rev. William, 183, 187
Burns, Rev. David, 17, 692
Burns, Rev. James G., 229
Burns, Robert, 253
Burt, Rev. James, 361
Burton, Rev. John T. , 430
Butchart, Rev. James S., 150
Byron, Lord, 298
Cairns, Rev. David S., 412
Cairns, Rev. John, 258
Cairns, Rev. Robert, 673
Cairns, Rev. William, LL.D., 76
Calderhead, Rev. Alexander, 419
Calderwood, Rev. James G. , 616
2Z
Caldwell, Rev. Archibald M., 488
Callander, Rev. John, 23
Calvert, Rev. William, 544
Cameron, Rev. Archibald B., D. D.,
101, 436
Cameron, Rev. Hector, 49
Cameron, Rev. James H. , zoo
Cameron, Rev. James R., 225
Cameron, Rev. Robert, 267
Cameron, Rev. William, 612
Campbell, Rev. Alexander, 74
Campbell, Rev. Archibald, 21
Campbell, Rev. George, 413
Campbell, Rev. G. O. , 461
Campbell, Rev. John, 354, 674
Campbell, Rev. Robert, 140
Campbell, Rev. William, 152
Cape, Rev. Archibald B., 187
Carlyle, Rev. Alex., D.D., 434, 536, 706
Carlyle, Thomas, 44, 174
Carmichael, Rev. Andrew W. , 691
Carmichael, Rev. David, 125, 648
Carmichael, Rev. James, 68 1
Carmichael, Rev. John, 210, 405
Carr, Rev. George B., D.D., 510, 541
Carruthers, Rev. David, 609
Carruthers, Rev. William, 610
Carter, Rev. Andrew, 344
Caw, Rev. David, 145
Chalmers, Rev. Robert, 515
Chalmers, Rev. Thomas, D.D., 174, 178
Chapman, Rev. James, 106
Cherry, Rev. William, 613
Christie, Rev. Charles, 96
Christie, Rev. David, 430
Clark, Rev. Alexander, in
Clark, Rev. George, 62
Clark, Rev. J. Aitken, 494
Clark, Rev. James, 139, 191
Clark, Rev. John, 251
Clarkson, Rev. John, 668
Cleland, Rev. John, 212
Cleland, Rev. Thomas, 68 1
Clerk, Rev. Henry, 629
Clunie, Rev. James, 280
Clyde, Rev. James, 252
Cochrane, Rev. William, 383
Comrie, Rev. Patrick, 584
Conochie, Rev. David, 152
Conochie, Rev. Thomas G. , 310
Connel, Rev. Archibald B., D.D., 340
Connel, Rev. David, 684
Connel, Rev. Patrick, 599
Connon, Rev. Alexander B., 347
Connor, Rev. Charles, 37
Conway, Rev. James, 293, 692
Cook, Rev. John, 131
Cooper, Rev. Charles, 213
Cooper, Rev. John (Balfron), 216
Cooper, Rev. John (Dumfries), 257
722
HISTORY OF U.P. CONGREGATIONS
Cooper, Rev. John (Fala), 580
Cooper, Rev. John (Johnshaven), 80
Cordincr, Rev. James, 20
Cornfoot, Rev. Allan, 685
Cowan, Rev. James, 10, 522, 708
Cowie, Rev. George, in, 118, 121
Craig, Catherine Pringle, 90
Craig, Rev. John (Avonbridge), 695
Craig, Rev. John (Brechin), 90
Craig, Rev. John, D.D., 189, 256, 589
Craig, Rev. John K. , 477
Craig, Rev. William, 562
Crease, Rev. Robert, 38, 573
Crawford, Rev. David, D.D., 453, 547
Crawford, Rev. George, 596
Crawford, Rev. James G. , 371
Crawford, Rev. Matthew, 245
Crawford, Rev. Thomas, D.D., 209
Crichton, Rev. Hugh, D.D., 223
Crichton, Rev. James, 628
Croom, Rev. David B. , 71
Groom, Rev. David M., 245, 443
Cross, Rev. Archibald, 566
Cross, Rev. James, 54
Cross, Rev. John, 300
Crowley, Rev. Peter B. , 34
Culbertson, Rev. Robert, 502, 523
Gumming, Rev. Archibald, 159, 588
' Cunningham, Rev. Robert, 525
Cuthbert, Rev. Alexander, 601
Cuthbertson, Rev. Robert, 355
Currie, Rev. David Y. , 577
1)
Davidson, Rev. Alexander, 284, 465
Davidson, Rev. Andrew, 403
Davidson, Rev. Peter, 98
Davidson, Rev. Peter, D. D., 102, 472
Dean, Rev. John T. , 422
Deans, Rev. James, 508
Dempster, Rev. John F. , 39, 108
Dewar, Rev. George F. , 536
Dick, Rev. Alexander, 2
Dick, Rev. Andrew, 609, 679
Dick, Rev. Francis, 333
Dick, Rev. George Hill, 414
Dick, Rev. James, 203
Dick, Rev. John, D.D., 12, 49, 614
Dickie, Rev. Andrew, 16
Dickie, Rev. Andrew B., 114
Dickie, Rev. Matthew, 245
Dickie, Rev. Matthew M., 520
Dickson, Rev. John, 141
Dickson, Rev. Thomas S., 294, 481
Dickson, Rev. William C., 384
Dickson, Rev. William, 621
Dobbie, Rev. Edward, 263, 266
Dobbie, Rev. James, 58
Dobbie, Rev. Thomas, 504
Dobie, Rev. John, 51
Dobie, Rev. John, D.D., 690
Dobie, Mr William, M.D., 51
Dobson, Rev. John E., 21, 210
Doctor, Rev. Alexander, 157
Dodds, Rev. Andrew, 696
Dodds, Rev. James N., 33
Donald, Rev. John, 60
Donaldson, Rev. Alexander W. , 261
Donaldson, Rev. George, 283, 339
Douglas, Rev. George, 43, 732
Douglas, Rev. Hugh, 43
Douglas, Rev. Neil, 181, 296
Douglas, Rev. Robert P., 656
Drummond, Rev. James (Burnhead), 240,
266, 312
Drummond, Rev. James (Cupar-Fife),
1 88
Drummond, Rev. Robert J., 468
Drummond, Rev. Robert S., D. D. , 449
Drummond, Rev. William, 189
Dryburgh, Mr William, 280
Drysdale, Rev. Alexander H., 95
Drysdale, Rev. David, 64
Duff, Rev. David, D.D., 237
Dun, Rev. James, 686
Dunbar, Rev. John W. , 46, 360, 450
Dunbar, Rev. William A., 41, 309
Duncan, Rev. Alexander, 395
Duncan, Rev. Alexander, D. D. , 595
Duncan, Rev. Andrew, 596
Duncan, Rev. David, 568
Duncan, Rev. James B. , 26, 39
Duncan, Rev. John, D. D. , 322
Duncan, Rev. John G. , 410
Duncan, Rev. Robert D. , 308, 455
Duncan, Rev. Thomas, 623
Duncan, Rev. Walter (Leith), 229, 508
Duncan, Rev. Walter (Glasgow), 471,
590
Duncan, Rev. William, 596
Duncanson, Rev. Alexander, 667
Duncanson, Rev. Peter C. , 618
Dunlop, Rev. James, 219
Dunlop, Rev. James M., 531
Dunlop, Rev. John, 329
Dunlop, Rev. Thomas, 215, 433
Dunlop, Rev. Walter, 62, 258
Dyer, Rev. John M., 544
Dykes, Rev. Alexander B., 510, 587
E
Eadie, Rev. John, D.D., 457
Eadie, Rev. John, 324
Eason, Rev. James, 405
Eckford, Rev. John, 336
Edmond, Rev. John, D.D., 592, 676
INDEX
723
Elliot, Rev. Andrew, 583
Erskine, Rev. Henry, 657
Erskine, Rev. James, 349
Erskine, Rev. James M., 651
Erskine, Rev. John, 200
Erskine, Rev. John, D.D. , 359
Erskine, Rev. Ralph, 278, 279, 347
Fairbairn, Rev. Principal, 603
Fairley, Rev. Donald G. , 17
Familton, Rev. William, 193, 587
Fergus, Rev. Henry, 359
Ferguson, Rev. Fergus, D. D., 555
Ferguson, Rev. Henry, 33, 622
Ferguson, Rev. S. H., 610
Ferrier, Rev. Robert, 654
Finlayson, Rev. Thomas, D.D., 457
Fisher, Rev. Alexander, 352
Fisher, Rev. Robert, in
Fisher, Rev. William, 150
Fleming, Rev. John D. (Inverkeithing),
365
Fleming, Rev. John D. (Tranent), 541
Fleming, Rev. Thomas M'C. , 184
Fleming, Rev. William (Edinburgh), 467
Fleming, Rev. Wm. (West Calder), 617
Foote, Rev. Adam, 154, 191
Forbes, Rev. Robert, no
Forbes, Rev. William, 362
Forbes, Rev. William G., 472
Forrest, Rev. David, 363
Forrest, Rev. David W., D.D., 50
Forrester, Rev. James (Bathgate), 599
Forrester, Rev. James (Keith), 121
Forsyth, Rev. James, 168, 204, 352
Forsyth, Rev. Thomas, 586
Frame, Rev. James, 141
France, Rev. James, 260
France, Rev. John, 322
Fraser, Rev. James, 556, 619
Fraser, Rev. John, 162
Fraser, Rev. Matthew, 290, 338
Fraser, Rev. Thomas, 561
Fraser, Rev. Thomas A., 338
Fraser, Rev. William G. , 531
Fraser, Rev. William (Carsphairn), 278
Fraser, Rev. William (Fala), 580
French, Rev. John, D.D., 436
French, Rev. Robert, 353
Frew, Rev. Forrest, 158
Fullarton, Rev. Thomas, 265
Fyfe, Rev. Andrew, 254
Fyfe, Rev. William, 604
G
Galbraith, Rev. Matthew, 20
Galletly, Rev. William, 141
Galloway, Rev. James, 109
Gardiner, Rev. Andrew, D.D., 369, 477
Gardiner, Rev. James (Newtonards),
163
Gardiner, Rev. James (Old Kilpatrick),
221
Gardner, Rev. Robert, 60
Geddes, Rev. James, 56
Gellatly, Rev. David, II, 521, 537
Gellatly, Rev. Robert, 264
Gemmell, Rev. Andrew, 584
Gemmell, Rev. John, 5, 663
Gemmell, Rev. Robert, 189, 301, 462
George, Rev. James, 308, 313
George, Rev. William, 356
Gib, Rev. Adam, 287, 375, 381, 426,
430, 495, 525
Gibb, Rev. Colin M., 702
Gibson, Rev. James, 97, 357
Gibson, Rev. fohn, 608
Gibson, Rev. William, 395
Gilbert, Rev. R. E., 115
Gilchrist, Rev. David, 539
Gilchrist, Rev. James, 271
Gilfillan, Rev. George, 13, 30, 82, 285,
317, 341, 445, 477, 595, 660, 676
Gillespie, Rev. Thomas, 358, 363, 708
Gillespie, Rev. William, 28, 482
Gilmour, Rev. James, 373
Gilmour, Rev. John, 130
Gilmour, Rev. Thomas, 112
Gilmour, Rev. William, 124
Girdwood, Rev. Thomas, 584
Girdwood, Rev. William, 585
Gladstone, Rev. George, D.D. , 247
Glaister, Rev. Richard, 273
Glass, Rev. Laurence, 12
Glen, Rev. Hugh, 147
Glen, Rev. William, D.D., 58
Gloag, Rev. Peter B., 430
Goldie, Rev. Thomas, 589
Goodall, Rev. John S., 687
Goodburn, Rev. David S., 57
Goodlet, Rev. John, 244
Goodwin, Rev. James, 97
Goold, Rev. James G., 229
Goold, Rev. John, 71
Goold, Rev. Marshall N. , 258
Gordon, Rev. Adam, 646
Gordon, Rev. Peter, 572
Gorrie, Rev. Daniel, 194
Gorrie, Mr Daniel, 194
Gorrie, Sir John, 194
Gowans, Rev. Laurence, 31, 343
Graham, Rev. Andrew, 372
Graham, Rev. James, 343
Graham, Rev. John, 103
Graham, Rev. John K. , 330
Graham, Rev. Robert, LL.D. , I2O
Graham, Rev. Wm. (Newbigging), 335
724
HISTORY OF U.P. CONGREGATIONS
Graham, Rev. William (Whitehaven),
42
Grahame, Rev. James, 685
Grahame, Rev. Walter, 143
Grant, Rev. John H., 628
Gray, Rev. James (Brechin), 88, 92, 93
Gray, Rev. James (London), 207
Gray, Rev. John (Brechin), 88
Gray, Rev. John (Freuchie), 202
Gray, Rev. Robert, 488
Gray, Rev. William, 96
Green, Rev. George G., 131
Greenhill, Rev. John, 393
Greig, Rev. David, 367
Grierson, Rev. Thomas, 53, 458
Grieve, Rev. Alexander, Ph.D., 84
Grimmond, Rev. James, 228
Grosart, Rev. Alex. B., D.D., 388
Guthrie, Provost David, 94
Guthrie, Rev. Thomas, D.D., 94
Haddin, Rev. John, 370
Haddin, Rev. William, 370
Hair, Rev. Gilbert M., 157
Haldanes, The, 27, 116, 324, 625, 638
Hall, Rev. Archibald, 598, 678
Hall, Rev. James, D.D., 432, 437
Hall, Rev. James, 440
Hall, Rev. Robert (Dundee), 299
Hall, Rev. Robert (Kelso), 225
Hall, Rev. Robert (Old Meldrum), 36
Hall, Rev. William, 598
Halley, Rev. Ebenezer, D.D., 175, 499
Halley, Rev. William M., D.D., 231
Hamill, Rev. James M., 443
Hamilton, Rev, Robert, 700
Hamilton, Rev. Robert, D. D., 81
Hannah, Rev. William, 100, 102
Harkness, Rev. James, 45
Harper, Rev. Archibald, 683
Harper, Rev. David, 75
Harper, Rev. James, D.D., 505
Harper, Mr John Dick, 506
Harrower, Rev. James (Denny), 379, 693
Harrovver, Rev. James (Eyemouth), 425
Hart, Rev. Hugh, 12
Harvey, Rev. James (Muckart), 382
Harvey, Rev. James (Newbigging), 334
Harvey, Rev. John M., D.D., 436, 457
Hastings, Rev. John B., D.D., 458
Hay, Rev. Alexander, D.D., 183
Hay, Mr Andrew, 45
Hay, Rev. David, 309
Hay, Rev. James W. , 73
Hay, Rev. James, 327
Hay, Rev. James, D.D., 387
Hay, Rev. Joseph, 100
Heddle, Rev. William S., 91
Henderson, Rev. Alexander C. , 198
Henderson, Rev. Andrew, 422
Henderson, Rev. Archibald, 203, 208
Henderson, Rev. James (Blairgowrie),
315
Henderson, Rev. James (Duntocher), 223
Henderson, Rev. John, 530
Henderson, Mr T. F. , 121
Henry, Rev. James, 146
Hepburn, Rev. David, 196
Hepburn, Rev. John, 243, 247
Herbertson, Rev. Thomas, 252
Heughan, Rev. George K. , 639
Hill, Rev. George (Cumbernauld), 671
Hill, Rev. George (Musselburgh), 534
Hinshelwood, Rev. John, 519
Hislop, Rev. Alexander, D.D., 237
Hogarth, Rev. William, 64
Hogg, Rev. Andrew G. , 653, 732
Hogg, Rev. David, 317
Hogg, Rev. John, D.D., 256
Hogg, Rev. Robert, 329
Hogg, Rev. William, 318, 523
Home, Rev. Alexander, 208
Howard, John, 50
Howat, Rev. Hugh T., D.D., 343
Howat, Rev. James, 104
Howatt, Rev. J. Reid, 506, 508
Howatson, Rev. John, 420
Howie, Rev. George W., 336
Howison, Rev. Alexander, 640
Hownam, Rev. William, 696
Hoy, Mr James, 624
Hunter, Rev. Andrew, 563
Hunter, Rev. Charles, 24
Hunter, Rev. John (Pitrodie), 656
Hunter, Rev. John (Savoch), 145
Hunter, Rev. Josiah, 66 1, 692
Husband, Rev. James, D.D., 349
Huston, Rev. Samuel, 91
Hutchison, Rev. John, D.D., 509
Hutchison, Rev. Robert, 560
Hutchinson, Rev. Richard, 654
Hutton, Rev. George, 691
Hutton, Rev. John A., 330, 433
Hutton, Rev. William (Dalkeith), 551
Hutton, Rev. William (Moffat), 50
Hyslop, Rev. Henry, 73
Imrie, Rev. Andrew, 379
Imrie, Rev. James (Muirton), 85
Imrie, Rev. James (Musselburgh), 536
Inglis, Rev. Alexander, 325
Inglis, Rev. David, D.D., 417
Inglis, Rev. David, 417
Inglis, Rev. David M. , 414
INDEX
725
Inglis, Rev. R. C., 113
Inglis, Mr William, 414
Inglis, Rev. William (Banff), 28, 126
Inglis, Rev. William (Dumfries), 252
Ireland, Rev. James, 31
J
Jack, Rev. Alexander, 338
Jack, Rev. Alexander, D, IX, 530
Jack, Rev. Alexander B. , 531
Jack, Rev. James, 405
Jack, Rev. Robert, D. D. , 689
Jaffray, Rev. John, 552
James, Rev. George F. , 433
James, Rev. Robert, 587
James, Rev. William, 132
Jamieson, Rev. Hugh, 545
Jamieson, Rev. John, D. D. , 81, 429
Jamieson, Rev. John, 598
Jardine, Rev. James, 300, 588
Jardine, Rev. John (Dumbarton), 232
Jardine, Rev. John (Langholm), 50
Jarvie, Rev. Alexander M. 356
Jeffrey, Rev. George, D. IX, 209
Jeffrey, Rev. James, 537
Jeffrey, Rev. lames, D. D., 562
Jeffrey, Rev. Robert T. , M. D. , 694
Jenkins, Rev. James, 268
Jerdan, Rev. Charles, 304, 677
Jerment, Rev. Richard, 570
Johnston, Rev. Andrew, 600
Johnston, Rev. Andrew R. , no, 223
Johnston, Rev. George, D. D. , 45
Johnston, Rev. James, 178
Johnston, Rev. James A., 567
Johnston, Rev. John (Ecclefechan), 44
Johnston, Rev. John (Edinburgh), 451
Johnston, Rev. John (St Andrews), 174
Johnston, Rev. John J., 197
Johnston, Rev. Joseph, 637
Johnston, Rev. Robert, D. D. , 101
Johnston, Rev. Robert, 148
Johnston, Rev. Thomas B., 462
Johnston, Rev. William, 240
Johnston, Rev. William, D. D., 371
Johnstone, Rev. James, 279
K
Kay, Rev. John, D.D., 481
Kennedy, Rev. Andrew, 122
Kennedy, Rev. George, 203
Kennedy, Rev. Thomas, D. D., 391, 486
Keir, Rev. David, 677
Keir, Rev. John E., 611
Keith, Rev. James, 579
Ker, Rev. James, 423
Kerr, Rev. Daniel, 159, 402
Kerr, Rev. Robert, 630
Ketchen, Rev. Isaac, 638
Key, Rev. D. Ritchie, 14, 491
Kid, Rev. James, 597, 608
Kidd, Rev. James, IX D. , 177
Kidd, Rev. John, 176
Kidd, Rev. Thomas, 261
King, Rev. Alexander, 193
King, Rev. David, LL. D. , 479, 555, 590
King, Rev. John (Montrose), 72
King, Rev. John (Kettle), 193, 218
King, Rev. Thomas, 187, 589
Kininmont, Rev. Alexander D., 50x3
Kinloch, Rev. James M., 567
Kinmundy family, 22, 135, 322, 516
Kinnear, Rev. David, 276
Kirk, Rev. Thomas, 95, 490
Kirkwood, Rev. James, 449
Kyle, Rev. John, 386
Laidlaw, Rev. John, 124
Laing, Rev. Andrew, 63
Laing, Rev. Benjamin, D. IX, 99
Laing, Rev. Decision, 47, 52, 214
Laing, Rev. Robert (Duns), 116, 399
Laing, Rev. Robert (Newburgh), 196
Laird, Rev. A. L., 463
Landreth, Rev. James, 96
Landreth, Rev. Peter, 127
Lamb, Rev. James, 233
Lambert, Rev. George, 64
Lambie, Rev. John M., 699
Laurie, Rev. Alexander, 471
Law, Rev. John, 51, 354, 583
Lawrence, Rev. David H., 345
Lawrie, Rev. Robert, 306, 567
Lawrie, Rev. William, 37
Lawson, Rev. Andrew, 45, 698
Lawson, Rev. George, 258
Lawson, Rev. James, 397
Lawson, Rev. John (Dumfries), 254, 2C
Lawson, Rev. John (Pitlessie), 209
Leckie, Rev. Joseph, D.D., 86
Leckie, Rev. Joseph H., 184
Leckie, Rev. Robert, 688, 698
Leckie, Rev. Thomas, 48, 574
Lee, Rev. William, 419
Lees, Mr Robert, 38
Leitch, Rev. Richard, 98
Leith, Rev. William, 698
Leithhead, Rev. Walter, 672
Leishman, Rev. Matthew, 652
Leishman, Rev. Robert, 390
Leslie, Rev. Alexander W. , 379
Leslie, Mr John, 379
Liddell, Rev. John, 79
726
HISTORY OF U.P. CONGREGATIONS
Lillie, Rev. James, D.D., 73
Limont, Rev. William, 435
Lind, Rev. Adam, 19, 22, 137
Lind, Rev. Adam, D.D., 627
Lindsay, Rev. James, 215
Lindsay, Rev. John, 605
Lister, Rev. Thomas, 280
Livingstone, Rev. M. W. , 538
Lockhart, Rev. Robert F. , 72
Logan, Rev. James, 214
Logan, Rev. Richard, 459
Lothian, Rev. Andrew, 442
Low, Rev. Thomas, 393, 619
Lowe, Rev. George, 202
Lowrie, Rev. Alexander, 612
Lyon, Rev. Robert, 505
M
Macartney, Rev. William, 233
MacAulay, Rev. Alexander, 227
Macdonald, Rev. William M., 266
MacEwen, Rev. Alexander, D. D., 237
MacEwen, Rev. Alexander R., D.D.,
50
MacEwen, Rev. James, 583
MacEwen, Rev. William, 568
Macfarlane, Rev. W. H., 121
Mackellar, Rev. Duncan C. , 694
Mackie, Rev. David, 257
Maclaurin, Rev. Robert (Coldingham),
421
Macleod, Rev. George Gordon, 508
Macleod, Rev. James, 511
Macnee, Rev. James, 210
M'Ara, Rev. John, 392
M'Arthur, Rev. George, 25
M'Bean, Rev. /Eneas, 641, 642
M'Caul, Rev. William, 5
M'Coll, Rev. Alexander, 235
M'Cosh, Rev. James, LL.D., 77
M'Crie, Rev. George, 136
M'Crie, Rev. James, D.D., 35
M'Crie, Rev. Thomas, D.D., 216, 329,
373, 444, 516
M'Crie, Rev. Thomas, D.D., Junior,
136, 516
M'Dermid, Rev. John, 124
M 'Donald, Rev. Alexander, 269
M'Donald, Rev. Alexander C., D.D.,
646
M'Donald, Rev. William, 652
M'Douall, Mr James, 132
M'Dougall, Rev. Nathanael F. , 46,
132
M'Ewan, Rev. David, 436
M'Ewan, Rev. James, 289
M'Ewan, Rev. Thomas, 447
M'Ewan, Rev. William, 2, 279
M'Farlane, Rev. Andrew, D.D. , 601,
660
M'Farlane, Rev. Frederick, 69, 428, 444
M'Farlane, Rev. James, 350
M'Farlane, Rev. John, D.D., 174, 369
M'Farlane, Rev. John (Dumbarton), 228
M'Farlane, Rev. John (Waterbeck), 56
M'Fie, Rev. George P., 75
M 'Gavin, Rev. James R., D.D., 303, 311
M'Geoch, Rev. James, 260
M 'George, Rev. William, 594
M'Gilchrist, Rev. James, 565
M'Gilchrist, Rev. John, 403, 456, 469
M'Gill, Rev. Matthew, 45, 63
M'Gregor, Rev. Andrew, 22
M'Gregor, Rev. Andrew H., 241
M'Intosh, Rev. Duncan, 559
M'Intosh, Rev. James, 28
M'Intyre, Rev. Archibald, 588
M'Kechney, Rev. William, 537
M'Kee, Rev. John Wesley, 132
M'Kelvie, Rev. William, D.D., 395
M'Kenzie, Rev. George J., 107, 639
M'Kenzie, Rev. Roderick, 631
M'Kerrow, Rev. James M., 13
M'Kerrow, Rev. John, 585
M'Kinlay, Rev. John, 226
M'Laurin, Rev. Robert, 618
M'Lean, Rev. Alexander, 28, 323
M'Luckie, Rev. John, 37
M 'Martin, Rev. Archibald, 634
M 'Michael, Rev. Neil, D.D., 359
M'Millan, Rev. Hugh L., 696
M'Millan, Rev. James, 640
M'Millan, Rev. Samuel, 15
M'Nab, Rev. John, 81
M 'Naught, Rev. Daniel, 228
M'Owan, Rev. James, 177
M'Rae, Rev. David (Dundee), 285
M'Rae, Rev. David (Lathones), 207
M'Raith, Rev. John, 128
M'Swaine, Rev. John F., D.D., 165, 170
M 'Queen, Rev. David, 464
M 'Queen, Rev. John, 543
M 'Queen, Rev. William, 392
M'Vitae, Rev. John, 416
Mailer, Rev. James W. , 113
Main, Rev. Andrew, 630
Main, Rev. William, 656
Mair, Rev. Alexander, D.D., 479
Mair, Rev. George (Culross), 373
Mair, Rev. George (New Deer), 142
Mair, Rev. James, 564
Mair, Rev. Thomas, 135, 178, 373, 384
Mair, Rev. William, 381
Mann, Rev. David, 48
Mann, Rev. James, 651
Mann, Rev. John W., 55
Mansie, Rev. John, 241
Marr, Rev. Archibald, 227
INDEX
727
Marr, Rev. David, 465
Marr, Rev. Edward, 180
Marshall, Rev. Andrew, D. D., 387, $00
Marshall, Rev. David (East Calder), 613
Marshall, Rev. David (Lochee), 339
Marshall, Rev. Thomas, 47
Marshall, Rev. William, I). D., 251
Marshall, Rev. William, 499
Martin, Rev. Andrew, 269
Mather, Rev. James, 275
Matheson, Rev. Adam S. , 232
Mathie, Rev. Thomas, 541
Matthew, Rev. Patrick, 161
Meek, Rev. David, 85
Meek, Rev. Thomas, 324
Meikleham, Mr John, 115
Meikleham, Rev. John, 114
Meiklejohn, Rev. John C., 63
Mein, Rev. James, 638
Mercer, Rev. Peter, 234, 265
Merson, Rev. D. , 113
Methven, Rev. James, 191
Middleton, Rev. George M., 388
Mill, Rev. James S., 501
Millar, Rev. Adam J., 380
Miller, Rev. Alexander (Huntly), 113,
120
Miller, Rev. Alexander (Newbigging),'
336
Miller, Rev. Charles, 404
Miller, Rev. David K., 425
Miller, Hugh, 540, 631, 633, 638
Miller, Rev. James (Arbroath), 99
Miller, Rev. James (Huntly), 113
Miller, Rev. James H., 699
Miller, Rev. John (Grange), 115
Miller, Rev. John (Linlithgow), 691
Miller, Rev. John P., 107
Miller, Rev. Thomas E. , 360
Miller, Mr William, 219
Miller, Rev. William (Ealkirk), 660
Miller, Rev. William (Longridge), 607
Milligan, Rev. Archibald, 219
Milligan, Rev. John, 248
Milne, Rev. Charles, 397
Milne, Rev. John, 417
Milne, Rev. Thomas, 139
Milroy, Rev. James, 202, 464
Mitchell, Rev. James, 212
Mitchell, Rev. John P., 187, 473
Mitchell, Mr Patrick, 230
Mitchell, Rev. Robert, 222, 224
Mitchell, Rev. William, 135, 139, 146
Mitchell, Rev. William Arnot, 87
Moffat, Rev. Robert, 122
Moffat, Rev. W. D., 480
Moir, Rev. James, 671
Moir, Rev. John, 362
Moncrieff, Rev. Alexander (Abernethy),
65, 135, 392
Moncrieff, Rev. Alexander (Muckart),
382
Moncrieff, Rev. William, 369
Moncrieff, Rev. William G., 534
Monteith, Rev. James, 219
Monteith, Rev. John, 49
Monteith, Rev. Robert, 417
Monteith, Rev. Thomas, 401
Montgomery, Rev. Thomas, 410
Moore, Rev. John, 37
More, Rev. John, 361
Morgan, Rev. David M., 93
Morison, Rev. James, D. D., 117, 592,
630, 653
Morison, Rev. John, 169
Morison, Rev. Walter, D.D., 141
Morison, Rev. William, 492, 504
Morris, Rev. George, 38
Morrison, Rev. Robert, 112, 602
Morrison, Rev. George, 95
Morrison, Rev. John, 119
Morton, Rev. Andrew, LL. D., 449
Morton, Rev. Hugh (Cumbernauld),
674
Morton, Rev. Hugh (Dumbarton), 232
Morton, Rev. William (Buckie), 131
Morton, Rev. William (Kilmaronock),
219
Muckersie, Rev. John, 617
Muckersie, Rev. Walter, 338
Muir, Rev. Erancis, 507
Muir, Rev. Gavin S., 115, 616
Muir, Rev. James, 664
Muir, Rev. John (Edinburgh), 495
Muir, Rev. John (Newtyle), 341
Muir, Rev. Robert, 213
Muir, Rev. Walter, 393
Muir, Rev. William, 54, 263
Munro, Rev. Alexander, 645
Munro, Rev. Daniel, 645
Munro, Rev. John (Gardenstown), 129
Munro, Rev. John (Nigg), 633
Munro, Rev. John B. (Duns), 401
Munro, Rev. John B. (Nigg), 634
Munro, Rev. John L. , 690
Munro, Rev. Robert, 370
Munsie, Rev. William, 616
Murdoch, Rev. Archibald, 218
Murker, Rev. John, 124
Murray, Rev. Andrew (Forfar), 83
Murray, Rev. Andrew (Lynturk), 25,
40
Murray, Rev. George (i), 42
Murray, Rev. George (2), 42
Murray, Rev. James, 101
Murray, Rev. John (America), 42
Murray, Rev. John (Carnoustie), 76,
1 06
Murray, Rev. John A., 326
Murray, Rev. Matthew, D.D., 542
728 HISTORY OF U.P.
N
Nairn, Rev. William, 121
Nelson, Rev. James, 520
Neville, Rev. Henry A. , 398
Nicholson, Rev. George H., 47
Nicholson, Rev. James B. , 195
Nicol, Rev. Colin M., 41, 241
Nicol, Rev. David, 550
Nicol, Rev. George E. , 640
Nicol, Rev. William, 392
Nicoll, Rev. Henry, 40
Nimmo, Rev. Alexander, 567
Nisbet, Rev. Alexander, 442
Nisbet, Rev. William, 469
Niven, Rev. Hugh, 84
Nixon, Rev. William, D.D., 74
O
Ogilvie, Rev. Alexander T. , 130
Ogilvie, Rev. Duncan, D.D., 343, 486,
664
Ogilvie, Rev. William P., 149
Oliver, Rev. Alexander, 669, 691
Orr, Rev. George, 51
Orr, Rev. James F. G., 420
Orr, Rev. Robert W. , 98
Osborne, Mr James, 220
Padkin, Rev. James F., 418
Parker, Rev. John, 416
Parlane, Rev. William, 106, 540
Paterson, Rev. Alexander (Dairy), 275
Paterson, Rev. Alexander (Dundee), 158,
297
Paterson, Rev. Alexander J. B. , 400
Paterson, Rev. David, 543"
Paterson, Rev. Fullarton, 142
Paterson, Rev. George, 545
Paterson, Rev. Henry, 47
Paterson, Rev. James (Airth), 697
Paterson, Rev. James (Midmar), 31
Paterson, Rev. John (Blairgowrie), 318
Paterson, Rev. John (Whitehill), 138
Paterson, Rev. R. (Midmar), 32, 128
Paterson, Rev. Robert (Savoch), 145
Paterson, Rev. Thomas W., 597
Paterson, Rev. William (Banff), 125
Paterson, Rev. William (Portobello), 549
Patison, Rev. John, 431
Paton, Rev. Isaac, 622, 631
Paton, Rev. James, 214
Paton, Rev. John, M.D. , n, 15
Patrick, Rev. William, 42
Pattison, Rev. James, 259, 261
Peacock, Rev. Patrick H., 53
CONGREGATIONS
Pearson, Rev. Thomas, 424
Peddie, Rev. James, D.D. , 431 .
Peddie, Rev. William, D.D., 432
Pettigrew, Rev. John, 224
Pirie, Rev. Alexander (Abernethy), 181,
359, 5H
Pirie, Rev. Alexander (Linlithgow), 689
Pirret, Rev. Joseph B. , 262
Pitcaithly, Rev. Laurence, 107
Pollock, Rev. John, 202, 492
Porteous, Rev. Andrew M., 134
Porteous, Rev. Thomas, 376, 386
Primrose, Rev. James, 622
Primrose, Rev. John (East Calder), 61 1
Primrose, Rev. John (Grange), 43, 107,
114, 127, 133
Primrose, Rev. Robert, 674
Primrose, Rev. William, 4
Pringle, Rev. John, 624
Proudfoot, Rev. John, 496
Pullar, Rev. William, 250
Puller, Rev. William, 212
Rae, Rev. George, 253
Rae, Rev. James S., 46, 475
Rae, Rev. John, 174
Ralston, Rev. John, 402
Ramage, Rev. William, 322
Ramsay, Rev. James, 47, 82
Rankine, Rev. Edward, 29
Rankine, Rev. John, 186
Rankine, Rev. T. P., 57
Rankine, Rev. William T., 95
Redpath, Rev. Robert, 397
Reid, Rev. Andrew, 652
Reid, Rev. James, 244
Reid, Mr John, M.D., 466
Reid, Rev. John (Dairy), 273, 468, 600,
710
Reid, Rev. John (Milnathort), 305,1380
Reid, Rev. Laurence, 133, 392
Reid, Rev. William, D.D., 466
Reid, Rev. William (Haddington), 522
Reid, Rev. William (Lochgelly), 367
Rennie, Rev. James, 562
Renwick, Rev. James, 86
Renwick, Rev. Robert, 471, 565
Reston, Rev. James, 305
Reston, Rev. John, 451
Richardson, Mr Alexander, 201
Richardson, Rev. John, 201
Riddell, Rev. John, 49
Ritchie, Rev. Alexander, 274
Ritchie, Rev. John, D.D., 446
Ritchie, Rev. John B. , 20
Ritchie, Rev. William, 566
Ritchie, Rev. William, D.D., 400
INDEX
729
Robb, Rev. George, 323
Robb, Rev. John (Broughty Ferry), 342
Robb, Rev. [ohn (Lynturk), 25
Robb, Rev. Ralph, 206
Robbie, Rev. James, 306
Robertson, Rev. Alexander A., 657, 732
Robertson, Rev. Andrew B., 422
Robertson, Rev. James, D. D., 442
Robertson, Rev. James (Newington),
474, 535
Robertson, Rev. James (North Richmond
Street), 486
Robertson, Rev. James (Viewforth), 215,
456
Robertson, Rev. John (Burghead), 650
Robertson, Rev. John (Burton), 64
Robertson, Rev. John (Dalkeith), 556
Robertson, Rev. John (Duns), 404
Robertson, Rev. John Drysdale, 512
Robertson, Rev. John Dundas, D.Sc. ,
545
Robertson, Rev. John L., 696
Robertson, Rev. John M'C., 225
Robertson, Mr Moses, 155, 157
Robertson, Rev. Patrick, 19, 22
Robertson, Rev. Patrick, junior, 19
Robertson, Rev. Patrick W., 436
Robertson, Rev. William, 185
Robson, Rev. Charles, 644
Robson, Rev. George, D. D. , 644
Robson, Rev. John, 185
Robson, Rev. John, D.D. (Aberdeen),
H
Robson, Rev. John, D.D. (Glasgow),
185, 284, 591
Rodgerson, Rev. William P., 593
Rogerson, Rev. Adam B. , 127
Rogerson, Rev. William, 262
Ronald, Rev. James, 61
Ronaldson, Rev. James (Ellon), 29
Ronaldson, Rev. James (Longridge), 608
Rose, Rev. William, 310
Ross, Rev. Donald, 646
Ross, Rev. Forbes K., 245
Ross, Rev. James, 247
Rothnie, Rev. James, 268
Rouse, Rev. James B. G. , 697
Russell, Rev. Alexander A., 81
Russell, Rev. Archibald, 199
Russell, Rev. David, 354
Russell, Rev. James (Milnathort), 378
Russell, Rev. James (Kilpatrick), 233
Russell, Rev. James (Torphichen), 679
Russell, Rev. John N., 127
Russell, Rev. John, 378
Russell, Rev. Robert, 319
Rutherford, Rev. A. €.,476, 658,667,695
Rutherford, Rev. John, 14
Rutherford, Rev. Peter, 664
Rutherford, Rev. Robert, 589
Rutherford, Rev. William, 423
Ruthven, Rev. John, 389
Sanderson, Rev. John, 700
Sandie, Rev. George, 586
Sandison, Rev. John, 100
Sclanders, Rev. Alexander B., 538, 605
Sclater, Rev. Thomas, 365
Scotland, Rev. James S., 345
Scott, Rev. Alexander, 536
Scott, Rev. Andrew, 287
Scott, Rev. David L., 253
Scott, Rev. James (Bathgate), 605
Scott, Rev. James (Inverness), 643
Scott, Rev. James (Lauriston Place), 441
Scott, Rev. James (Musselburgh), 533
Scott, Rev. James (Viewforth), 453, 561
Scott, Rev. James G., 177
Scott, Rev. James Hay, 247
Scott, Rev. James K., 151
Scott, Rev. James M., 57, 508
Scott, Mr John, 13
Scott, Rev. John, 527
Scott, Rev. Joseph, 367
Scott, Rev. Robert (Burghead), 650
Scott, Rev. Robert (Canada), 34
Scott, Rev. Thomas (Auchtermuchty),
165
Scott, Rev. Thomas (Stonehaven), 34
Scott, Rev. Walter, 79
Scott, Rev. William (Balerno), 621
Scott, Rev. William (Leslie), 29, 500
Scouller, Rev. Dr, 419, 429, 543, 599
Scrimgeour, Rev. James, 542
Sedgewick, Rev. Robert, 7
Selkirk, Rev. Adam, 364
Selkrig, Rev. John, 55
Sellar, Rev. John, 245, 549
Semple, Rev. John W., 575
Shannon, Rev. J. W., 625
Sharp, Rev. William, 420
Sharpe, Rev. William, 655
Shaw, Rev. Robert D. , 447
Shennan, Rev. Alexander, 605
Sheriff, Rev. Robert, 540
Shirra, Rev. Robert, 280
Shoolbred, Rev. Williamson, D.D., 162
Sidey, Rev. David, D. D., 169, 619
Sillars, Rev. Duncan, 492
Simmers, Rev. William, 39, 132
Simmons, Rev. Arthur, 195
Simpson Rev. Adam L., 484, 636
Simpson Rev. Alex., M.D., 401, 708
Simpson Rev. David, 92
Simpson Rev. James, 446
Simpson Rev. Robert, D.D., 246
Simpson Rev. Robert, 414
73°
HISTORY OF U.P. CONGREGATIONS
Sinclair, Rev. George, 211
Sinclair, Rev. John D., 33
Skene, Rev. Andrew, 123
Skerret, Rev. J. L., 286
Skinner, Rev. J. M., 147
Sleath, Rev. Samuel, 684
Sloan, Rev. Andrew D., 177
Small, Rev. Robert, D.D., 486
Small, Rev. Robert, 46, 509
Smart, Rev. George, 286, 694
Smart, Rev. James (Chirnside), 423
Smart, Rev. James (Mainsriddell), 55, 263
Smart, Rev. John, D.D., 503
Smart, Rev. William S., 690
Smellie, Rev. Alexander, 181
Smillie, Rev. Robert S., 624, 702
Smith, Rev. Alexander, 257
Smith, Rev. Andrew M., 456
Smith, Rev. Andrew W., 209
Smith, Rev. Archibald, 46
Smith, Rev. David, 162, 172
Smith, Mr J. Guthrie, 234
Smith, Rev. James (Dundee), 294, 359
Smith, Rev. James (Old Kilpatrick),
233. 435
Smith, Rev. John, D.D., 151, 439, 651
Smith, Rev. John (Burnhead), 266
Smith, Rev. John (Dunfermline), 349, 363
Smith, Rev. Robert, 391
Smith, Rev. Thomas (Dunfermline), 357
Smith, Rev. Thomas (U.S.), 139
Smith, Rev. Walter C., D.D., 378
Smith, Rev. William, 236
Smyton, Rev. David, 211
Somerville, Rev. Andrew, D.D., 230,
379
Sommerville, Rev. [ames (Airth), 698
Sommerville, Rev. James (Brampton), 218
Sommerville, Rev. Simon, 105, 627
Sommerville, Rev. Thomas, 16
Sorley, Rev. Alexander, 103
Spence, Rev. Samuel, 62, 306
Sprott, Rev. Andrew, 655
Sprott, Rev. William, 240
Squair, Rev. Charles G. , 143
Stalker, Rev. Duncan, 572
Stark, Rev. James, D.D., 676
Stark, Rev. James (Ayton), 407
Stark, Rev. James (Lumsden), 39
Stark, Rev. John (Duntocher), 224
Stark, Rev. John (Horndean), 419
Stark, Rev. Thomas, 636, 654
Steedman, Rev. John, 23
Steel, Rev. William, 664
Steele, Rev. Alexander, 46
Steven, Rev. G. F., 128
Stevenson, Rev. James, 506, 677
Stevenson, Rev. John, 524
Stevenson, Rev. Thomas (Auchter-
muchty), 168
Stevenson, Rev. Thomas (Edinburgh),
454, 475
Stewart, Rev. George S. , 644
Stewart, Rev. Thomas, 195
Stirling, Rev. Alexander, 100
Stirling, Rev. James (Aberdeen), 18
Stirling, Sir James, 18
Stirling, Rev. James (Kirriemuir), 326
Stirling, Rev. Timothy W., 130
Stobbs, Rev. William, 30
Stonebridge, Rev. William H., 134
Storrar, Rev. William, 251
Strang, Rev. William, 15, 300, 459, 582
Struthers, Rev. Daniel, 56
Struthers, Rev. Gavin, D.D., 436, 708,
710
Struthers, Rev. James, 435
Struthers, Rev. Jas., D.D., 435
Stuart, Rev. John, 663
Sutherland, Rev. David, 227, 593
Sutherland, Rev. John, 531
Sutherland, Rev. W. M., 136
Swan, Rev. John R., 236
Swan, Rev. Thomas, 86
Swanston, Rev. John, 68, 248, 385
Syme, Rev. William, 315
Symington, Rev. John, 301, 455
Tail, Rev. Hugh, 535
Tail, Rev. William, 46
Taylor Rev. James, D. D., 176, 251,
Taylor
Taylor
Taylor
Taylor
Taylor
Taylor
Taylor
Rev. John, 311
Rev. John, D. D. , 163, 442
Rev. Joseph, 43
Rev. Peter, 155
Rev. Thomas, 37, 41, 665
Rev. William, D.D., 572
Rev. William, 225
Tees, Rev. William, 195
Templeton, Rev. James, 6, 18
Thirde, Rev. James Y., 87
Thomas, Rev. David (Howgate), 569
Thomas, Rev. David (Lockerbie), 43
Thomson, Rev. Alexander (Haddington),
524
Thomson, Rev. Alexander (Peebles), 577
Thomson, Rev. Andrew, D.D., 49, 438,
465
Thomson, Rev. Andrew, 244
Thomson, Rev. Geo. (Campbeltown), 64
Thomson, Rev. George (Rathillet), 178,
376
Thomson, Mr Henry, 171, 173
Thomson, Rev. James, D.D., 212, 682
Thomson, Rev. John (Ayton), 409
Thomson, Rev. John (Duns), 399
Thomson, Rev. John (Edinburgh), 484
INDEX
731
Thomson, Rev. John (West Calder), 618
Thomson, Rev. Thomas D., 448
Thomson, Rev. Thomas, 402, 448
Thomson, Rev. William A., 243
Thomson, Rev. William (Lumsden), 39
Thomson, Rev. William (Slateford),
614
Thomson, Rev. Wyville S. (Dumbarton),
229
Thomson, Rev. Wyville S. (Ford), 583
Thorburn, Rev. John, 16
Thornton, Rev. James, 377
Tillie, Rev. Alexander, 651
Tindal, Rev. John, 179
Tod, Rev. Andrew, 620
Todd, Rev. David, 34
Todd, Rev. George, 604
Todd, Rev. James, 50, 403
Torrance, Rev. John, 257
Tough, Rev. William B. , 524
Towers, Rev. James, 272, 698
Trotter, Rev. Thomas, 78
Troup, Rev. Alexander, 623, 629
Tudhope, Rev. Archibald, 59, 235
Tulloch, Rev. George, 118
Turnbull, Rev. Henry J. T., 115, 639
Turnbull, Rev. James, 460
Turnbull, Rev. John, 406
Turner, Rev. William, 23
U
Ure, Rev. David, 409
Ure, Rev. George W., 254
Ure, Rev. John, 41
Urquhart, Rev. Alexander, 413
W
Waddell, Rev. David, 27, 116
Wade, Rev. George, 666
Waldie, Rev. Charles, 359, 562
Walker, Rev. George, 80
Walker, Rev. John, D.D., 48, 613
Walker, Rev. John, 675
Walker, Rev. Robert, 182
Walker, Rev. Robert L., 520
Walker, Rev. R. T., 356, 383
Wallace, Rev. Alexander, D.D., 51',
239, 447
Walton, Rev. James G., 14, 294
Wardlaw, Rev. James, 347
Wardlaw, Rev. Ralph, D.D., 280, 350
Wardrop, Rev. James, D.D., 619
Wardrop, Rev. Robert, 284, 303
Wark, Rev. James R. , 41
Watson, Rev. Alexander, 199
Watson, Rev. David, 690
Watson, Rev. James, 56
Watson, Rev. John, 402
Watson, Rev. Robert A., D. D., 309
Watson, Rev. William (Dumbarton), 229
Watson, Rev. William (Forres), 637
Watson, Rev. William (Kilpatrick), 221
Watson, Rev. William (Kirkcudbright),
273
Watson, Rev. William (Langholm), 54
Watt, Rev. Alexander, 546, 651
Watt, Rev. John (Fala), 580
Watt, Rev. John (Old Kilpatrick), 233
Watt, Rev. Robert, 109, 550
Watt, Rev. R. Pollok, 470
Waugh, Rev. Alexander, 197
Weatherstone, Mr Thomas, 64
Wedderspoon, Rev. Alexander C., 550
Weir, Rev. John, 688
Welch, Rev. Adam, 369
Welch, Rev. Adam C. , 57, 237
Welsh, Rev. William, 666
Westwater, Rev. Alexander, 372
Whillas, Rev. Thomas F., 150
White, Rev. John, 398
White, Rev. John, junior, 399
White, Rev. William, 515
Whitefield, Rev. George, I
Whitfield, Rev. William, 528
Whyte, Rev. Alexander, 225
Whyte, Rev. James, 350
Whyte, Rev. John, 630
Whyte, Rev. Joseph T. J., 29
Whyte, Rev. Peter (Denny), 694
Whyte, Rev. Peter (Wooler), 120
Whyte, Rev. Robert, D.D., 443
Whytock, Rev. George, 557
Wigton, Rev. George, 332
Williamson, Rev. David (Queensferry),
610
Williamson, Rev. David (Whitehaven),
68
Williamson, Rev. George, 173
Williamson, Rev. William, 64
Willison, Rev. Archibald, 70
Willison, Rev. John, 65, 278
Wilson, Rev. Andrew (Drymen), 235
Wilson, Rev. Andrew (Montrose), 70
Wilson, Rev. George, 366
Wilson, Rev. James (Dundee), 302
Wilson, Rev. fames (Lumsden), 39
Wilson, Rev. John, 488
Wilson, Rev. Peter (Greenlaw), 418
Wilson, Rev. Peter (Leith), 504
Wilson, Rev. Robert (Ayton), 407
Wilson, Rev. Robert (Linlithgow), 692
Wilson, Rev. Robert S., 268
Wilson, Rev. Stephen H., 51
732
HISTORY OF U.P. CONGREGATIONS
Wilson, Rev. Thomas, 372
Wilson, Rev. William, 408
Wise, Rev. John, 166
Wishart, Rev. Robert, 262
Wither, Rev. Alexander, 118
Wodrow, Rev. Robert, 247, 563
Wood, Rev. Archibald, 221
Wood, Rev. George, 272
Wood, Rev. James P., 490, 520
Wood, Rev. Thomas, 316
Wotherspoon, Rev. Laurence, 514
Wright, Rev. Peter, 84
Wright, Rev. William, 214, 581
Wylie, Rev. James, 1 16
Wylie, Rev. Robert, 180
Wyllie, Rev. John, 141
Wyllie, Rev. Robert H., 312
Wyper, Rev. William, 59, 402
Yellowlees, Rev. John, 701
Young, Rev. Andrew (Grange), 114, 118
Young, Rev. Andrew (Lochmaben), 269
Young, Rev. Archibald, 18
Young, Rev. David, D.D., 380
Young, Rev. James (Dunfermline), 352
Young, Rev. James (Ellon), 30
Young, Rev. John, LL.D., 518, 546, 620
Young, Rev. John (Dumbarrow), 66, 108
Young, Rev. John (Edinburgh), 475
Young, Rev. John (Ford), 583
Young, Rev. John (Kincardine), 368
Young, Rev. John (Newburgh), 197
Young, Rev. Joseph, 518
Young, Rev. Thomas, 581
Young, Rev. William B., 156
CORRECTIONS AND ADDITIONS
Page 28, 1. 43. "James ^. JoJmson" should read "James &. Johnston"
Page 31,1.7. "Presbytery of Aberdeen'1'' should read "Presbytery of
Steiuartfield"
Page 36, 1. 15. "24th April 1862" should read "24th March 1862."
Page 41, 1. 40. " Stjamef Place, Edinburgh'''' should read "North Leith"
Page 43, 1. 46. "James Primrose " should read "John Primrose."
Page 43, 1. 47. Mr George Douglas was ordained at Walker, 6th June
1865, and was loosed on ist August 1882 on accepting the secretaryship
of the Religious Tract and Book Society, Edinburgh. He has been an
elder for many years in Rosehall Church.
Page 56, 1. 23. " David Struthers " should read " Daniel Struthers."
" 23rd June" should read "23rd October.'1''
" 1 5th March" should read " isth April."
" loth September 1849" should read " loth September
Page 95, 1. 22.
Page 120, 1. 48.
Page 128, 1. 34.
1851."
Page 1 66, 1. 22.
Page 31 5,1. 25.
Page 613, 1. 23.
Page 654, 1. 4.
" 17/7* February 1792" should read "27^ February 1792."
"John Henderson " should read "James Henderson."
",£30 "should read "^20."
On 29th November 1844 Mr Hogg was ordained in
Broughton Place Church, Edinburgh, to succeed the Rev. James
Paterson as missionary at New Broughton, Jamaica. He retired in
1882, and died in London on 6th January 1894, in the seventy-ninth
year of his age and fiftieth of his ministry.
Page 657, 1. 3. "Alexander A. Anderson" should read "Alexander A.
Robertson"
Page 657, 1. 24. "James Adam " should read "John Adam."
KNOX COUICi
TOUOWTO
KNOX COLLEGE LIBRARY
Live Music
Archive
Librivox
Free Audio
Metropolitan Museum
Cleveland
Museum of Art
Internet
Arcade
Console Living Room
Open Library
American
Libraries
TV News
Understanding
9/11